Ian C. Bouras actually is the rarified example of artist who can be up there, so to speak, and yet completely relatable. Part of this is the incredible bravery, humility, and humanity Bouras displayed as an established musician when he went public with his diagnosis of Ataxia. Ataxia is an extremely considerable disease, affecting coordination and speech, critical aspects of musical performance and establishing successful livelihood in that field.
When confronted with such a shattering health event, Bouras did not bow down, nor did he withdraw from public performance. As he brilliantly demonstrates, such a diagnosis wasn’t something to depress him, it was an artistic impetus to continue pushing the envelope, adapting his performative qualities to suit the albatross now round his neck.
That alone should put Bouras in a class of one, but triumphantly he belongs in that class because of the genuine musical talent retained. His latest work is the sixteen-minute alternative track The Sound of Raindrops on a Broken Heart. The song is a genuine masterwork, a sort of Great British Bakeoff of unlikely ingredients expertly matched, synchronized, and engineered to provide a visceral listening experience living up to the loftiness of the title. “My goals are always lofty,” Bouras said humorously in his interview with the online publication NeuFutur Magazine.
“I have a couple CDs already planned, one of them will be released this year. I am planning to make a DVD of my looping, as I would like to share what I do with people, and help spread awareness about Ataxia. I also want to show that any limitations you might have can be used to create something new, and might direct your life in an exciting new direction… I think it is very important to forge your own path, and, to me, there is no good, or bad, only different.”
As someone with experience as an audio technician, Bouras also spoke in the interview about his process was extremely meticulous in nature. To paraphrase Guillermo del Toro, Bouras somewhat espouses an approach he described as ‘emotional mathematics.’ “I use ProTools for recording, editing, and mixing. My creative process is always fun for me. Small details vary from CD to CD, but much of my process is similar.
Basically, if I have an idea I record it, then I start playing over it, and whatever sounds cool to me, I record it. I keep doing that, and eventually a song happens, so I hesitate to say it just happens, but the songs seem to write themselves,” he said. “Once all the instruments are recorded, I get to put on my audio engineer hat. I try different effects on different instruments. As a huge fan of Dub music, effects are basically instruments to me. I love to play with delay, and I enjoy reversing, time stretching, and anything else I can do to manipulate the sounds. I approach the process as both a musician, and an engineer, and I love to create from start to finish.”
This kind of methodology mixed with limitless creative expression is on full display with Sound of Raindrops on a Broken Heart. The entirety of Bouras’ musical act though is what has made me a fan. Personally and professionally, I am blown away by his audacity, strength, and sense of musical expression. Keep it coming.
Mindy McCall
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