Thus far I have only two EN albums, on opposite ends of their recorded spectrum: Strategies Against Architecture Vol. 1, which is made up of their percussive, radical, noisy, primal early aesthetic, and this album. The two couldn't be more different, though both demonstrate Blixa Bargeld & Co.'s dedication to making brilliantly artistic and individual music. The fact that is still being cleverly performed on a variety of non-musical implements (tubes of pressurized air, various metal percussion, even bags of leaves and a blanket on one track) along with conventional instrumentation only makes it all the more unique (I've been told their live show using the aforementioned tools is way cool.. it's on my list).

Judging by the reviews here, some hardened EN buffs much prefer the harshness of the earlier albums to this. Well, I beg to differ. This has most, if not all, of the elements that characterized what I've heard of their early work, but coupled to an organic sense of song structure, dynamics, and (gasp!) melody. They can still clomp around and be plenty loud and scary (and make it sound musical no less), but there is a relaxing beauty behind the industrial wall of sound and an incredible use of space.

Blixa Bargeld is a very unique frontman, with an extremely flexible, rich voice and a melodic and rhythmic gift (and here he sounds totally unlike the screaming Germanic madman that often shows up on their early albums). Listen to him articulate around the sparse, languid pressurized-air rhythm on the opening track Ich Gehe Jezt, or his hushed, tense delivery on the eerie Dead Friends (Around The Corner). Most of the poetic, abstract lyrics are in German (with some snippets and one ballad, Youme & Meyou, delivered in English), but knowledge of the language is not required--Blixa's voice can be regarded as another instrument (and a translation is provided).

The music is amazing and varied. Perpetuum Mobile's songs never really reach a fast tempo as is common in some other forms of industrial, but it never gets boring. The epic title track and Selbstportrait Mit Kater are the main highlights, the former featuring some really addictive rhythms using guitar, E-bow, and metal percussion; the latter starts slowly with the occassional jolt of noise and rises to a stirring string-backed climax ("Life on other planets is difficult"). The muted, mournful Ein Leichtes Sauseln features an especially powerful Blixa performance, while Paradiessets is minimal and downright soothing (in a good way). All in all, not a bad track to be found.

I'm not sure how to classify this ("prog-industrial," perhaps?), but I do know that I love it, and hope EN continue in this direction. More, please.

i'm really not sure why so many people seem down on this album. i think it's their best and most accessible (which may be why some don't think very highly of it) so far. it's not my personal favorite, but it's their best. they've obviously spent the last 20+ years perfecting their music and this is the result (or is it?!). i won't bother tying to explain WHY it's the best because that would be a waste of words because you just can't explain things like that.

i agree with a reviewer below who said if you think they've lost it to old age or WHATEVER, you're crazy because i just saw them live about a week ago myself and they were gloriously noisey and did everything they used to do back in the 80's.

but going back to the album, it has a good mix of noisey and quiet songs.

if you're already a neubauten fan and you dont have this album, you MUST buy it. but don't give them a hard time for not being the speed-fueled delinquents they were 20 years ago. they should be allowed to grow and progress with age and that's exactly what they're doing. if you can't appreciate the album for what it is, that's nothing to do with the band.

Obviously if you are a fan of Neubauten's earlier work, you would be surprised of how different their sound is showcased on this album.

Their earlier work consisted mostly of minimalistic/abstract songs. Basically they weren't structured, and they had no melody. And though this kind of sound has taken up most of their work since they banded, I personally prefer their later works ("Tabula Rasa" to now).

Personally, I think this album is my favorite by them. Scratch that, it literally is one of the greatest albums I have EVER heard.

From the opening tubes and claps of "Ich gehe jetz", to the metal clangs and riffs of the guitars in "Grundstuck", Perpetuum Mobile is a masterpiece from start to finish.

The idea of the album pretty much states that everything, everywhere is ever-changing, never stopping, and always leaving impact one way or another. In every song, sujects such as transportation ("Perpetuum Mobile"), nature ("Ein seltener Vogel"), weather ("Ozean und Brandung"), and life and death ("Dead Friends (Around the Corner)") are showcased thoroughly and very descriptively.

Obviously to get a more deep feeling and thought of the songs, you would have to read the lyrics. Doing this while listening to the music at the same time gave me a deeper understanding of what the songs are trying to explain and define. I persoanlly find it to be a rewarding experience to get a full understanding of a highly enjoyable album.

If you are a Neubauten fan, no matter what, I think you need to give this album a shot. But if you prefer their earlier works to now, proceed with caution.

My first impression is this album brings the listener down, paused and pondering. It harks back to Ende Neu, in that it demands repeated listening - quite unlike the excitement and adrenaline of hearing Silence is Sexy for the first time. The experience of hearing these new pieces (which are now quite literary) in a smoothed out, straight forward album sequence feels more broad in its reach than any of their previous achievements. Weird for EN's ability to focus. Lots of air compressors at this point.

I'm still convinced in the integrity of EN. They remain a great musical muscle. What's to come?

i'm not going to gush over this album, that's been done. however i am a bit confused as to how someone could not think understanding the lyrics was important. they are a beautiful integral part of the music. sound and content, and more beautiful because they are in german. why discount poetry?