Perth Express is likely a band that you're unfamiliar with, but that's okay. Prior to being contacted by the label in regards to this discography release, I was totally oblivious to the band's existence. The world is a big place and you just can't be expected to know about every single band. Hailing from Germany, this discography encompasses the band's entire career up to this point.
The collection begins with the band's more recent recording, a ten-song 12" LP, titled Perth Express - though all their albums seem to be self-titled affairs. The band launches into things full force with an instantaneous assault of metal-tinged hardcore and d-beat in the vein of His Hero is Gone, Cursed, and Trap Them. The guitar riffs are nasty and the drumming is phenomenal. The vocals are equally as gripping with the guttural coarse screams. "Fünf Vor Pflicht" is one of my favorite tracks from this recording session, and their entire discography for that matter. They mix in some nice droney guitar parts, expanding on the band's sound. Perth Express mixes things up even further on "50* 59' N, 12* 26' O," which is a moody instrumental. The song provides a nice contrast to the rip-roaring closer "Neverending Einbahnstrasse."
Up next are a series of songs that appeared self-titled 10" release. Style-wise there is not a huge difference in direction. The songs are a bit more grimy and dirty and really pummel the listener. Part of this could be the production though. "Kollektivdisziplin" has a definite Cursed vibe to it. "Perpetuum Mobile" is an extremely devastating song. The melody and drone that they mess around with on their newer songs is nowhere to be found - just bone-crushing music.
Perth Express also recorded two songs for a split 7", which cane be found here. These songs show a slightly primitive version of what the band is now. It's obvious that they were still fine-tuning their sound. The band's demo wraps up this discography release. Again, production value is a little more low-level. The songs are a bit more basic, but show promise of what they've become now.
Aesthetically, the packaging to this release is fantastic. The album comes packaged in a black cardboard sleeve that is silk-screened with gold ink. The contrast is awesome, and the images of train wrecks depicted look great. The production of the album is good, though the band's earlier recordings are little less polished, which is to be expected.
For a band that has little press outside of Europe, this discography release proves to be an excellent starting point. You've got twenty-plus songs to choose from, but during repeated listens the quantity did seem a little daunting. Despite that, this discography does exactly what it set out to do, educate the masses on what they've been missing out on, Perth Express.
