Assassun – The World I Will Leave (EP – Blackjack Illuminist Records)

Genre/Influences: Electro-Wave.
Format: Digital, CD.
Background/Info: German artist and label owner Alexander Leonard Donat has launched a new project. Next to his involvement with Vlimmer, Fir Cone Children ao he now strikes back with the debut EP of Assassun. The four tracks are inspired by ‘irrational, long-suffered emotions’.
Content: Sound-wise Assassun clearly sounds like a new experience, which is totally Electro-driven. The common element with Donat’s main project Vlimmer is the 80s spirit running through the work. The sounds have something metallic while the leads create a spooky and sometimes psychedelic touch. All songs have been sung in English.
+ + + : Alexander Donat took me by surprise. He’s not only an extremely prolific DIY artist, but still a true creative mind. Assassun reveals another side of the musician, but still an alluring work carried by impressive, overwhelming blasts and low resonating bass lines. The third song (cf. “The Art Of Ignorance”) is my personal favorite for its club-friendly approach. This song is a great danceable piece of music driven by aggressive sequences and a harder kick. I also have to say a word about the powerful and charismatic vocals of the artist.
– – – : My only regret is that the songs are pretty short, but that’s another connection with 80s music.
Conclusion: This is a great debut EP and I’m really looking forward to discovering the album from Assassun.
Best songs: “The Art Of Ignorance”, “The World I Will Leave”.
Rate: 7½.
Listen to “The World I Will Leave”:
Artist: www.facebook.com/assassunband
Label: www.facebook.com/Blackjack.Illuminist Read the news on ‘The World I Will Leave’.
About Assassun
Assassun is a solo project of the German musician and label owner Alexander Leonard Donat, who is based in Berlin. Donat runs Blackjack Illuminist Records and also records as Vlimmer, Fir Cone Children and Cuts Of Chaos. Assassun works with electro-wave, sung in English, built on metallic sounds and 80s-styled leads.
The project debuted with the four-track EP “The World I Will Leave” in 2022 on Blackjack Illuminist Records. The EP “Sunset Skull” followed later the same year, then “Chronic Quicksand Depression Morning” in 2023, “Post-Climax” in 2024 and “Retrofate” in 2025.
Support Side-Line
More people read Side-Line than ever, and there is still no paywall and no advertising. Readers pay for it instead - from $5 a month.
Why we ask
Advertising revenues across the media are falling fast. Unlike many news organisations we have not put up a paywall, and we refuse to add annoying advertising, so we need to ask for your help. Side-Line’s independent journalism takes time, money and hard work to produce, and we do it to push the artists we like, who are equally fighting to survive.
Handled by PayPal.

I have been working for over 30 years with Side-line as the main reviewer. My taste is eclectic, uncoventional and I prefer to look for the pearls, even if the bands are completely unknown, thus staying loyal to the Side-Line philosophy of nurturing new talents.

