International Deejay Gigolo founder DJ HELL to release new artist CD “Teufelswerk”Two-disc opus features collaborations with Bryan Ferry, P. Diddy, Peter Kruder, Billy Ray Martin, Christian Prommer, Robert Di Gioia, Mijk Van Dijk, Stefan Robbers, Anthony Rother and &ME
On April 27, visionary artist DJ Hell will release his masterpiece Teufelswerk (German for “Devil’s Work.”) Across 16 exquisite tracks divided into two themes, “Night” and “Day”, Hell weaves an intoxicating spell. The nocturnal side offers a contemporary interpretation of Chicago house and Detroit techno. Its sunnier sister disc finds Hell embracing the rich cosmic groove of his roots. A lush, narcotic odyssey, the album sounds unlike anything he’s produced in the past. But at the same time, Hell has drawn on his wealth of experience and put everything he knows into Teufelswerk.
Those familiar with Hell’s earlier albums, 1998’s Munich Machine and 2004’s NY Muscle, will recognize the “Night” half of this double-album. A raw mix of Chicago and Detroit influences combined with Hell’s swashbuckling approach to electronics, this portion is for the dancefloor. Ten-minute jams such as “Wonderland” and “Electronic Germany” zoom and thrust with menacing intent. “The Disaster”, the single produced by Hell and longstanding collaborators Mijk van Dijk and &Me, is the kind of labyrinthine techno trip that will disorientate any dancefloor.
Hell also hooked up once more with hip-hop superstar P. Diddy for freestyle jack-track and future single, “The DJ”. The pair had worked before on “Let’s Get Ill” and “Check This.” However, the most pleasant, eyebrow-raising moment here is the collaboration with Bryan Ferry, “U Can Dance”. This serpentine disco burner, a smouldering highlight of Teufelswerk, finally unites two of modern pop’s suavest outsiders.
Listen to “The Angst”, the lead single from Teufelswerk (and first single from the “Day” CD) and you’ll appreciate the direction Hell is taking with Peter Kruder at the controls. Celestial vocals cascade around an acoustic guitar figure as a motorik rhythm propels it ever skywards, sharing space, spiritually at least, with Pink Floyd, Kraftwerk and Can. Elsewhere, “Germania”, “Hell’s Kitchen” and “I Prefer Women to Men Anyway” unravel with sinuous grace, culminating in a cosmic reading of Hawkwind’s “Silver Machine.”
For Hell, then, Teufelswerk rounds up his life’s work so far – and he has already led a remarkable life. It is dramatic, beautiful, dark and soulful, a milestone in German electronic music. “Teufelswerk represents the music in the best way: it’s the work of the devil,” he says, “and it’s the work of me, the work of Hell.”
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DJ HELL
“TEUFELSWERK”
TRACKLISTING
CD1 – “NIGHT”
1. “U Can Dance” (Featuring vocals from Bryan Ferry)
2. “Electronic Germany”
3. “The DJ” (Featuring P. Diddy)
4. “The Disaster”
5. “Bodyfarm2”
6. “Hellracer”
7. “Wonderland”
8. “Friday, Saturday, Sunday”
CD2 – “DAY”
1. “Germania”
2. “The Angst” & “The Angst Pt. 2”***
3. “Carte Blanche”
4. “Nightclubbing”
5. “I Prefer Women To Men Anyway”
6. “Action (Interlude)”
7. “Hell's Kitchen”
8. “Silver Machine” (Hawkwind cover)
― Ned Raggett, Tuesday, 24 February 2009 17:21 (seventeen years ago)