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Cris Miller is the master craftsman who writes and performs as Silver Screen. His Midas touch radiates throughout The Greatest Story Never Told, blending the wispy elegance of acts like Blueboy and Field Mice with more straightforward, Bacharach-styled pop. Miller saturates his songs with jangly guitars, whooshing synths, and above all, good old-fashioned TLC.
These songs are so gentle that you might be tempted to hold your hands over the speakers to see if the notes dissolve as they emerge. Don't be fooled by the dainty dynamics -- there's a whole lot of sound piled on The Greatest Story Never Told. You just have to listen carefully and keep the volume turned up. This is a romantic recording at heart -- not because of Miller's lyrics, which are often difficult to decipher, but because of the way he delivers them. His honey-coated voice soothes like a bowl of warm soup on a winter evening -- and apparently it's au naturel. The liner notes make it a point to mention that "no pitch correction or 'auto-tuning' devices were used on the vocals". Equally important are the layered effects of the instruments that wander in and out of these pastoral soundscape: these careful arrangements allow songs like "Won't You Ever Know" and "Hello Friends" to ricochet back and forth between irresistible vocal and synth/guitar melodies. Miller keeps his vocals somewhat murky on these early tracks, allowing plenty of room for the glorious instrumentation to shine through. Even better songs arise on The Greatest Story's second half. "Something To Prove"'s sparkling verse/chorus patterns bleed together like watercolors, making it hard to tell verse from chorus -- which, presumably, was Miller's intention. "She Counts The Rain" is another wonder-filled arrangement, complete with resounding hammered dulcimer melodies. It's not until the disc's final three tracks that Miller's voice fully emerges from behind the music -- gently gliding over lush guitars on "Rockinghorse Road" and bouncing across clapping rhythms on "Tiny Shards". It is most prominent, however, on "Girl Like You"'s airy refrains, which showcase Miller at his poppiest. With its uplifting melody and echoed vocals, "Girl Like You" promises to be the first of Silver Screen's songs to get stuck in your head. "Throwing all my cares aside / Leaving all of the world behind," Miller sings during its bridge -- and you'll be tempted to follow. Like many of life's happy little surprises, The Greatest Story Never Told turns out to be one of the greater stories to unfold. reviewed by: Lisa Green for Splendid |
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I'm glad to see that jangly/wimpy Sarah records-esque pop is still being made, over 20 years since The Mozzer and his Smiths (who were not on Sarah Records) first made a splash on these shores. Silver Screen is the moniker of Cris Miller and he has obviously done his homework and studied his Field Mice and Eternal records as the gentle synths , arpeggioed guitar plucks and sweet/simple vocals will draw you in and envelop you as perfect as an old, familiar blanket on a Sunday morning. If "Won't you ever Know", "Like a Winter Da! y", or "She Count the Rain" don't tug at your heartstrings then you have no heart, right? I don't know about his other bands (Lindero, Melody Guild, and Froxel) but if they're this good, then I'd better get a lookin.
reviewed by: Dagger |
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sublime summertime guitar pop that answers the question: "What would The Cure circa 'Wish' sound like if they'd been on Sarah Records?" - from the first notes this is top notch with it's reverb heavy vocals that sound like Keris Brighter or Harvey Another Sunny Day - musically this is stronger than recent Trembling Blue Stars, too ... just great!
reviewed by: Gayle Brogan for Melody Bar |
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Today, I feel like drawing a little attention to Clairecords, the label arm associated with Tonevendor mail order. Over the years they have released some great indiepop CDs by little-known acts such as Stella Luna, Pia Fraus, Airiel, and Park Avenue Music, as well as reissue compilations for Secret Shine and The Flatmates. They also employ Thingmakers to supply finely printed liner notes on heavy stock, sometimes with metallic inks.
Most recently, they've released The Greatest Story Never Told by one-man show Silver Screen. With the exception of drums on one track, Cris Miller plays and sings everything on the album. The sound exists in a well-defined territory between wistful Sarah jangle and Cocteau Twins shimmer, with individual tracks tending to favor one style a bit more than the other. So what we have here is nothing stunningly original, yet better executed than most other albums in this space. For starters, Miller has a real knack for vocal melodies and hooks. This type of music sometimes tends to drift along with a pleasant texture, but no memorable songs, so it's nice to hear some solid pop tunes. Also, he mixes things up enough that the songs don't all sound the same and the album has some pacing. It starts with a short, dreamy instrumental, moves around between jangle and shimmer, then ends with a short song that sounds to me like XTC gone twee. And he throws in a couple head-nodding beats as a bonus. Silver Screen is definitely not contemporary indie hipster music, but if the public can tolerate this much retro post-punk and dance rock, they can certainly deal with a little bit of this type of nostalgia. I think you could load this one on your iPod and have yourself a pretty little slice of summer soundtrack. reviewed by: angryrobot.net |
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Here's the next record for the list of best shoegaze albums of the year, folks. This new release from Silver Screen has that distinct tone, that sense of being that instantly transports me back to 1991. Less sonic wash and more pop, I can hear traces of bands like The Darling Buds and Lightning Seeds all over The Greatest Story Never Told. The songs are laid back and far more relaxing than much of today's music, preferring to lull the listener into a state of well-being than to jar them into wakeful restlessness.
Closet musical genius Cris Miller is Silver Screen - he writes the songs, plays the instruments, and produces the records. His guitars jangle with just the perfect amount of trebly sparkle, highly reminiscent of later Trashcan Sinatras and possibly The Railway Children. Vini Reilly-style delays come in and out all over the record, lending an air of ambience that is rare to find mixed in with songs of such understated pop merit, especially near the beginning of the record on songs like "Ahh Ahh" and "Won't You Ever Know". "How Can We End" introduces acoustic guitar (without copious amounts of delay and chorus) into the mix, moving the shoegaze more into the realms of dreampop, while retaining a very early 90's timbre. The spirit of Slowdive comes to the head on "Like A Winter Day", awash in thick pads of highly effected guitar and light background drumming. "Something To Prove" could just as easily be a track off of a Trashcan Sinatras record, albeit with a more delicate vocal presence. Hammered dulcimer creates some nice additional texture on "She Counts The Rain", adding to the most sonically deep track on the record. "Girl Like You" moves towards an almost electronic feel -becoming obvious with its drum machine and very Ian Broudie-esque vocal melodies and production style. The album wraps with "Tiny Shards", an almost Syd Barrett style acoustic folk number, cheery and full of shining mood. The songs on The Greatest Story Never Told are almost lackadaisical, more soothing creamy goodness than anything harsh or challenging. Don't look here for distorted guitars or Kevin Shields style sonic experimentation… instead settle back with a nice beverage, turn down the lights, and allow yourself to be transported to a faraway place of magic and calm and beauty. reviewed by: Embo Blake for Hybrid Magazine |
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Some music is made to be blasted out of a Little Deuce Coupe going 90 with the top down and your hair on fire. Suffice to say, The Greatest Story Never Told is NOT one of those records. But it is sweet as all get-out, with an ethereal drowning-in-sunshine vibe that can be quite addictive. And who among us couldn’t do with a little more sunshine?
Cris Miller of Silver Screen grew up on OMD and Depeche Mode, but you’d never know it from his music. He writes three-minute pop songs full of softly strummed guitars, plaintive echoing vocals, and soothing percussion. The result is a record that, while no doubt somnolent to some ears, will sound downright romantic to others. By mingling classic shoegaze elements with a satiny twee-pop sensibility, Miller hides his energy below the surface on songs such as "Rockinghorse Road" and the bouncy "Won’t You Ever Know." Granted, there are some tunes– the drowsy "Girl Like You" comes to mind – where all the digging in the world couldn’t generate a single kilowatt. And even twee-pop’s most ardent fans can only take so much of it before hankering for something a little more aggressive. But for the most part Miller hits what he aims at, evoking a mature and delicate tenor reminiscent of Essex Green or the Field Mice. Not for all tastes, but it has its place. The Clairecords label is doing its best to bring back ’90s shoegazer pop in measured and seductive doses; Silver Screen’s Greatest Story is a worthy start. reviewed by: Marc Stephens for Miami Sun Post |
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Soft and melodic indie pop by Cris Miller, who has been recording music for some time with several other configurations. This project is a light, spacious, even airy guitar-pop excursion that is as gentle, fragile, and lovely as anything out there. Points can be drawn to Sarah Records, and, before that, the pastoral indie-folk of Creation or 4AD Records of the 80s, but SILVER SCREEN aren't simply throwbacks or retro. This is a sweetly upbeat album of songs meant to stick to your head on a warm and lazy Sunday afternoon. Nice work, and an easy listen.
reviewed by: Godsend Online |
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This one almost slipped under the radar. Though the album review has not appeared on the website, songsmith Cris Miller's one-man extravaganza definitely deserves a place on this list. With his soft, ethereal tones and skillfully crafted production elements, Cris masterfully blends dream-pop, shoegaze and traditional Britpop in a compact, 35 minute package. Comparisons to the Cure and Cocteau Twins will no doubt be plentiful, but Miller manages to keep it fresh by tossing in enough 50s and 60s pop sentimentality to keep the listener attached. It's true that a number of strong debuts sprang up this year, but this one holds a special place in our collections by reminding us of our first listening experiences with those bands.
reviewed by: Big Yawn |
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