This is my first experience of Canadian composer and multi-instrumentalist Rick Miller, but he made his debut with ‘Starsong’ as long ago as 1983, at which time he managed to sell 30,000 units. He followed it up with ‘Windhaven’ in 1987, but then there was quite a gap until ‘Interstellar Passage’ in 1998. But, in 2003 he really hit the ground running, and this is his eighth album since then. I am at a loss to explain how he managed to stay off my radar for so long as this album is a sheer delight, and if the others are of this quality then I definitely want to hear more. This is real crossover prog, with a refusal to stay within any one genre as he brings in psych, Floydian prog, crunching guitars, plenty of space, bongos and so much more.
Rick describes the album himself as “The music is soft, dark and melancholy because that’s the way I like it. This particular album is rather angry and even darker than my previous ones, so if you’re looking for a pick me up, you’d best look elsewhere..” For me it works just fine, with some beautiful Gilmour style guitar offset by delicate acoustic guitar and piano. There is a great deal of space in the music, with Rick’s vocals quite laid back, and there is no hurry, no pace. It is music for a sunny afternoon when it is possible just to lay back and let it all soak in. He has used guest musicians here and there, and it is a wonderfully arranged album where he uses additional instrumentation and orchestration incredibly well. But, “My Atom Heart” is basically Rick’s voice and some reverb and it is simply stunning.
Why not pop over to Bandcamp and give this album a listen, and if you get the physical copy you will get an additional song. This is album is a sheer delight and has been a joy to listen to, now how often do I say that about prog?
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