Endlessly curious as a songwriter, producer, and multi-instrumentalist Arthur Russell explored a range of styles that wound from avant-garde minimalism to dubby disco funk. Ahead of his time and existing in general obscurity during his short lifetime, Russell amassed an enormous amount of recorded material that brought his singular personality to whatever style he approached. After his death in 1992, Russell's distinctive voice and adventurous production range caught on in terms of popularity as well as influence on new generations of musicians. Albums released during his lifetime, like 1986's spare, dubby cello experiments on World of Echo, were joined by posthumous releases like 2008's collection of previously unreleased country-tinged material Love Is Overtaking Me.