Twelve inch vinyl pressing. Right on the heels of their Ahead Of Two Thoughts LP released earlier this year, A Casual Assembly is the 2018 offering from Melbourne's Exek. The EP coalesces around a stirring theme for synthesizer, trumpet and bass, bringing together reference points to Laurie Spiegel, Jah Wobble and The Velvet Underground's "The Gift." Frontman Albert Wolski's disembodied narration - at times reminiscent of Samuel Beckett or Robert Ashley - unfolds over a series of dark vignettes set in a dystopian near-future. Autotune has been banned, secret police patrol the redoubts of the wealthy, and world beaches have been cleared of their sand for the construction of enormous ur- ban prisons. As these events turn more fraught and absurd, Wolski reveals just how much is gained through Exek's stripped-down arrangements and dreamlike tones. A Casual Assembly echoes like the lost soundtrack to a Kubrick or Jarman film. Recommended for fans of Normil Hawaiians, Jenny Hval and Harmonia.