15 YEARS OF ASSEMBLE MUSIC

Other than the fact that they’re called Willow and they’re from Belgium, it’s probably best not to cast too many aspersions about this particular band; both their sound and their image clearly has plenty of room for reinterpretation and reimagination. They’ve dabbled in indie rock i the past, but their most recent output has lent towards an eighties-inspired dancepop sound that uses synths instead of guitars. This has come to be reflected in their energetic live shows; as in the past, frontman Pieter Jan Van Den Troost provides the focal point for the crowd with his tirelessly vibrant performances, but instrumentally, they now mix things up woth both synths and guitar present on stage and setlists that tend to run all the way through their back catalogue. This summer saw them as staples of the European festival scene, and they’ve also toured both in their home continent and in the United States with fellow Belgians Wallace Vanborn; they’ve played intimate shows in the UK, too, where they retain a feverish - and burgeoning - cult fanbase