Growing up in small-town Ohio, Ken Miller lacked the ability to express his emotions. An avenue to presented itself when he learned how to play the guitar. Soon after, Metaphortune came into being.

He cites Sufjan Stevens, Block Party, Arcade Fire and Los Campesinos! Among his influences. Although his parents don’t have musician’s backgrounds, their love of music was passed along to him.

We had six questions with Metaphortune for “New Music Monday”…

Photo courtesy of Metaphortune

When did you start playing music?

“I wanted a drum set when I was 10-years old, but they’re expensive and big. So, I got a guitar instead. I never really had any lessons, so I searched on Youtube or in the library for guitar lessons. I was just messing around until one of my friends introduced me to the idea of writing my own music. From there, it took me a while to get any sense of confidence in what I was writing. I mean, I had plenty of stuff that I had written, but never played for anyone. After the confidence came, I started to record it in a semi-passable manner.”

You released your first EP in July, 2016. Tell us about it.

“Everything on that album is written, performed, recorded, and produced by me. All of the drums are from a drum machine, and programmed by me.”

How would you describe your sound?

“It’s kind of like ‘shoe-gazing’, and I like excessive amounts of reverb. But, some of it is a little bit more intense than ‘shoe-gazing’, at the very least. Some of my lyrics are probably pretty close to modern day emo, I think.”

You haven’t performed any live shows yet. Why is that?

Photo courtesy of Metaphortune

“Not yet, because I want to build up enough of a repertoire to where I’m not just playing the same six songs over and over. Plus, if I’m doing it, I want it to be done right.”

You have a new single that will be released on March 10, correct?

“It’s called Windswept. It’s a follow-up to the last song on my first EP, called Windsweeps. It’s because I like to make things confusing for people (laughter). Musically, it’s not quite a follow-up, but lyrically it is.  And I’m hoping to have a new EP ready toward the latter-part of this year.”

You’re premiering a new video with us this week for the song Windswept. Tell us how it came together…

“It was all DIY. I had an idea about what I wanted to do, so I got my siblings, a friend and a little help from my parents. The video is not any sort of high-concept thing, for sure. We filmed it in South Vienna, Ohio. It’s a simple video, but I really like the way it came out.”

Windsweeps, from the EP “Calcite & Sandstone”