Old 97's frontman Rhett Miller's major label solo debut is almost exactly what fans can expect: extremely well-written pop songs, heart-wrenchingly delivered, and brightly produced, making for a fine all-around package.
The thing that comes as sort of a surprise is the level of power the missing members of Old 97's would have added if this was a full-band release.
While Miller and producer Jon Brion (Fiona Apple, Aimee Mann) have crafted a bright and sonically diverse sound for The Instigator, showcasing Miller's obscenely clever songwriting and swooning vocal style, his individual work is not as strong as any of Old 97's albums.
This may be an unfair comparison, since no effort has been made to mask this as a full-band release, but hearing Miller's unmistakable singing and songwriting style without Murry Hammond's backing vocals and the rest of the Old 97's chunky country-rock-pop behind him seems a little less than it could be.
| Title/Composers | Performer | Listen | Time | Size | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Our LoveRhett Miller | Rhett Miller | Play | 03:32 | 8 MB | 0 MB |
| 2 | This Is What I DoRhett Miller | Rhett Miller | Play | 03:08 | 7 MB | 0 MB |
| 3 | Things That DisappearJon Brion, Rhett Miller | Rhett Miller | Play | 03:22 | 7 MB | 0 MB |
| 4 | World Inside the WorldRhett Miller | Rhett Miller | Play | 03:45 | 8 MB | 0 MB |
| 5 | Point ShirleyRhett Miller | Rhett Miller | Play | 03:09 | 7 MB | 0 MB |
| 6 | Four-Eyed GirlRhett Miller | Rhett Miller | Play | 02:27 | 5 MB | 0 MB |
| 7 | HoverRhett Miller | Rhett Miller | Play | 02:49 | 6 MB | 0 MB |
| 8 | The ElRhett Miller | Rhett Miller | Play | 03:09 | 7 MB | 0 MB |
| 9 | Your Nervous HeartRhett Miller | Rhett Miller | Play | 03:47 | 8 MB | 0 MB |
| 10 | I Want to LiveRhett Miller | Rhett Miller | Play | 03:40 | 8 MB | 0 MB |
| 11 | Terrible VisionRhett Miller | Rhett Miller | Play | 04:06 | 9 MB | 0 MB |
| 12 | Come Around (Radio Edit) | Rhett Miller | Play | 04:11 | 9 MB | 0 MB |
| 41 mins | 94 MB | |||||
| 0 mins | 0 MB | |||||
| Artist | Job | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tom Biller | Engineer |
| 2 | Jon Brion | Bass, Composer, Dobro, Drums, Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Baritone), Guitar (Electric), Organ (Hammond), Piano, Piano (Upright), Producer, Vibraphone, Vocal Coach, Vocals (Background) |
| 3 | Lenny Castro | Percussion |
| 4 | Bob Clearmountain | Mixing |
| 5 | Paul DeCarli | Digital Editing |
| 6 | Josh Deutsch | A&R |
| 7 | Josh Freese | Drums, Guest Artist |
| 8 | Davíd Garza | Bass, Guitar Effects, Vocals (Background) |
| 9 | Robyn Hitchcock | Guest Artist, Guitar (Electric), Vocals (Background) |
| 10 | Jim Keltner | Drums, Percussion |
| 11 | Bob Ludwig | Mastering |
| 12 | Rhett Miller | Composer, Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Electric), Primary Artist, Vocals |
| 13 | Joey Paradise | Assistant Engineer |
| 14 | Lili Picou | Art Direction, Design |
| 15 | Mark Seliger | Photography |
| 16 | Dane Venable | Product Manager |
Rhett Miller
| Quality | Format | Encoding | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | MP3 | 320kps 44.1kHz | MP3 is an audio coding format which uses a form of lossy data compression. The highest bitrate of this format is 320kbps (kbit/s). MP3 Digital audio takes less amount of space (up to 90% reduction in size) and the quality is not as good as the original one. |