★★★½
Few bands can lay claim to being more quintessentially Australian than Cold Chisel.
The Perfect Crime is the eighth addition to a career that spans over 35 years and has been responsible for some of the nation’s most iconic songs.
While no song on this new record has the ability to dethrone their classics, the disc is filled to the brim with no-frills rock’n’roll, with elements of rockabilly, soul, and even disco thrown in. Several cues have been taken from Jimmy Barnes’ solo career, as he delivers one of his strongest vocal performances in years, from vocal gymnastics with first single ‘Alone For You’ to the blues explosion of ‘The Mansions’. Ian Moss and Don Walker work seamlessly together on keys and guitars, never stealing the spotlight from each other, nor holding it too long.
Walker provides two songs from his back catalogue (‘The Perfect Crime’ and ‘Four In The Morning’), and the album also features a songwriting collaboration with ex-Australian Idol star Wes Carr. When the band’s core members come together, though, everything sounds distinctly Chisel.
The Perfect Crime isn’t a bad album by any means, but it lacks the timelessness that has made Chisel a household name.
Cold Chisel’sThe Perfect Crimeis available throughUniversal.
