Howlin Rain: Instant vintage

When Comets on Fire frontman Ethan Miller unveiled his less fiery outfit Howlin Rain in the summer of ‘06, the group was mistakenly labeled a cousin of the New Weird Americana scene of the rural mid-Atlantic. Never mind that Miller is a native of San Francisco’s Humboldt County.

The hippie-dippy jams meshed with thinly veiled nods to the avant-garde and the presence of Sunburned Hand of the Man drummer John Moloney on the group’s debut CD spurned a case of guilt by association.

But two years down the line, and sporting a new full-length on Rick Rubin’s American Recordings, Howlin Rain’s re-emergence sheds any overt leanings to the avant-garde. The group’s second album, Magnificent Fiend, is a collection of psychedelic rock songs that are rife with big, gospel explosions of organ jams and harmonic riffage that glows with an aura of San Francisco circa ‘66.

Fleshing out a nod to such a classic rock sound is an aesthetic exercise that carries guitarist, vocalist and principal songwriter Miller far from the bombastic rumble of Comets on Fire.

As an artistic endeavor, vacillating between crafting a heavy-handed and metallic dirge to embracing the art of a more time-honored approach to rock songwriting is challenging on a primal level. Miller, along with Ian Gradek (bass), Garett Goddard (drums), Mike Jackson (guitar), Eli Eckert (guitar) and Joel Robinow (keyboards, guitars, horns) have wholeheartedly embraced the change.

Compartmentalizing these sides of Miller’s songwriting, between Howlin Rain and Comets on Fire – the latter of which features Ben Chasny of Six Organs of Admittance on guitar – is an effective means of separating his musical endeavors. But Miller is quick to point out he doesn’t spend any less time focusing on the intimate details in the songwriting with either band.

With Howlin Rain, however, the focus falls less on creating a sense of impressionism and abstraction with the music.

“With this album, I wanted everything to be fairly straightforward,” Miller says. “I didn’t want to put together an album that’s filled with intense avant-garde moments.

“I wanted to write something where the tones and the colors are clear and oversaturated. We get to do plenty of avant-garde stuff in Comets and I wanted to test myself, and test the guys in the band, on making something that sounded very iconic and classic.”

Songs such as “Dancers at the End of Time” and “Lord Have Mercy” resonate with a rock ‘n’ roll intensity that is distinctive to Miller’s approach. “Calling Lightning Pt. 2” is a dramatic revision of a song from Howlin Rain’s self-titled debut that defines the transcendence taking place between the two recordings. The songs resonate with nostalgia, evoking a lineage of artists that includes the Grateful Dead, Jefferson Airplane and the Allman Brothers. Despite these accessible traits, each number still falls in a slightly skewed direction.

As such, Magnificent Fiend may be off-putting to fans of Miller’s more intense output with Comets. But to a focused ear, a bit of intrigue simmers below the surface of every note and melody.

Much in the way songwriters such as John Lennon and Paul McCartney drew heavily from the avant-garde to churn out a decidedly pop/rock ‘n’ roll album, such as the Beatles’ Revolver, Miller’s songs don’t emulate a simple pop formula.

“I try to utilize avant-garde music as a platform and a basis to come from,” Miller says, “rather than just model pop music and populist music off of other faces of pop music and populist music. When you start focusing on how to make a commercially viable thing instead of an artistically accomplished thing, you’re really moving into the pop business. You really need to recognize the game that you’re playing.”

To hear a song from Howlin Rain’s new release, click here.