Miller & the Other Sinners – 8/2

Miller and The Other Sinners is: David Michael Miller (“Miller”) on vocals & guitars, Steve Davis on keys, organ, key bass, and vocals, Isaiah Griffin on drums & percussion, Dalton Sharp on saxophone, and for the last 2 years, Paul Gaspar on trumpet. These five together tracked this latest effort, a full-length album, recorded in a studio that Miller built in his mid-1800’s farm house during the COVID shutdown. “Thieves In The Breadline,” is an amazing step in defining this band’s last 4+ years of work together, finding their sound and capturing their live chemistry. Inspired by the Marcus King record produced by Warren Haynes, both strong influences on Miller, Thieves sets to capture that fat warm sound reminiscent of iconic recordings, yet with a modern presence and push. Miller engineered, arranged, produced, mixed, and mastered this project as a labor of love and passion, yet had to hit the high water mark of his first solo album in 2014, “Poisons Sipped.”

The songs speak to our current and historic social struggles but also celebrate the possibilities of who we can become. From the title track, “Thieves In The Breadline”, a 70’s influenced hard hitting soul tune relating the story of economic hardship for the poor and middle class, to “Uneven” speaking directly to the advantages and disadvantages of marginalized communities wrapped in a heavy blues/rock ballad, Street Child and a knod to the tragic shooting of Jacob Blake in Only 7, the album presents some thoughtful yet heavy themes. It goes on to celebrate life, music and who we can become in songs like “Better Times, Better Days”, “Rhythm Don’t Mind” and “Low Down”. Two songs are inspired by the late Darick Campbell of The Campbell Brothers, the reggae esque “Black Water Fishin” which came from a memorable conversation before a gig together and the tribute song “Teach Me To Slide” which features the great Sonny Landreth, also a friend of Darick’s, Terrell King, Darick’s understudy and Buddy Guy’s long time saxophonist Jay Moynihan, also a friend of Darick’s.

Founded and headed up by Miller, who worked with the iconic “The Campbell Brothers” to release his first two albums, Miller and The Other Sinners was born from his passion to collaborate with incredible musicians sharing a love for American Roots Music, dynamic live performances and respect for the song. He has toured this evolving project for the last 9 years as an independent artist, with over 1300 shows from festivals like Borderland, Telluride, Flagstaff Blues and Brews and Fairport to back yard house concerts and dive bars in between, as a solo act on up to a 10 piece band.