Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *
To own your name is the ultimate action of any rational mind, to deny such an experience of personality, to decry the limelight, the searchlight of existence is to be forever welcoming the shadows.
The nom de plume and the group embrace is a noble release, it offers sanctuary in a world too eager to tear down the reserves of the soul and offer temptation in the form of recognition, the riches of identification, especially in a world framed by creation and by possession of artistic rights. Yet, to own our words, our gestures, our thoughts and titles of the moments we have brought into the world is not so much about possession or proprietorship, it is the registering of the fact that we were here, at this time, and this was our contribution to society, to community.
Light Shines Through the humblest of souls, it requests more than just the territorial ownership, it requires the protective stance of tenure, and for Landon Lloyd Miller it is about making sure the artistry embraced has in effect a father figure, a parent to whom the art can recognise as being the progeny and the inheritor of his immense class, spirit, and imaginative wealth.
Through the introspection accompanying tracks such as Sunglasses, Only Dreaming, Light Is Growing Out, Tread Lightly, and the superbly arranged but heart-breaking realisation of narrative to be found on Bluebonnet, what is in evidence is a musician who isn’t hiding behind a wall of mystery, of the inventor stepping out from behind the velvet curtain and revealing with applause and appreciation to be just like us, like the listener, a soul with passion.
An album steeped in the art of the confessional, a heart that beats in time with its owner. Light Shines Through is the spotlight on inspiration being opened up to the full weight of history and finding only a system of care, of beauty, and refreshing humility. No matter how hard you try to avoid the glare, you will eventually find it upon you, but you don’t have to do anything to acknowledge it except bow a little and remember that once they called for your name out love and respect; a gratitude of emotion felt as this impressive album plays out.
Landon Lloyd Miller’s Light Shines Through is out now.
Ian D. Hall