2004 Release! All new material and the great news is. The record is well, well worth the three year wait, too! Ex-Starbelly member, Hillis delivers all the hallmarks of his debut "Be Seeing You" and stretches his wings a bit, never losing is innate and natural ability to deliver melody and hooks to the fore. It`s impossible for his being, apparently. Powerful, guitar-driven pop that`s slick withut being cheesy, light and pleasant without inducing cavities, and that has a rock `n roll soul. Cliff Hillis is one more great reason to empty your bowl. Contemplative singer/songwriter one minute, power popper the next, enigmatic love song balladeer three and a half minutes after that. "a mature work about personal commitment to a loving relationship that has his voice more up-front than his first album, Hillis, who is in his early 30s, describes his audience as "not so much the teen crowd" but more of the "independent, alternative [rock] people who seek" out the music. The guitar-based pop sound, played in three-and-four-minute bursts, is allusive to the `60s and `70s, but does have its contemporaries in singer-songwriters Sweet and John Mayer, both of whom Hillis has been lumped with. His mature, positive lyrics about relationships and marriage do make him standout in the singer-songwriter crowd where whining and emo-heartache can abound."-Coast Press.
"One of the most frustrating things about reviewing loads of independently released music is that so much good music has little chance of reaching the larger audience it deserves. This is particularly frustrating when writing about artists like Cliff Hillis. Hillis writes wonderful evocative pop songs that are thoroughly accessible. Hillis is a top flight power popper... The album stills sounds great today, showing an artist finding all of the pieces coming into place. Yet many would say, the best was still on the horizon. I must note that its really reassuring that parallel universe rock encyclopedias of the future will read as if I wrote them. But seriously, Hillis is on par with other contemporary pop singer-songwriters, like Michael Carpenter and Brendan Benson, who seem to innately and effortlessly write songs that just feel right. His solo record winning streak now stands at two."-Mike Bennett, Fufkin.com.
"Better Living Through Compression does not disappoint. Most of these songs are mid-tempo numbers steeped in rock/pop influences from what`s gone before, yet they stand out as impressive originals. Each of these eleven tracks is as well put-together as any of those cover songs, a further testament to Hillis` abilities... s doesn`t shout out his many talents from the rooftops. Like his music, Hillis is subtle, graceful, confident and contained. But the talent is real and the proof is in the music. The cordial songs of *Better Living Through
Compression* get better with each repeated listen, and in
a world often besieged with the blatant, perhaps the time
for subtlety is now. "-Fufkin.com.
Teenage Fanclub Tribute:
"It`s hard to pick out favorites here -- there are so many energetic and loving performances - and I`m really biased toward the songs I liked in the first place. That said, this is a most impressive collection from
start to end... great job in assembling a loving tribute to some of the
richest harmonic pop music we`ve ever had. Give it a listen and find out for yourself just how good and joyful that Teenage Fanclub music really is. "-Fufkin.com
Extremely Highly Recommended, yes indeed!
 Listen - mp3
Listen - mp3
Listen - mp3
Listen - mp3
Listen - mp3
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