Colin Miller & Told Slant

support from H. PRUZ

Grief doesn’t end when someone passes—it lingers in every memory, every place, and every quiet moment of longing. On his second full-length album, Losin’, Asheville-based songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Colin Miller explores the echoes of loss, particularly the passing of Gary King—a father figure, landlord, and mentor who shaped his young adulthood.

For 13 years, Miller lived on King’s property in East Asheville, tending the land and making music while Gary, a retired trucker and car enthusiast, watched over him. When Gary passed in 2022, Miller remained for two more years, holding onto the home and its memories until the property was inevitably sold. These songs were written in the wake of that loss.

From the raw storytelling in “Porchlight” and “Cadillac” to the ambient sorrow of “4 Wheeler” and “Little Devil,” Losin’ captures the surreal weight of grief. Miller’s plaintive voice and sharp lyricism shine, especially in “Lost Again,” where he pleads, “I just need you here for a second.” Backed by collaborators like Jake Lenderman, Xandy Chelmis, and Ethan Baechtold (MJ Lenderman / Wednesday), Losin’ is both elegy and celebration—a testament to the people and places that shape us, even after they’re gone. The album closes with a poignant nod to Springsteen on “Thunder Road,” a fitting tribute to a man who loved the open road.

Hold onto what’s left, Miller reminds us. The ones we’ve lost live on in the echoes.