Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson

Until recently twenty-five year-old Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson has been one of Brooklyn’s best-kept secrets, but with the release of his debut album and the help of some of his better known friends (and neighbors) that seems likely to change. In a recent interview with ‘Another’ magazine Kyp Malone of TV on the Radio professed, “Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson is my favorite songwriter right now.”

His self-titled debut is the first recorded document after years of false starts, self-sabotage and amiable persistence in the face tragedy. Born in Oregon and raised in Portland and Eugene, Miles spent much of his youth on the road traveling with his comedian father as he played venues across the U.S. After completing high school, Miles gravitated eastward and by 2000 had made it to New York. Immediately he immersed himselfin the burgeoning music scene; going to shows and forming a number of ill-fated bands. Each incarnation eventually met its demise due to a combination of erratic behavior, venue banishment, and indiscreet drug use. Frustrated and fatigued, Miles descended into addiction, leading to a stint in which he made his bed on the benches of Coney Island. But, throughout it all, he continued to distill from his shabby surroundings the inspiration and imagery that make up his debut record.

Under the guidance of Chris Taylor and Christopher Bear of Grizzly Bear “Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson” began in 2006 in Miles’ apartment. Chris Bear did the drums in a single day, later overdubs were added by Kyp Malone and Daniel Rosen, (Grizzly Bear), and at last, a true representation of his talent was realized.

The album begins with the demented campfire sing-a-long, “Buriedfed” - a dirge disguised as a rave-up it sets the pace for an album filled with unrepentant confessions and takes the listener through a sardonic narrative, detailing loss, excess, and blurred memories. On ‘The Debtor’ Miles turns his hands to a piano driven melody, while the clanging guitars and stomping drums of ‘Woodfriend’ recall the street tough, strung-out attitude of a 70s Lou Reed.

Miles’ sophomore album produced by Kyp Malone is set for release in 2009.



User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License and may also be available under the GNU FDL....

READ MORE