Unique among those who count themselves among the ever-diminishing masses of vaporwave purveyors is the artist with a face - indeed, from the promising inception of the divisive micromovement to its current wretched state of affairs and possibly beyond (though for how long, who can say), anonymity has not only been expected to the point of requirement by the vaporwave community, but willingly and rigidly adopted by virtually every man and woman confused and distraught enough to try his or her hand at bastardizing pop tunes in increasingly unimaginative ways. In a sense it is a testament to (and/or critique of) the inherently derivative nature of the music that so little personal accountability is involved in the creation and marketing of vaporwave material - the chance that one's personal or professional life could be impacted in any way by the success or failure of their publicly available music is removed when the origin of the music is utterly untraceable. Samples utilized, of course, are easily enough identified. The mind responsible for altering these pieces, on the other hand, may as well be that belonging to Tsar Peter the Great for all the listener knows.

Tom al-Khaziri has no recognizable face, per se. He has substituted this part of the body, its perceived importance arbitrary in his mind, with other areas of his physique in the hope that the listener will set aside their preconceived notions about vaporwave in the same manner. In his own words:

"Generally vaporwave records don't interest me, as they lack cohesion in most cases. Sonically I won't deny that many producers have good material, but it always seems to come only in short bursts and rarely as a constant flow over the course of a record.

For this album I spent a good amount of time deciding the order in which I wanted the tracks to go; personally it's a very important thing to do. It's crucial to have good tunes of course but you've got to make them help each other out, maximize their impact, you know. Many times I've been asked why I don't release songs as soon as they're completed, as other producers do - wouldn't it satisfy the demand for new material? After all many of these tracks have been in production for weeks or months. But I could never do it, it would cheapen each song. You can't get much cheaper than vaporwave anyway, at least when it comes to music."

He grins as he expresses this last bit, aware (as are most vaporwve producers) that the idiom in which he creates is viewed with disgust by many listeners of electronic and guitar music alike, perceiving the vaporwave crowd as a den of thieves and uninspired con artists - something Tom won't debate.

"There are a number of formulas," he says. "Some producers slow down and loop the hook; I've done that experimentally. It's effortless, really, once you get it. There's no craft there whatsoever; your ears will enjoy it but your brain won't be interested. Obviously there's no 'correct' way to do sampling but I'm satisfied if I bring to the forefront a bit that you wouldn't think twice about in the original tune. That seems more tasteful than outright theft, doesn't it?

Some others drench one sound in so many effects you can't hear anything really but noises, which is fine, but it's purely textural and not musical. My approach to the material is almost fully musical; it's consciously dynamic, structural, cadential - when I shift pitch I'm considering what chord change that will create. It's distressing to witness an endless stream of producers using samples and software as toys - the result is almost always self-indulgent trash concerned entirely with aesthetic."

As for his own Nippon-inspired artwork and titles, "it's self-referential. Just like M無M用けんか, it's ludicrous. The artwork has to be Japanese doesn't it? Sure, but I ought to put my nipple on the cover as well. The song has to have the hook; good, I'll play it four hundred and seventy times. Are you tired of it yet?

My brother - he was the first person to hear the record - it wore him out. He told me he would have gotten it after ten minutes, after fifteen minutes. But he kept getting it, far beyond that, anyone who sits for the duration will keep getting it. That was my intent.

It's garbage. I won't make another vaporwave record." A decision thoughtfully considered, and difficult to debate.

Kenneth Gardener, New Musical Express