Description
Blake Mills – Heigh Ho – Double Vinyl Record
Heigh Ho, released in 2014, is the second solo album by American guitarist, singer-songwriter, and producer Blake Mills, and it stands as a genre-defying, sonically adventurous, and introspective work that further solidified Mills’ reputation as one of the most inventive and subtle artists of his generation. Known primarily for his virtuosic guitar work and collaborations with artists like Fiona Apple, Lucius, Alabama Shakes, and Dawes, Mills uses Heigh Ho not as a showcase for flashy playing, but as a mood-driven, compositionally rich statement that blurs the lines between folk, rock, jazz, and avant-garde pop.
The album was recorded at Ocean Way Recording Studio in Los Angeles, and its sound is a testament to both its acoustic warmth and orchestral depth. The arrangements are spacious, unpredictable, and emotionally textured—simultaneously intimate and cinematic. While Mills is the central voice throughout, Heigh Ho features an all-star supporting cast including:
Jim Keltner and Don Was – drums and bass
Jon Brion – piano
Benmont Tench – organ and keyboards
Rob Moose – string arrangements
Fiona Apple – vocals on “Seven”
Mike Elizondo, Gabriel Kahane, and others
Heigh Ho doesn’t sit easily in any one genre. It’s too jazz-informed for alt-country, too intricate for folk-rock, and too subtle for mainstream pop—yet it feels accessible, compelling, and coherent throughout. The guitar work, while often understated, is full of nuance, experimentation, and harmonic complexity, drawing comparisons to the likes of Ry Cooder, Bill Frisell, and Daniel Lanois.
Tracks like “If I’m Unworthy” and “Don’t Tell Our Friends About Me” highlight Mills’ lyrical vulnerability, combining wry introspection with emotional ambiguity. His voice—unassuming, almost conversational—is perfectly suited to the album’s themes of regret, connection, and fragile human intimacy. “Don’t Tell Our Friends About Me” in particular is a standout: bittersweet and wry, it deals with the emotional aftermath of a breakup with devastating subtlety. The chorus’s dark humor is classic Mills: “I know I fucked up / Don’t tell our friends about me.”
Elsewhere, “Gold Coast Sinkin’” showcases the album’s loose, jazz-inflected grooves and layers of sonic detail, while “Seven” is a haunting duet with Fiona Apple that floats on sparse instrumentation and cryptic lyricism. Even instrumental interludes feel purposeful—each texture and melodic phrase contributing to the album’s quiet tension and emotional arc.
What truly sets Heigh Ho apart is its production and sonic design. Mills crafts a sonic environment where silence is as important as sound—restraint becomes a form of expression. The tones are earthy and tactile: acoustic guitars resonate with room ambience, drum kits are tuned for warmth, and each instrument is given its own space to breathe. It’s a record built for deep listening.
In critical circles, Heigh Ho was celebrated as a bold and genre-transcending achievement. It didn’t make massive commercial waves, but it earned Mills deep respect as a musician’s musician—a visionary who could command the attention of legends while still sounding like an outsider forging his own path.
Heigh Ho is a moody, masterfully crafted, and emotionally intricate album that blends virtuosic musicianship with understated songwriting. It’s a record that resists easy classification, rewarding listeners who are drawn to atmospheric detail, emotional honesty, and musical risk-taking. For those who appreciate the meeting point of folk, jazz, and experimental rock, Heigh Ho is a quiet triumph and a modern classic in its own right.
Brand new, never played and still sealed in the factory plastic
Track Listing
If I’m Unworthy
Cry To Laugh
Just Out Of View
Seven
Don’t Tell Our Friends About Me
Gold Coast Sinkin’
Silence Is Sincerity
Half Asleep
Three Weeks In Havana
Before It Fell
Shed Your Head
Curable Disease
