THE ONE

In 2003 the time for Rick Miller to enter the Prog Rock realm for good had come.He recorded and released the album ''The one'', where he handles all instruments and programming.Having known a lot of people around the Lakefield area, he was joined by several singers in this release.Not really pleased with the final result and its production, he put this album on sale for limited time, making it the rarest among Miller's album to be found.

I can see some flaws in the instrumental sounds, but the music is so good that the negative zone is covered by the refined melodies, the elaborate arrangements and the beautiful female voices that prevail in the album.The result is somewhere between STEVE HACKETT/MIKE OLDFIELD and the early works of IONA and MOSTLY AUTUMN, basically a melodic Symphonic Rock entry with lots of folky-inspired vocal tunes and plenty of orchestral midi-based instrumentation.Miller appears to be a trully talented composer and his only fault seems to be the somewhat thin keyboard parts of the album.Otherwise the listener will have to deal with some really emotional, dreamy and melodious musicianship in here, featuring imaginative guitar solos, smooth piano interludes and sonic soundscapes.There are still some more passionate moments with a bit of an edgier/dramatic guitar work, but the bulk follows a melodic, relaxed electric enviroment with plenty of OLDFIELD-ian atmospheres, while I guess I am not the only one to hear some Celtic inspirations in the ethereal female vocals of this work.Add some impressive symphonic textures in a bunch of tracks along with a deep, cinematic grandieur that characterizes this whole effort and you are pretty close to Miller's musical tendency in ''The one''.

As this is one of Miller's rather hard-to-find albums, be informed that most of this tunes are available in his ''Leftovers And bonus tracks'' bandcamp compilation.A work along the lines of KARANATAKA, IONA and STEVE HACKETT with light, symphonic elements and a strong sense of atmosphere.Warmly recommended.