It’s very rare that an unsigned band will capture attention as quickly as Walsall-based band The Assist have done.
Going from strength to strength to strength in little over a year, the band have supported members of The Jam and have performed across the country. And on the back of favourable reviews and two popular and well-received soundcloud tracks, the band have just released their debut EP ‘Speak It Aloud’.
Managing to capture the excitement and energy of the band’s live performances, the EP is a consistent release that showcases the kind of rough-edged indie-rock that the band are capable of. From the opening guitar solo of title track ‘Speak It Aloud’ to the bone-rattling bass of ‘The Rave’, the EP has all the ingredients of a successful debut. The guitars flick seamlessly between velvet-smooth lead riffs and coarse rhythm tones; the vocals ooze with in-your-face confidence and the rhythm section is tight and driving.
Third track ‘1, 2, 3, 4’ is probably the release’s weakest track, but it does show a side to the band that the other tracks don’t. It shows that the band are capable of performing slower pieces of music, but this feels anticlimactic due to the slower section’s sandwiching between two highly energetic sections. But final track ‘Control’ picks up the slack and ends the EP on a spectacular high.
All in all, the release is an enjoyable listen with a lot of merit. One of the most commendable things is that it embodies the excitement that is generally associated with a young band starting out and trying to take on the world. And with a debut as consistently exciting as this one, it’s hard to argue.
