With the words of Karlheinz Stockhausen's 1972 lecture "Four Criteria of Electronic Music" on his mind, Cristian Vogel's Polyphonic Beings basically picks up where his 2012 full-length The Inertials left off, exploring the intricate dub side of minimal techno. "Exclusion Waves," "McCaw's Ghost" and "LA Banshee" all have that delayed, lurching dub feel, while "Spectral Jack" goes to a kind of pulsing dancehall. These slower moments are balanced on the album by the nervous breakbeat energy of "Lost in the Chase," the atmospheric house of "Forest Gifts," and the industrial Underworld grind of "How Many Grapes Went into That Wine?"
The haunting "Society of Hands" stands out the most, though, with a subtly reversing, brooding piano reminiscent of Satie repeating while rainstorm ambiance builds to an incantation. It's a powerful statement that caps off yet another brilliant record by Vogel, the umpteenth album released by the legendary Chile-born, UK-raised, Berlin-based producer over the course of the past two decades that have cemented his standing as one of the best in the game.
(Shitkatapult)The haunting "Society of Hands" stands out the most, though, with a subtly reversing, brooding piano reminiscent of Satie repeating while rainstorm ambiance builds to an incantation. It's a powerful statement that caps off yet another brilliant record by Vogel, the umpteenth album released by the legendary Chile-born, UK-raised, Berlin-based producer over the course of the past two decades that have cemented his standing as one of the best in the game.
