Vinny Miller - 'Breaking Out Of Your Arms' (4AD)
4/5
By: Thomas Hannan
There's a great deal to be said for the hackneyed of late 'less is more' approach. 'Breaking Out Of Your Arms' is a very reserved, delicate piece that often teeters on the brink of ruining its brittle air, but refreshingly, never quite gives into such foul temptation. At any point, you worry that it could let go into a full, swooning string-section and unnecessary amounts of backing vocals, but praise be, it never does. The fragility is what makes it quite so listenable - who'd have thought there'd still be merit in a track which, for long periods, could quite possibly be just a four-track demo?
It wouldn't be too much of an overstatement to say Miller's vocals sound almost tortured at times, but the sound is one most certainly weary of something. You're almost willing him on to finish the piece without his voice cracking beyond repair, a touch that lends 'Breaking Out Of Your Arms' a welcome humanity. Hardly the most uplifting of numbers, it's over just before you can either get fed up of it or have it draw you into the depths of an unwelcome depression. Vinny knows the merits of not going too far - and produces a lovely exercise in the virtues of restraint.
Artists in this article: Vinny Miller
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