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"  FOR THE UNINITIATED: While most of the bands tagged &amp;quot;alt country&amp;quot; back in the nineties have faded into obscurity, the Old 97&amp;#039;s and their forty-one-year-old frontman, Rhett Miller, are still filling large venues night after night. While Miller&amp;#039;s solo albums are typically more bouncy than twangy, his latest, The Dreamer, promises his most rootsy, country-leaning solo set yet. &amp;quot;It&amp;#039;s exactly the record I wanted to make,&amp;quot; Miller says. &amp;quot;In a world that is so processed and digital, what I want to hear is something fleshy and organic. Plus, it&amp;#039;s hard to argue with pedal steel guitar and female backing vocals.&amp;quot;  ON THE TOUR-BUS LIFE:  &amp;quot;The step up to buses is one of the two or three big steps in a band&amp;#039;s evolution. I love them, but it&amp;#039;s also a sardine can full of dudes, with all of the attendant noises, smells, arguments, and ego clashing. The bus is the thing that always makes me think of ships \u2014 cursing sailors and pirates plundering their way across the ocean.&amp;quot; ON WRITING SONGS:  &amp;quot;I love the idea that you start with nothing, and then there&amp;#039;s something. And the something that you brought into creation from nothing then goes out and makes a living for you.&amp;quot; ON CHANCE ENCOUNTERS WITH PERSONAL HEROS:  &amp;quot;This trip started off in a magical way: four of us playing dice at the Sunset Marquis in Los Angeles with ZZ Top&amp;#039;s Billy F. Gibbons. As a Texan, to be sitting with the author of &amp;#039;Cheap Sunglasses&amp;#039; was unreal \u2014 the first record I ever bought with my allowance was Deg\u00FCello! I always expected him to be a madman, but he&amp;#039;s such a sweet dude. One day I hope to be Billy Gibbons to some starry-eyed younger songwriter.&amp;quot;     From top: Two-button cotton suit ($1,295) and cotton shirt ($265) by Boss Selection; suede shoes ($375) by Boss Black; silk pocket square ($65) by Paul Smith Accessories. // Two-button cotton-and-silk suit ($2,645) and cotton shirt ($350) by Giorgio Armani; silk tie ($195) by Dolce &amp;amp;amp; Gabbana; leather brogues ($520) by Church&amp;#039;s. // Three-button bamboo jacket ($1,298), cotton shirt ($225), cotton jeans ($328), and silk scarf ($198) by John Varvatos; leather-and-canvas boots ($630) by Salvatore Ferragamo. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.esquire.com/entertainment/music/a32958/rhett-miller-cassandra-0512/>