The news tonight of the passing of Scott Miller hit me unexpectedly hard, scrolling through my Facebook newsfeed and there it was. Miller was the mastermind behind one of my favorite bands from my late 1980’s college radio days, Game Theory, and also behind the similarly-minded Loud Family in more recent times. One of my musical heroes, I got a chance to meet Miller and the rest of Game Theory the night they played in Columbia, SC–I think it was around 1987 or 88. The show was great, but the coolest part was when they accepted an invite from a fellow WUSC DJ to come up to campus and hang out at a party in the NADA apartments. I kept a wondrous and respectful distance from singer and keyboard player Donnette Thayer, but did manage to convey in a few stuttered words to Miller how much I enjoyed their music. On a side note, my future wife was at the party as well and reportedly Miller tried to hit on her but failed.
Game Theory is mostly a side note of musical history to anyone who didn’t come of age in the 80’s, and the Loud Family catalog didn’t exactly break sales records either. For those who were fans, however, Miller and the rotating lineups of both groups were a big part of surviving the onslaught of mainstream dreck; one could always escape for a couple hours into an album such as Lolita Nation, or remember youthful indiscretions set to the soundtrack of “24” (the Game Theory song, not the TV series).
The official website for all things Scott Miller had the announcement today, and there’s a small bonus attached to it: For a limited time, there’s a link to download copies of the Game Theory albums, too. www.theloudfamily.com
The Beat 