Composed over the first half of 2011 these 12 compositions are very much a response to the nostalgia and loss of passing time. Lives that were waiting for us in the future, all too soon fall away behind us ... beyond our vision, beyond our memory, beyond retrieval. We Leave Everything Behind is a unique and mesmerizing tapestry of sound that contains all the sonic drama and poetic delicacy we have come to expect from The Circular Ruins.
The Circular Ruins is Anthony Paul Kerby.
1 : Introduction
2 : Seance
3 : Lost Time part 1
4 : The Things We Cannot Do
5 : Lost Time part 2
6 : These Days Must Wait |
7 : We Leave Everything Behind
8 : Lost Time part 3
9 : Perpetuum Mobile
10 : Reunited
11 : Dust of the River
12 : Lost Time part 4 |
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The Circular Ruins is one name under which Anthony Paul Kerby releases his atmospheric sonic excursions. His album WE LEAVE EVERYTHING BEHIND (61'35") sounds like Ambient Music of the first order. Unhurried and engrossing it seems a universe unto itself. Using the simple elements of harmony, timbre and occasionally rhythm to express himself, Kerby's work achieves a kind of psychological insight that more conventional modes of music rarely touches upon. WE LEAVE EVERYTHING BEHIND leaves the impression that it has been made using electronic instrumentation, but certain aspects to the character of the sounds found within the 12 meticulously arranged pieces present a more organic or acoustic quality. Reed-like synthesizer melodies whisper across a churning, swirling progression of strings which declines into a strange digital habitat expanding and contracting in uneven waves. Diffuse environmental audio clips and found voices give great depth to the cyber world scenery. A great density and drama may be found arising at various points, only to be strikingly contrasted by moments of tenderness and fragility. This kind of music allows us to transcend our own world and partake in utterly different realities. The Circular Ruins hopes to take the listener on a journey deep into a realm of secrets, and return us home changed.
Chuck van Zyl (Star's End radio)
Prolific Canadian ambient designer Anthony Paul Kerby, who records not only as The Circular Ruins but also as Nunc Stans and Lammergeyer, has released on his own DataObscura label in the middle of September 2011 his newest album "We Leave Everything Behind". Quite a busy month for this London, Ontario based artist, because around the same time his co-project with Tomas Weiss "Appearances" was released on El Cult 's Musical Philosophy label. A deeply mysterious and misty "Introduction" perfectly immerses the listener into the wonderfully dense and evocative atmospheric soundscapes of The Circular Ruins. "Introduction" at its most precise!!! "Seance", with obscure femme voice samples and modern classical arrangements, is a gracefully flowing textured piece in nostalgic mood, another composition of pure beauty! Various high-tech sound effects color expressive drone on "Lost Time Part 1" while the next piece, "The Things We Cannot Do", moves through more varied and lively stages with an ever-changing texture painted by cinematic atmospheres, at times becoming more intense and droning, and by catchy effects or even some Far-East fragranced strings. Amazingly adventurous sonic ride! Second part of "Lost Time" blends nostalgic atmospheres and sharper sonic outbursts. A very short organic piece, "These Days Must Wait", is wrapped with a sadder mood that also overlaps into the next composition, the title track "We Leave Everything Behind". It evokes deeper emotional longing or yearning for something that is passed by time. The third part of "Lost Time" remains in the same terrain, but it's again enriched by distant space-like effects. "Perpetuum Mobile" is a quite unique, minimal piece with uplifting semi-melodic structure. "Reunited" is magnificently drifting ambience spiced here and there with disturbing sounds, it's a pity it didn't get over 3 minutes, but this hauntingly floating ambience moves freely to the next piece, "Dust Of The River", that soon transforms into more monumental mood and later cascades through various phases into almost orchestrated, soundtrack-like sounding level. A truly poetic bliss for my ears!!! "Lost Time Part 4" with gloomy drifts and crystalline effects brings to the end this highly imaginative and sophisticated sonic journey, a journey filled with the refined artistry of its creator, that grows with each hearing and will undoubtedly reward each listener. The legacy of The Circular Ruins continues...
Richard Gürtler (Bratislava, Slovakia)
Non-flash mp3 samples::
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Total 61:15
Date September 2011
Download mp3 encoded at 320kbs