After an endearing set by upcoming folk-rocker Garrison Starr, Miller and his band The Believers stepped on stage at the Park West for one of the final dates on his solo tour, giving a remarkable two-hour performance that drew from his solo works and Old 97 favorites. The Believers weren't as equipped to perform Old 97's songs, but they added a layer of polish to Miller's solo work.

Miller opened the set with “My Valentine,” the infectious first track on “The Believer,”in which Miller professes that “sex in wartime is sweeter than peace.” Just as the drum roll began, Miller strapped on his electric guitar and never stopped moving throughout the night, literally. On stage, Miller isn't the shy, lonely boy he pretends to be in some of his songs - he's a coy, sensual performer who enjoys shaking his ass, much to the delight of the women in the crowd. When he bops his head back and forth, his brown locks fly in the air and cover his face. He almost looks like a hotter version of a Raggedy Andy doll.

There's also a charm to the way Miller delivers his lyrics, which can be witty one-liners and rather poignant lines of poetry. With the second song, the Old 97's favorite “Rollerskate Skinny,” Miller sang with conviction, “I believe in love, but it don't believe in me.” Yet lurking behind this rather narcissistic (and brilliant) phrase was Miller's smile, a toothy grin that lets you know he's happy.

But for all of Miller's stinging lyrics aimed at unrequited love, he also knows how to write a delicate love song, sometimes offering hope and redemption. “The Believer” features three of these tracks - the duet “Fireflies,” the title track, and “Question” (a song also featured on the Old 97's release, “Satellite Rides.”).

On the album, former Chicago-based singer Rachael Yamagata (who Miller called “f***in' fantastic”) added husky vocals to the song about young love. Miller called upon his drummer, the excellent Angela Webster, to fill in the vocals for the live version. Webster's vocals lacked the smokey sexiness of Yamagata's, but with their slow drawls, they still turned the song into one hell of a powerhouse love story. “Never say you'll never leave, because you never know until you try,” they sang in unison amid an acoustic guitar and solo electric distortion, letting off an aroma reminiscent of Miller's Texas upbringing.

When Miller played “The Believer,” a spirited song dedicated to the late Elliott Smith, he continued with a much more delicate acoustic sound, different from his power-pop tunes. He dedicated the song to a friend who used to live in Chicago, and appropriately, the song starts off softly but grows more intense as electric guitars color Miller's passionate vocals declaring, “you almost made it.”

Miller's less-cynical side climaxed as he played the ultimate marriage proposal song “Question,” also a soft-acoustic ballad. “Sometimes,” Miller said in the middle of the song, “I get asked to do this. Kristy, Todd has a question for you.” Amid the crowd's cheers, Miller finished the song in French.

Throughout the show, Miller also paid tribute to Chicago, which was home to one of the Old 97's earliest labels, Bloodshot Records. Before beginning the Old 97's classic, “Dressing Room Walls,” from 1995's “Wreck Your Life,” Miller said he wrote the song while sitting in a Chicago club. “I wish it was a little happier, but it's a sad song,” Miller asserted before beginning the twangy rock song.

After nearly two hours, two encores and 31 songs, Miller and The Believers left the stage. There's no doubt that by the end of the night, Miller and his band converted everyone in the audience to believers in good music.

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