The inner workings of the best songs always have that magic, as if they have been around a couple of lifetimes before they were properly recorded to replay, and Dave Miles' latest release “Dead A Long Time” is exactly that kind of brutally truthful journey from one songwriter.
As the song opens with its first strum, it carries the emotive quality of an evening you might hear in some of The Tragically Hip’s most somber moments. The production, further refined by his longtime collaborators at EMAC Studios, strikes a perfect balance between intimacy and striking scope. In your mind, you can practically see the smoky dive bar where this song takes place, as sung from the bottom of a barstool. Miles was born in Canada and is a former pro hockey player! His family is just one of many who have helped him craft a unique perspective to draw from in these new songs, a lifetime of heartbreaks, friendships, and the kind of dark rasp that makes both his experiences and his music eminently relatable. And on “Dead a Long Time,” that well of actual life bleeds so gorgeously into each note.
Where “Dead a Long Time” diverges is the way Miles unites the storyteller swagger of Steve Earle with the longing restlessness of early Pearl Jam. His voice, ragged but resolute, you can feel every mile he's covered to arrive. The chorus, a combination of confessing and reaching out for grace, sticks with you long after the final note has vanished.
Miles usually writes first-person, character-driven songs. Hence, some of his fans are aware, and this album further solidifies what those earlier sets promised, the lived-in detail turning into heart punches, those turnarounds can leave a listener winded. "Dead a Long Time" also has a power in the way Miles owns his scars, giving listeners not only a song but also someone to accompany them through their night of the soul.