Featured Artist: Derek Miller

Today's Featured Artist is Ontario's own Derek Miller. I don't know why this guy is under the radar so much, he's even signed to Arbor Records and EMI Canada. His tunes are radio friendly and rockin as hell, with a blues guitar sensibility delivered by Mr. Miller himself.
My friend Dean introduced me to Derek Miller, and was kind enough to provide me with a must listen package of songs to get acquainted with his music for ya'll. With tracks from two studio albums and a live recordings, this was a promising package. Ifeel the strong urge to purchase his music now.
I started off with three tracks from his most recent album, The Dirty Looks, with two rockin' numbers and a slow, mournful tune sandwich'd between, it was a good start, with a bigger rock influence than what was yet to come.
I then began the five live tracks, and was instantly brought into a new world, shown the true bluesman's heart inside this rocker's body, yes this is what I liked, sweet overdriven guitar tone, soft, soulful playing, and a rock solid rhythm section backing him up. Not to say this is not a rocking album, you get some real rocking slide action in Throw The Hammer Down, combining the best of the rocking and blusey halves, and it holds up as one hell of a track. One last thing about the live tracks, thisguy can really fucking play the guitar, he's got soul, and chops, and warpped it all up in one rootsy bluesy rockin' package.
Finally I got to the tracks from his debut release, Music Is The Medicine. One complaint, for the first two minutes of the song Heaven, I hear really soft pretty soulful guitar, but with a backing of overly processed drums, after the two minute mark, the real set came in, but I coldn't focus on anything but those damn processed drums for two minutes, that kind of brought points down, but these tracks are anything but lacking. I got to hear a studio version of a track I heard earlier in the live tracks, needless to say, I prefer the live version, though the studio version is much more calming and sweet.
If you call yourself a rock enthusiast, or you like rock artists to have musical integrity,you owe it to yourself to check out Derek Miller, even for just a little bit. There's gotta be something in his range of playing you like.