Benjamin Miller

In the Moment is a retrospective of the solo, multi-phonic guitar work of underground rock and experimental musician Benjamin Miller. Utilizing extended techniques, prepared objects and implements, and an array of processing, his approach to the electric guitar on In the Moment is almost like a polyphonic sound generator, fully apart from the tradition of Chuck Berry, Clapton and company. Alien tongues, ambient soundscapes, the sounds of mechanization and technology breaking down all emerge in the masterful manipulation of sound by Miller.

There is a lot for fans of traditional electric guitar to appreciate as well. With the wild technique and complex strand of sounds in the opener, “Statue of Digression,” and the pop-song hook of the record’s only vocal performance, “In the Skies and the Stars,” In the Moment is a perfect gateway into experimental guitar music.

A member of significant art rock bands like Destroy All Monsters and The Glenn Branca Ensemble, his first recording was in 1969 as a teenage member of Sproton Layer, with his older brother Roger (later of Mission of Burma) and his identical twin Laurence. Languishing in obscurity until being properly released in 2011, their record  With Magnetic Fields Disrupted displayed a guitar sound and overall sonic sensibility that presaged the edgiest rock of the following decade. Miller also recorded with both brothers in M3 and with Roger in M2, and has releases with groups including Nonfiction, GKW and Third Border, in addition to numerous records under Ben Miller/Degeneration.

A native of Ann Arbor, Michigan, Miller has also lived in New York, Detroit and Boston. He currently leads the Detroit-based groups Porcelain Hammer and Empool, as well as the New York-based Sensorium Saxophone Orchestra.