When your first solo single (2019’s ‘Not Crazy’) goes on to make you only the third artist to win a Radium Award and is the most popular track of the year on Atomic Magazine’s stream space, you must be doing something pretty right. Now, following two further singles, Chris Miller returns with what may be his most beautiful, emotional track yet.
Raw, honest, and open, like the conversations it refers to, ‘Alcohol and Cigarettes’ is all about those difficult but necessary conversations with friends or family, when you’re struggling; about opening up to those that care for us, letting go and accepting vulnerability in return for succour and support. It’s exquisite, a mixture of Chris Stapleton’s ‘Whiskey and You’ and Justin Townes Earle, Miller’s heartfelt confessional vocal initially sitting atop sparse, perfect piano before the track builds slowly to its acoustic-guitar-drums-and-piano denouement. It’s stunning, a genuinely outstanding and powerful single which truly should earn Miller even greater plaudits in 2021.
Check out ‘Alcohol and Cigarettes’ on YouTube, or head over to Chris Miller’s website and Facebook.
Review by Alex Holmes