Often in sizing up drummers who lead their own bands, I find that they either actively get out front or they get out of the way and let their band mates becomes the focal point. They’re either meticulous stylists or beat thrashers. They’re either skilled composers or perceptive interpreters. Allison Miller is the rare talent who is not an “either or” type, but rather, a “this AND that” type who can assume any role very effectively.
That’s the kind of strong impression she left behind with me on her standout album from 2010, Boom Tic Boom, and No Morphine No Lilies is another showcase for this drummer of limitless range and imagination. Her backing band now called “Boom Tic Boom,” she retains everyone from the record bearing that name: Myra Melford on piano, Todd Sickafoose on acoustic bass and selectively, Jenny Scheinman on violin, all strong leaders in their own right.
Instead of suppressing those strong musical personalities, Miller channels them to heighten the appeal of her songs. “Pork Belly” is anchored so firmly by Sickafoose’s cyclical bass figure that Medford and Miller get to go out and have fun dancing around it. “Early Bird,” captured in an official video above, progresses along two threads: Sickafoose and Erik Friedlander doubling on bass and cello respectively, and Scheinman with Medford. Meanwhile, Miller adds these sublimely delicate colors.
“The Itch” shows what Miller can do with a groove that she teams with Sickafoose to produce as Ara Anderson’s trumpet combines with Medford’s piano and Scheinman to strike an unusual but effectual tonality. Slide trumpet specialist Steven Bernstein guests on the impish, near-free “Speak Eddie (a tribute to the late drummer Eddie Marshall) and engages actively with Scheinman on the vigorous, jerky and delightfully dramatic “Nuh-Uh, No Sir.”
“Waiting” is one of the best songs as it’s beautifully wistful, and Medford brings out not just the melody but the pondering, forlorn emotion, with just a strand of hope. Miller strongly implies the harmony on her kit in a very tasteful manner, and Sickafoose is very simpatico as he solos high up in his register.
Allison Miller builds on the solid foundation she built with Boom Tic Boom, with more subtle artistry, measured risk-taking and varied moods that holds up together as a unified piece of work. No Morphine No Lilies is, in so many ways, imposing from beginning to end.
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No Morphine No Lilies April 16, Royal Poptao Family. Visit Allison MIller’s website for more info.
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