The Loud Family

Recording five acclaimed albums for Alias Records during the 1990s, Scott Miller and an ever-changing cast of musicians (including bassists Kenny Kessel and Rob Poor, guitarist Zachary Smith, keyboard players Alison Faith Levy and Paul Wieneke, and drummers Joe Becker, Gil Ray and Mike Tittel) made some of the best pop music of the decade. Aimee Mann (who told Pulse magazine's Brett Milano that Scott Miller is "the best songwriter out there right now") and Magnetic Fields' Stephin Merritt (who raved about the Loud Family's "gloriously catchy hooks" in Time Out New York) hand-picked the Loud Family to open for them on tour. Fans traveled from all over the United States to catch their shows, flying, in some cases, several thousand miles to see them. Initially, Scott called it quits after the LF's final Alias release, "Attractive Nuisance." But years of nonstop pestering by 125's Sue & Joe finally coaxed him out of retirement to record "What If It Works?," a collaboration with Sacramento power pop hero Anton Barbeau.