deepak Posted August 26, 2008 Report Posted August 26, 2008 Wolfgang Voigt- Gas Some of you might be familiar with the electronic work by Gas. This is the same thing, except just some unreleased material not found on their other CDs. I have not heard his other releases under his own name, only the stuff released under Gas. It's hard to review this album, but to sum it up it's just an excellent dark ambient album that really draws you into the music. The downside is it isn't very long, under an hour and every time it comes to a close I'm wanting to hear more. *INCREDIBLE BOOK + CD RELEASE FROM RASTER NOTON - CD FEATURES ALL PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED MATERIAL* If there is any producer who needs no introduction on these pages it's Wolfgang Voigt. Under his Gas moniker Voigt has not only produced some of the most important electronic music of the last quarter-century, but also influenced a generation of awestruck music makers. Without those seminal early recordings it's safe to say ambient electronic music would not look quite the same. Thankfully Kompakt (the label which Voigt heads up) re-issued those classic recordings a few weeks back to much-deserved critical acclaim, but for those of you who already possessed them in some form or another, this Raster Noton release was the one that had us chomping at the bit. Firstly, I have to say this is one of the most lavish releases I've ever seen - packaged in weighty book of photos complete with a gorgeous foil-embossed dust cover this might be the very definition of the 'artists edition'. Most people will no doubt be buying this for the hour of unreleased Gas material, but the book is in itself worth shelling out your hard earned, credit crunched dough. Packed with the wooded images we have come to associate with Gas records over the years it's the kind of book that works as the perfect accompaniment to the clouds of ambient synthesizer music contained on the disc and a testament to Voigt's skill as an artist of many different disciplines. It is however, the music itself that makes this release so absolutely indispensable. Dating back to 1989 (!), every single track on this record has never been released previously, but far from an odds-and-sods collection this is a perfect reminder of the peerlessness of Voigt in the ambient world. Countless copyists have come and gone, but hearing these tracks, the earliest of which is close to twenty years old, you remember why you fell in love with electronic music in the first place. The distant, reverberating strings, pulsating, crumbling rhythms and those drifting washes of synthesizer on 'Das Moor' are enough to shake any self-respecting muso out of complacency, but the fact that this is kept up for an entire disc, and that this material has never seen the light of day truly astounds me. I doubt very much that there are any of you out there who have never heard Gas before, but if there are a couple of stragglers you should know this - if you have any interest in ambient music, electronic music, experimental music or whatever you choose to label it, you really owe it to yourself to get this album. From the catalogues of Type and Miasmah to the hallowed ground of Touch and Mego the influence of Wolfgang Voigt spans the whole scene and this release is there to be cherished. Immense.
Dusty Chalk Posted August 26, 2008 Report Posted August 26, 2008 Very fond -- I actually have Nah und Fern right in front of me. I think, in a show of solidarity, that I will listen to it.
Knuckledragger Posted August 27, 2008 Report Posted August 27, 2008 Wolfgang Voigt is a gifted producer, and I've been a fan of his Gas project for years. I don't have Nah Und Fern, but I have a copy of Pop and I did own his eponymous first release when I was in college. Sadly, it didn't make it home from the dorms one year. I lent it to an international student from Argentina named Klaus and he managed to duck me at the end of the semester. He always was an asshat. I think his family descended from escaped Nazis, but I digress... What this means is I should probably track down a copy of that boxed set. As an side, Boomkat's reviews are some of the worse purple prose in the entire music business. I nearly lost my lunch when I read their review of Ricardo Villalobos' Fizheuer Zieheuer.
deepak Posted August 27, 2008 Author Report Posted August 27, 2008 As an side, Boomkat's reviews are some of the worse purple prose in the entire music business. I nearly lost my lunch when I read their review of Ricardo Villalobos' Fizheuer Zieheuer. I agree on this point. But they are trying to sell the music they review.
Dusty Chalk Posted August 27, 2008 Report Posted August 27, 2008 Yeah, they're not really reviews so much as ad copy.
krrm Posted August 28, 2008 Report Posted August 28, 2008 "They" whoever they are have a webshop here: KOMPAKT It could be me, but I found it a bit confusing.
Knuckledragger Posted August 29, 2008 Report Posted August 29, 2008 Kompakt is Wolfgang Voit's label. He co-founded it with Michael Mayer, forming out of the ashes of the hardcore techno label Delirium. For many years (say, 1998-2003, possibly a bit after that) it was the jewel of the electronic music scene in Cologne, and in much of Germany. For the last five or so years they've focused too much on minimal-dub-tech-micro-house-whatever, and cashed-in heartily. To be fair, that stuff bores me to tears, but most of the techno cognoscenti that I talk to (who are much more tolerant of minimal whathaveyou than I am) agree that Kompakt is not what it once was. Of course, none of this will help anyone navigate their website. Curiously, I have a very easy time getting Kompakt releases -- on Martha's Vineyard. There is an excellent record store in Edgartown that has a much better selection than the stores in the supposedly hip college community I live in. Go fig.
Thelonious Monk Posted September 1, 2008 Report Posted September 1, 2008 I'll grab this. Last dark ambient record I got was the Lustmord / Melvins one, good stuff. Any Cold Meat or Aural Hypnox fans here?
deepak Posted September 2, 2008 Author Report Posted September 2, 2008 I'll grab this. Last dark ambient record I got was the Lustmord / Melvins one, good stuff. Any Cold Meat or Aural Hypnox fans here? I can't say I cared for that Lustmord/Melvins album. I would love to hear Lustmord and Boris do a collaboration.
minya Posted January 30, 2009 Report Posted January 30, 2009 bump. Haven't been listening to much ambient music for awhile. Lustmord and Boris is a good suggestion....
Sherwood Posted January 31, 2009 Report Posted January 31, 2009 I have a very attractive and enjoyable gas box set I bought on a whim. Think I'll cue it up right this effing moment.
deepak Posted January 31, 2009 Author Report Posted January 31, 2009 bump. Haven't been listening to much ambient music for awhile. Lustmord and Boris is a good suggestion.... minya welcome to Head-Case man
Dusty Chalk Posted January 31, 2009 Report Posted January 31, 2009 Yeah, I thought that name sounded familiar...Hi howdy, and sorry about your thin skin/back of the head/whatnot.
faust3d Posted February 1, 2009 Report Posted February 1, 2009 BAD SECTOR is a cool dark ambient project.
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