Search - Loud Family :: Days for Days

Scott Miller is the best overlooked artist in 20 years

Corey Smith | Minneapolis, MN United States | 08/17/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Days for Days is another example of Scott Miller's ability to craft masterworks out the most simple pieces. His mastery of the songwriting process seems to always overshadow his much under-appreciated guitar and melodic composition abilities. You will find that songs like "Business Men are OK" will stick in your head for days. I think that "Way Too Helpful" is in itself a masterpiece of pop that alone makes this cd worth the purchase price. I've had the pleasure of meeting Scott through a friend a few times before I had heard his music, and found him to be a incredibly normal, decent man. His music should be mandatory listening for anyone who is attempting a career in songwriting."

Further explorations from a pop innovator

Matthew Budman | 05/22/1998

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Smart-aleck but never smart-ass, the Beatles-inspired Loud Family is more meticulous and literate than recent Guided by Voices, with whom it shares a muse, and brainier than just about anyone. More evidence has arrived, in the form of the S.F.-based quartet's new release. The nine songs are pretty straightforward arty power pop, easier first listens than those on 1996's brilliant but somewhat cramped "Interbabe Concern" (if not as glistening as 1993's gorgeous "Plants and Birds and Rocks and Things"); each song is preceded by a one-minute shard of throwaway interlude, but after the first play-through, you'll just program all of them out, so don't worry about it. Despite the unpredictable arrangements and songwriter/producer Scott Miller's acquired-taste singing (with slightly jarring harmonies by new keyboardist Alison Faith Levy), there's plenty of straight-ahead rocking -- check out the grinding "Deee-Pression" -- and enough guitar hooks and sparkling melody to transform Miller's cascades of puns and personal and geographic references into bright singalong chants (just try to get the warm chorus of "Crypto-Sicko" out of your head). And as an added bonus, in the bouncy "Cortex the Killer," he even name-checks his hometown of Sacramento for the first time since his '80s days fronting Davis-based indie heroes Game Theory!"

Veers between 'truly essential' and 'merely pleasant'

Kevin White | Keller, Texas | 09/12/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Days for Days is not the right place to start for someone wanting to get into Scott Miller (i.e., Game Theory and The Loud Family). For that, head straight to either Interbabe Concern or Plants and Birds (both from the Louds). I remember getting Days for Days in 1998 and hoping for a smashing follow-up to '96's masterpiece Interbabe Concern. It wasn't quite to be, as this is a different kind of album. It took me a while to get comfortable listening to this one.



For the uninitiated, here's The Loud Family in a nutshell: cultured, polished lyrics; excellent sound quality; breathtaking melodicism and intricate, ever-changing chord structures; juicy, high-pitched, up-front male vocals; inventive musicianship.



There are nine songs here, and most of the time I program my CD player for the even-numbered tracks only. This would have made a stunning seven-song, seven-track EP. There are at least four gems here that easily measure up to anything Miller has ever done:



"Good, There are No Lions in the Street" is a nicely restrained tune containing shrewd wordplay and, as another reviewer mentioned, that wonderful tempo change. "Way Too Helpful" is one of the most gorgeous tunes Miller has done in his career. "Businessmen are okay" is quirky but catchy, actually sort of in a similar vein to "One More for St. Michael" (from Game Theory). "Why We Don't Live in Mauritania" is almost worth one star all by itself, just classic, classic Miller!



"Mozart Sonatas" just never grabbed me, and "Crypto-Sicko" seems a bit awkward and overwrought. The other three tunes are quite decent but wouldn't be included in my fantasy "Loud Family's Greatest Hits" collection. Still, there are things to like and love about almost everything on Days for Days. Highly recommended for those who are already fans but haven't bought it yet (if you're new, get the far more accessible Interbabe Concern). It's a bit like Tape of Only Linda -- that album is widely acknowledged as not being up to the standards set by other Miller works, but it still contains three of the greatest essential Miller songs ever -- "It Just Wouldn't Be Christmas," "Still its Own Reward," and "Ballet Hetero.""