Bigfork songwriter Miller Campbell’s heartland rock sound shines in first album

Following a stellar karaoke performance Miller Campbell was recruited by a local band in Washington. These days, the seasoned songwriter and performer is preparing to release her first full-length album. 

Back then, Campbell was singing primarily country tunes, but now her sound is more akin to Tom Petty or John Cougar Mellencamp, what she describes as “heartland rock.” It’s twangy and gritty, and extremely honest. The new songs she’s recording pull from experiences in her life over the last several years. 

“There's heartbreak in it, there's trials of being a performer and tour life — the grind and hustling. It's really a whole spectrum of things that we've gone through ... It's not like one moment in my life, but it's definitely a reflection of the last five years,” Campbell said.  

She's been working on the album for two years with longtime creative collaborator Matt Drenik, who records under the name battleme, according to a Spin magazine interview with Campbell.  

So far, three singles have been released from the album, including “All Night,” “Little Things,” and “Self Medicated.” 

The recording process has been extremely collaborative.  

“I've never gotten to dive into every aspect of a record like this one, and I'm so fortunate to have found Matt and that he wanted to do this record with me, and he brought in his favorite people and musicians to work with us in the studio, who are now in my live band," she said. 

The latest single, “Self Medicated,” is the most different song on the record, she said, influenced by 90s rock and artists like Dido. 

"The lyricism in it is some of my favorite storytelling that we did on the record. We really went into the poetry of everything, and it has just like these soaring choruses,” Campbell said. “We experimented with a lot of musical elements and then brought the live players in  to collaborate on it. So it really is a very introspective song about battling demons and toxic relationships.” 

The next song from the album comes out Oct. 25 and is called “Hotel New Wave,” inspired by The Bangles, who are personal heroes to Campbell. Currently, it’s her favorite song to play live.  

Campbell has found success as a singer songwriter, with her earlier singles and LP racking up thousands of plays on streaming services like Spotify and being featured in films. She’s shared the stage with a variety of artists, including Brandi Carlile and Bones Owens. And she’s related to famed songwriter Glen Campbell.  

She said she’s always been musical — performing in plays growing up, and at one point dreaming of being an opera singer. But she never considered music a viable career path.  

A performance at a rough karaoke bar in Seattle during her last semester of college introduced her to her future bandmates, who recruited her after hearing her sing. They asked if she would want to join them and play shows for the summer before she started her “big girl job.”  

She never had to get that job, as she continued playing with the band for three years full-time before moving to Montana. It was around seven years ago that she passed through Bigfork on one of their tours and fell in love with the place.  

“People are really into music in Montana in general, like out of any state I've toured in, they genuinely love to go listen to music. So, it's surprising how many venues just in our small town do music every night of the week,” she said. 

Campbell’s sound has changed a lot since she started performing, she said. Back in those days she was fully into country, which provided a lot of good songwriting skills. 

“I got to play a lot of rodeos and meet so many people and play all these small communities and build my fan base very organically. I think country music is really great for songwriters, like the lyricism in it is really important to learn,” Campbell said. 

Her best lyricism to date is set to come out with her new album, the first half of which is expected to be released in December. There will be a few more singles from the album released leading up to that drop, and in 2025 she will release the second half of the album.  

That’s not the only thing exciting for Campbell in the near future, she said she’s about to embark on her first ever European tour.  

“I cannot wait. I've never played overseas. I got invited to open up for this incredible band called Young Guns Silver Fox, who are a London based band. So, we're hitting London and all through the Netherlands, then back to London, this fall,” Campbell said.  

Folks in Northwest Montana can catch Campbell before she leaves at a few different shows. She’ll be playing at Andy’s Crafthouse on Oct. 4, Gunsight Saloon on Oct. 11 and Downtown in the Round in Whitefish on Oct. 12.  

Campbell also plays on Oct. 4 for Press Play, a lunchtime concert series hosted by the Daily Inter Lake. Subscribers can join for a unique music listening experience at the Daily Inter Lake by donating to the Newspapers in Education initiative. Concertgoers can bring lunch or purchase lunch from The House of S&M.  

Tickets are available at FlatheadTickets.com or by calling 406-758-4436. The performance will be live streamed on the Daily Inter Lake Facebook and Instagram pages   

More information about Campbell and her music can be found at www.millercampbell.com/. 

Reporter Taylor Inman can be reached at 406-758-4433 or by emailing tinman@dailyinterlake.com.