"Awash in a melodic swath of near-psychedelic ether, Miller's I Made You Up teeters between that delicate dream state of newborn refuge and Milky Way haze. Don't let the SoCal singer-songwriter thing fool you: Miller's unassuming yet gumptious approach places him squarely alongside the likes of troubadours Pete Droge/Steve Forbert but with flecks of Supertramp/Bowie-style transcendental grandeur." --- Blurt Magazine I Made You Up is Michael Miller's second full-length album. Miller describes the recording process of I Made You Up as "effortless," thanks to the group of elite luminaries involved. "They’re mostly old friends who all know each other and also happen to be some of the most talented players in L.A. I feel remarkably fortunate to have had them on this project." The cast includes drummer Brendan Buckley (Damien Rice, Shakira), bassist Dan Rothchild (Fiona Apple, Sheryl Crow, Beck), pedal steel guitarist Eric Heywood (Ray LaMontagne, The Pretenders, Son Volt), keyboardist Patrick Warren (Aimee Mann, Fiona Apple, Tom Waits, Sam Phillips), guitarist Lyle Workman (Jellyfish, Beck, Sting), B3/keyboardist Rami Jaffee (Foo Fighters, The Wallflowers), lap steel guitarist Ben Peeler (The Wallflowers, Jim White), cellist and violinist Stevie Blacke (Beck, Madonna, Snoop Dogg), guitarist Adam Zimmon (Shakira), bassist Joe Ongie (multi-instrumentalist, producer whiz kid), and guitarist Mike Roe (The 77s). Guest vocal appearances from Tracy Bonham, Pete Yorn, Amy Correia, Kristin Mooney, Butch Norton (Eels, Lucinda Williams), Jeremy Toback, Joel Graves (Everest), Johnny Scaglione. I Made You Up was produced by Miller and Buckley, co-produced by Joe Ongie, recorded by Mike Terry (Foo Fighters, The Eagles) at Elliott Smith's old place New Monkey Studios in Van Nuys, California, and mixed by Ryan Freeland (Aimee Mann, Crowded House, Rodney Crowell, Son Volt, Joe Henry, Grant Lee Phillips). Miller wrote his first songs at the tender age of 6. "My best friend and I would make up these silly theme songs about all the kids in the neighborhood. They were sometimes cruel but extremely hilarious --- at least to the minds of 6-year-olds --- and we would get the rest of the kids to sing along." These days, Miller's secret muse for inspiration now comes from his ongoing habit to go exploring in other countries. "It became an annual tradition and sort of my drug of choice. Besides the sweet freedom and built-in surprise of a new, faraway world, I just love getting lost, literally, in strange lands, hanging with the locals, the natives, and seeing how they live. It's sort of like soul mining. I get to go dig for beauty and truth in other people's backyards and the discoveries and treasure-finds typically end up in my songs in some way." When Miller is not out trotting the globe, you'll find him drawing "little doodles," as he calls them, for several different international greeting card lines. "I still have a line with Hallmark. At one point, they fired some of their best art directors and VPs, then axed my line, saying they were 'reassessing their taste guidelines' and thought my work was too irreverent or inappropriate," he says, laughing. "They then asked if I would be willing to draw for their writers and editors on another line. I agreed but insisted that I use my pseudonym, which was in fact, my 'porn star name'. You know that game? I still get a kick out of seeing my 'porn star' by-line in mainstream card racks." + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + "Glorious post-psychedelia... kooky... booming... spooky... feminine... whirling... sexy... an exhilarating, creative invention." ~ Americana UK "Fu@$king fantastic..." ~ Talent Filter "Unfu@$king Believable." ~ Outlandos Music "Dripping with such heartfelt beauty. It`s like "Revolver"-era Beatles mixed with Jon Brion, Pink Floyd and Muse." ~ Not Lame