Aperus - Tumbleweed Obfuscated By Camera Failure (Reissue)

"The moon is passing. The leaves drying. The rocks and cliffs fading into the soil. The water receding, seeping into the clay. Bringing you back again. Into vastness"

Inspired by the obscured photographs resulting from camera problems during a trip to New Mexico, Brian McWilliams (aka Aperus) draws a parallel from the photographic mishap to the music on this highly regarded release. "Tumbleweed Obfuscated by Camera Failure" questions the role that control and surrender play in the unfolding of the creative process. From the liner notes, Brian writes "...the album followed a similar course. From concept to song, I tried to achieve one result but ended up with another. Technical problems, endless tangents and my own limitations all lead from a previously held idea into unforseen territory. Now, for me, the title seems perfect. It serves as a powerful metaphor and reminder that creativity is a process that naturally unfolds."

Musically, the album explores the meeting point between harshness and light, wandering the borderland between bleak, stark beauty and melodic serenity.

This 2013 reissue on the artist's own Geophonic Records label is assembled by hand and ships in a 5 x 7 cello sleeve. The Artwork features a striking double sided gatefold cover, printed velum envelope with five 4 x 6 photos and one 5 x 7 replica of the original framed photos which inspired the title. The album is pressed on Pro CDR (artwork printed on surface) rather than a burned, labeled CDR.

Reviews

"An overall organic sounding piece of art, full of morphing atmosphere and textures... This is music which must be felt." - BERT STROLENBERG, KLEM Magazine

"Aperus bids fair to claim that advanced position allotted to, say, Jeff Greinke, Vidna Obmana or Alio Die." - DANIEL D. STANISIC, Spiritual Profit Radio Programme

"I was really taken aback by this disc. First of all, it is beautifully packaged ... Second, the breadth of compositional styles and the talent displayed by Brian McWilliams and his guest musicians is considerable. It simply sounds marvelous from beginning to end." - PHIL DERBY, Electroambient Space

"... McWilliams's willingness to constantly take risks pays off ... TOBCF captures an artist with a willingness to make mistakes and, as it turns out, to capture moments of often stunning sonic artistry." - BEN FLEURY-STEINER, e|i Magazine

"From a technical standpoint, the album is textbook perfect. From an artistic standpoint, the CD is an amazing and rewarding journey... it has tons of substance and will leave you sated. Highly recommended." - BILL BINKELMAN, Wind and Wire

"An amazing and imaginative musical project, not quite like any other album in recent memory." - STEVE DAVIS, Associate Producer, Hearts of Space Radio

Brian McWilliams: keyboards, piano, bass guitar, clay pot, rainstick, rattles, rocks, feedback loops, metal plates, sample manipulation, vocal tones
John Phipps: keyboard textures on Dark Moon and Echo Canyon, guitar on Echo Canyon
Carolyn Koebel: rattles on Earth & Clay and All Good Things
Michelle McWilliams: rocks and objects on Earth & Clay

Mastered by James Johnson at Zero Music, Brian McWilliams at The Sound Observatory. Additional post production on Earth & Clay and All Good Things by Randon Myles Chisnell.