Thing of the Day
Mr Sterile Assembly
August
1st 2011
Who are MR STERILE ASSEMBLY? They’re pretty unique actually,
uniquely excellent… Mr Sterile Assembly are from New Zealand, they have
a minefield in their playground, and their latest album, Transit, is
something we rather recommend..
MR STERILE ASSEMBLY –Transit (Skirted) – They
sound like a more frantic
Gong - a slightly stressed day on that planet - or maybe a band on the
run
from the raggity zaggity crowman of planet Ring? They sound good from
the off; hold the front page, we got one here.
There’s a slight sense of
claustrophobia, a threat of some sort, with song subjects based in the
harsher realities. The album opens with the menacing, urgency
of Hibakusha,
a song written about a real-life survivor of both
Hiroshima and Nagasaki, they have delightfully awkward sound that
continually evolves and never fails to challenge. Gone a
little Wilco Johnson messing with The Ex right now: intricate clever
rhythmic weaving, that old school Pere Ubu new wave weird-punk
art-fuelled feel, and all the while with details and tunes (and clever
moves) all of their own…or maybe Cheesecake Truck? Dog Faced
Hermans? Their combination of sometimes intricate time changes, female
voice, dark-edged melody and real-world lyrics can even be reminiscent
of Thinking Plague.
They’re
rather unique actually, uniquely excellent. Mr Sterile Assembly are
from new Zealand, they have a minefield in their playground, (a
mindfield?), they’re exploding things in your mind, they’re forever
shifting, changing shape, never retaining a status quo. Gong at their
most edgy, at their probingly subversive is probably the nearest thing
you can pin on them in terms of a positive comparison - playing with
fire, to question and to learn…. This latest album stands out far far
more than previous things we’ve heard from these rather creative New
Zealanders; this is great, even with all that paranoia and that
electric Orwellian warning and the monitoring of your every logged-on
communication check in, the watching of everything you ever say or do
tagged there by the Man in cyberspace… 
Mr Sterile Assembly have a sound that somehow is oppressive and delightful both at the same time. They sound paranoid, they sound switched on, they sound aware, they also sound like thoroughly decent people, inviting people, come join our band - a Crass-like collective you’d really like to be part of and muck in with (Crass always sounded like they’d be such hard work to be part of: this gathering sounds inviting). And even when the sound is getting a little frantic and the saxophone is sounding a little like a maniacal goose, they still flow so well. Mr Sterile Assembly are never aggressive in terms of musical style, never pecking at your head. They may be throwing out questions, but it's not just head-on arguing. They’re too artistically intriguing to be about mere confrontation as they take you on their ever flowing, ever shifting, ever thrilling musical/lyrical ride… All open mouth expectant, man swallows his own tail, all clever time changes and awkward song structures (along with a fine dress sense).
The band are mostly drummer/vocalist
Kieran Monaghan and
bassist/vocalist Chrissie Butler - the two piece are augmented by a
number of guests and scuttling collaborators. Transit is a
cohesive,
challenging album, hardboiled but somehow never difficult to listen to,
an
album that at times is brilliant, an album that’s always very very good
(and complemented by good artwork/packaging). They may be from the
other
side of the world and we may not get that much of a chance to see them
live, but this is an album and a band that you do need to go explore.
http://www.mrsterileassembly.com
Video for Stella, a track off this latest album
Mr Sterile Assembly, Anarchist Shop, Newtown, Wellington, NZ
Live at Fredstock, 2010
