So, the first LP picked at random from my collection. I say random, but my records are arranged by musical style, and this first record comes from the section where many of my favourite records lie, so I knew it was bound to be a decent start. Roger Miller plays guitar, sings, and writes songs for the unbelievably awesome Mission of Burma, but this LP was made near the start of their long hiatus, between 1984-86. As a fan of Burma, this album leapt at me when I spied it in a record shop just off Portobello Road. "US Mission of Burma Man £8" says the little sticker on the front, and I snapped it up, not even being aware of the albums existence before I happened upon it in this little shop. This was in a time before the internet, and discographies were the sort of thing you might happen upon in a fanzine if you were lucky. £8 was a little expensive for a second-hand record at the time, but still it was a no-brainer for me.
Anyway, this record is one that's very familier to me and gets played quite a lot. The new-wave look to the album cover is very of its time, but what's inside bears no relation to anything with a skinny tie & pleated chinos. Roger Miller seems to be bursting with ideas on this record, incorporating all manner of sounds and techniques to create an overall sound that really doesn't sound like anything else. His modified electric piano is at the core and blends dissonance and melody to great effect. You really get the impression that RM was having a great time making this record - the tinnitus which curtailed his playing with Burma was obviously no barrier to making music with oomph.
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