Tresor 192 - Dungeon Master Review Thread

[CV]

from the Wire Magazine , October 2002
CRISTIAN VOGEL
DUNGEON MASTER
Tresor 56192 6 2X12"

These eight bunker tracks from Vogel's new No Future studio in
Barcelona imply that he certainly hasn't been seeing much of the
Spanish sun since he got there - much to our benefit. "DungeonMaster"
is uncomprimisingly spiky, staccato Techno worthy of any gloomy
vault, with low resolution bursts of noise chopped and diced,
whirling abstract synth motifs, obtuse blocks and pummeling walls of
sound. Working in the Detroit tradition of Jeff Mills and Robert
Hood, though bringing a different sensibility into the mix. Vogel is
arriving at his own distinct, if awkwardly funky take on the classic
Axis sound. Less consciously 'difficult' than any number of his many
previous releases, this is raw dancefloor Techno at its best.

[CV]

Muzik, Oct 2002

Cristian Vogel "Dungeon Master" (Tresor)
With dewey-eyed Detroit nostalgia and electro-pop pastiche so prevalent in
techno it's heartening to find cantankerous refuseniks like Vogel bucking
the trend and stretching the genre to its limit. With kango-hammer beats
buckling under their own weight and bass noises like a rhino with a rectal
prolapse, this lurches chaotically from one unfamiliar place to the other
but never quite loses its footing. Much like Vogel himself when we spotted
him during this year's Sonar festival, in fact. Noisy, Nasty, Spiteful fun -
and you can even dance to it. ****

[Lady E]

i dont remember you tripping over that much. oh well maybe i was too

[dungeon jaeger]

DJ MAGAZINE (10 August 2002)

Cristian Vogel "Dungeon Master" (Tresor)

Barcelona based Cristian Vogel must have had a right old laugh making
this record. Retaining the devil-may-care approach his entire catalog
has been characterised by, the UK producer's latest solo boasts the
kind of off-the-wall, skewed minimal techno - check the drum led
'Pigeon Battle' and scatter noise funk of 'Spank Bass' - that's just
about on the dancefloor friendly side of experimental. On other
occasions though, and echoing his generative music release on
Supremat, it sounds like Vogel has gone off for a post prandial
stroll down the sunny Ramblas as his trusty machines wreak tempo
shifting apocalyptic feedback havoc.
*****

[dungeon jaeger]

JOCKEY SLUT MAGAZINE (September 2002)

Cristian Vogel "Dungeon Master" (Tresor)

After switching to Novamute so that people wouldn't align his too
closely with Tresor, Vogel returns to, er, Tresor for a double-pack.
As you might expect, this is very spiky, abrasive stuff, harsh and
hissing with a variety of tempos and moods. And all of it exactly the
kind of thing your jazz-loving friend will laugh at. Which is no bad
thing, let's face it. - - - Tom Magic Feet

[dungeon jaeger]

SEVEN: Update (14 August 2002)

Cristian Vogel "Dungeon Master" (Tresor)

Roger me senseless with a stale cheese roll if this isn't the most
riotous, noise-polluted electronic carnage I've encountered since
Speedy J freaked out a few yeras back in his 'Pannik' stage. These
aren't tracks - they're evil flame-spurting techno terror beasts.
There are beats in the sonic destruction but ghost-in-hell shadows
which don't stand a chance against the harsh shards of metal noise,
twitchy squelchings and a colony of diseased robots farting, belching
and wanking themselves to death. This depraved bomb from Barcelona is
like nothing else out there and, if this is future-vision type
tackle, be very afraid. **** - - - Kris Needs

[dungeon jaeger]

Overload Magazine 2002-10-30
Cristian Vogel 'Dungeon Master' (Tresor)

Cristian Vogel returns to techno's arms after the much-celebrated jiggery-pokery of the deliriously smooth Super_Collider album with a double pack of mind-booming techno. Quite how one individual can remain so far ahead of the game and still never put a foot wrong is something of a mystery; Vogel remains one of the few people who sounds like he's striving to get inside his kit. In most cases if a Techno producer heard this they'd probably burst into tears like a big wet sissy (as most are). Waking up to the fact that there is techno out there so disgustingly noisy and funky yet also so pristinely intuitive and precise would hopefully make said producer think very hard before putting finger to button again and knocking out another 'it's ok, it's banging' beat-bummer. EB