Finding a sweet spot between his middle name, Patrick, and his last name, Miller, Miltrick was born. Through his time at Oneonta, he met numerous talented musicians which inspired him greatly. There he was exposed to an abundance of music genres including classical, jazz, and funk.
In Oneonta, Miltrick was able to perform in rock, experimental, and jam ensembles which helped him achieve the desired sound that he carries forth today.
Composing an EP based on his single, “Drive,” we have Miltrick taking an all-encompassing route to form his solidified base for how others perceive his music. Fixating on the single itself, we have buoyant instrumentation that imitates a reflective state where Miltrick can authentically be himself as he lays it all out on the table.
Carrying the weight of heavy-hitting kick drums, and a resonant bassline, we become fixated on the infectious grooves pouring out from this arrangement as a whole. Syncopated in all of its glory, we hear Miltrick approach the track with the type of confidence everyone wishes they could take with them through their day-to-day lives. He is clear and present with the words that he strings together as the medley of lyrics shapes his mindset and the in-your-face prominence that the mass of his words holds.
There’s a raw and cutting edge appeal to “Drive,” as the vocals hone in on an authentic texture, not overly done with vocal effects. As he gets straight to the point and we see a striking performance burst at the seams, Miltrick shows that this solo work he has been diligently working away at represents something beyond himself.
Congratulations on the release of “Drive.” The energy you pour into this song hits listeners with an impact! What is your inspiration behind this track?
Lyrically “Drive” was inspired by a point in my life where I felt really lost and didn’t know where to go next. I was in a rut and at that point, I was going on nearly 6 months of being out of work and questioning whether or not I made the correct choice pursuing an education/career in the music industry. After being one of the hardest-hit industries from last year, a part of me was thinking of whether or not to switch up career paths and try to find something new for the sake of stability.
When I wrote the very first draft in August of 2020, there were days I was just chilling and thought I had it all figured out. There were other days where I started feeling really stagnant and I was getting really stressed that I was never going to get my original job back. I even started trying to learn about the stock market and day trading at the time and that led to even more stress.
The exact event that inspired “Drive” was taking a short trip down to Atlantic City with a couple of friends last August. I had never been before and I wanted to use this quick trip to reset and just figure out what’s next...
You decided to do something that not a lot of artists do, by releasing an EP based around “Drive.” On it, we have the instrumental, behind the lyrics and behind the production, elements to accompany the single. What’s your reasoning behind this? Do you think more artists should take this route?
The reasoning behind this is that I wanted to dive into what was going on in my head through the creation of "Drive" from beginning to end. I wanted to give listeners more insight into my production process and what I was going for sonically and lyrically. I haven't seen many people release spoken word-type content to accompany a single release and I wanted to get out of my comfort zone and try adding in podcast-like content to go along with "Drive." I released an EP as well with my previous single "Pieces" and it's something I want to implement into my future releases. I feel that it's 100% up to the artist and whatever they feel most comfortable with. It's their art and they should be allowed to express it, however. I love behind-the-scenes content and being able to see what goes on behind the song or lyrics so that's why I felt inspired to include behind-the-scenes content in my single releases.
Does “Drive,” reflect what we can expect to hear from you with future releases? What does your audience have in store?
"Drive," is definitely part of what you can expect to hear from me with upcoming releases. All of my releases so far have been written, produced, mixed, and mastered by myself so I feel each song reflects a different part of my individuality. Each song has also been a little different in terms of genre. I feel very close to each project because it's me trying to better myself as a musician and a producer. That journey never ends and I love learning new production techniques every day. I consider my music to be rhythmic alt-rock inspired by hip-hop, pop, and indie, and the production for "Drive" was more inspired by boom-bap style hip-hop with rock-influenced vocal delivery.
What is your mission statement as an artist?
My mission statement as an artist is heavily centered on self-sufficiency, collaboration, and conversation. I would say that now, especially with what has transpired throughout the world recently, this is the perfect time to take risks and get out of my comfort zone as an artist. To just have as much fun as possible exploring different genres and sounds and to not be afraid of what anyone thinks. Creating is meant to be fun and that's the beauty of it.
What's next for you?
Currently, I'm in the middle of planning my next 5 releases. My next three song titles will be "Shareholders", "Good Day", and "Fantasy" and I'm planning on releasing them all by July 30th. I had 24 song demos written throughout the latter half of 2020 which I wrote in my childhood home in Staten Island, New York, mostly in my attic. That's the place I love to write to the most. It's where I played my first guitar and keyboard and it used to be my dad's home office that we now share. That's where I write, produce, and mix my songs. I've been spending the last 4 weeks putting the finishing touches on the mixes and masters and finalizing the art direction and visuals. I'm possibly interested in reviving a character that debuted in February with the release of my song "Comedown". I want to experiment with short-form video content and podcasts as well, interviewing artists in the industry on my weekly Livestream "Miltrick Media."