Also this issue:

Aimless by Design
Indie elders Yo La Tengo finally get their day in the Sun.
-Sam Adams

Prcss of Elimination
Estranged rock band converges on Philly and drops the vowels.
-Maura Johnston

Klasik Sundayz
-Ainé Ardron-Doley

Levon Helm & The Barn Burners
-Nicole Pensiero

The Postal Service
-Paul Burress

Dave Holland Quintet
-Kyle Parker

Kevin Burke
-Mary Armstrong

Evgeny Kissin
-Peter Burwasser

April 17-23, 2003

musicpicks

Assemblage 23

It's tough to find good old-fashioned EBM anymore. All the big names like Front 242, Apoptygma Berzerk and Front Line Assembly have moved on to bigger and trancier things, and the newish crop of copycats are stuck in the 1992 formula, which wasn't a bad one, as formulas go. But Assemblage 23 is one Metropolis underdog shaking things up a bit while still delivering the beloved beat that makes EBM the stompy dance floor delight that it is. Their third release, Defiance, combines the energy of EBM with the melodic textures of synth pop without the many layers of arpeggiated goop that often overwhelm even the most successful artists' work. A23 delivers bona fide oontz that combines the subtlety of Project Pitchfork and the frenetic, melodic energy of VNV Nation. Particularly notable is the fact that frontman Tom Shear doesn't hail from Germany -- or Europe, for that matter. Now a Seattle resident, Shear was a West Chester kid originally, and it's good to have him home.

Wed., April 23, 9 p.m., $11, with Cesium 137, Shampoo, 417 N. Eighth St., 215-922-7500.

—Helen Thompson