Stars: 5/5
In November of 2019, mass communication senior Walter Miller released his first full-length album titled “Dark Clouds Over Suburbia.” It’s now been a little over a year since Miller debuted the album, and it’s still just as good as it was when it first came out.
Miller may be a young artist, but he does not lack professionalism in his work. I had the pleasure of getting to know Miller as I interviewed him for a project earlier this year. If there’s one thing that I noticed about Miller in our short chat, it’s that he truly has a passion for what he does, and it shows in “Dark Clouds Over Suburbia.”
Miller used writing to help him get through the troubles of high school. All those years, Miller was writing what would come together to be a track list that perfectly encompassed how he felt in those troubling times. Those writings turned into a 14-song album that would be known as “Dark Clouds Over Suburbia.”
The lead single for the album is called “Downfall.” In the song, Miller sings about accepting reality instead of holding on to a perfect fairy-tale idea of life. “Downfall” was a real success for Miller by earning more than 60 thousand streams on Spotify.
The music video for “Downfall” shows Miller feeling left out by his group of friends as they carry on and have a good time completely oblivious to the fact that he is singing a song full of feelings and emotions. Much like Miller’s album, this music video is very professionally made. It is not amateur by any means, and I think it really shows the scope of Miller’s potential.
Another single that caught my attention from this album was “Talk’s Cheap.” This song is very blunt as Miller calls out fake people around him who are wasting their time with drama. Miller sings about wanting to spend his time in a more productive way by making music that will speak to his audience, and I think he accomplishes this on his album.
I also really liked the song “My Confession.” The harmonies of this song blend well with the constant piano in the background. It’s definitely one of my favorites off the album, and it deserves all the hype so give it a listen.
If there’s one thing Miller has on this album, it’s range. I can’t stand when artists release albums that are dull and monotone where every song sounds like the one that played before it. Miller’s album is full of songs, all with their own unique sounds which made me excited to keep listening to it, and I still do even a year later. When I first started writing this review, I had the chorus of “Downfall” stuck in my head for almost a week, which just goes to show you how catchy these songs are.
In August, “Dark Clouds Over Suburbia” received over 100 thousand streams on Spotify, which was a huge milestone for Miller, but I think it’s only the beginning. I think Miller has only just begun scratching the surface of his potential with this album, I’m so excited to see how this musical journey goes for him in the future.
