Some 18 years in the making, TunnelVision Brilliance, the debut solo offering from Scott Reeder, will be released by Liquor and Poker Music on January 24, 2006. An mp3 of “The Day Of Neverending” off of TunnelVision Brilliance is available here.
The 13-track TunnelVision Brilliance is a solo album in the truest sense of the word with all songs written and performed by Reeder. In addition, he produced, engineered and mixed the recording ??" mostly in his own studio. The album is a much more personal and intimate soundscape than his thunderously heavy past; an inspired (and undeniably psychedelic) trip through the subconscious of one of underground rock’s brightest luminaries.
“It’s weird, going at it alone this time without a bunch of other guys to mesh with,” Reeder admits. “Finally, after 25 years of doing the band thing, I’m getting the chance to put out some songs I’ve recorded by myself along the way that never quite fit within the frameworks of my band stuff. Throughout my days in ACROSS THE RIVER, THE OBSESSED, KYUSS and GOATSNAKE, I’ve been very proud of every recording I’ve contributed to, but I’ve never been anywhere near this excited about releasing anything. For me, this is as pure as it gets ??" not a single other person was ever in the room when any of this was recorded, no one to argue with (except myself!), not having to fit into any mold or format. For better or worse, no compromise whatsoever.”
Since KYUSS disbanded in 1995, Reeder might be best known for his high-profile auditions with METALLICA (he appears in the documentary Some Kind Of Monster) and TOOL (he’s occasionally joined them onstage to cover a KYUSS tune), but none the less his contributions to the music world have still been notable. He has produced cult favorites both up-and-coming (SUNN 0))), BLUEBIRD) and long established (ORANGE GOBLIN, GOATSNAKE); he has continued to contribute to movie soundtracks (1996’s 2 Days In The Valley, for example); and has kept making and playing music, be it through performing as part of underground icons UNIDA and NEBULA, guesting on the acclaimed 1998 debut by THE EARTHLINGS (which also featured Dave Grohl), or gigging with his new band, BUTCHER. Throughout his sonic journeys, Reeder has kept a musical diary of the other side of his personality.
“During many of the recordings over the years, I never had any inkling they’d be released someday, so there’s a candid vibe that weaves throughout TunnelVision Brilliance that comes from having your guard way down,” Reeder explains. “Passing through extreme life experiences, sometimes enhanced by altered states of consciousness, I feel like these pieces strip away the outside world and cut to the naked emotional core of whatever I was going through at the time; hence, that’s a big part of the album’s concept.
“Death is a big underlying theme,” he continues, “as is my fascination with the impossible feats the human psyche is capable of when forced into extreme duress ??" things that push one’s reality into the metaphysical realm. It’s about the thin line between this plane and the next, the blurring between waking life and dreams, the physical and the spiritual, and the glimpses of the other side we might chance to experience during this lifetime. I hope listeners set aside any preconceptions as I did and just enjoy the ride, for this is only the beginning.”