Assemblage Point – Assemblage Point (UM Records)

Sydney-based downbeat electronic duo Assemblage Point have previously enjoyed the rather unique pleasure of having their ‘Fire’ single nominated in last year’s Global Marijuana Awards, and this self-titled debut album arrives on their own UM Records label, previously home to solo electronic releases from one half of the duo, Benn DeMole. The leafy accolades afforded to ‘Fire’ (which also features here) certainly give good indication as to the sorts of skunked-out sounds on offer on this album, which for the most part leans heavily towards dub / dancehall influences, with the addition of some striking horn performances adding an Arkestra-worthy edge to languid, spliffed-out cruises through tracks such as the funked-up ‘Either/Or (Trippin’) and ‘Cent’nal In Babylon.’ Unfortunately, while the eleven tracks collected here certainly represent some suitably smoke-friendly early hours listening, the sense frequently creeps in that this album’s still really deciding what it wants to be, with some of the stylistic eclecticism feeling slightly forced at points. Tracks such as ‘It Will Pay You Back’ and ‘Keep Running’ meander rather than moving with any real sense of development, while the deliberately ‘bogan’ vocals on closing track ‘Probability’ sadly sound like a joke that its creators might’ve enjoyed slightly more than the listener. There’s certainly some inspired stuff on offer here, but you might need to make judicious use of the remote control.