Today we’d like to introduce you to Jake Miles.
Jake, please kick things off for us by telling us about yourself and your journey so far.
I was born in raised in the South Austin hippy scene, spent most of the time between functions with free breakfast tacos and guitar slingers with their funky old fart bands. My pop is a musician, goes by Papa Mali. So he was in with all of the crowds, took me all over the place, and always let me loose on his concerningly giant hoards of vinyl records. There was every kind of music, everywhere, all of the time. I started playing drums at age 5 and often times would play with pop and his friends. But around age 12 I got into songwriting on guitar and never touched a drum set again. I spent the next decade in and out of bands, but the ambition wasn’t there to really push the music anywhere. Austinites are known for being friendly and lazy. And it’s true. The vibes are so good here that when you’re getting by, you don’t really need much more. Not a lot of reason for drive.
When I was 23, I had my heart broken so bad by my first true love, so I had to leave Austin. I didn’t know where I was going, but I knew I couldn’t go home, so I packed my child size nylon acoustic guitar, a small bag, and my bicycle and hitch-hiked around the country. I met all sorts of fascinating people, some of which are still my good friends. I busked in New York City, farmed in North Carolina, and even did a 1500 mile bicycle tour from Portland to Los Angeles. I collected so many stories, and all the while was writing songs. Eventually, I had to come home for Thanksgiving with my family. At that point, I felt I was about to burst with all of these songs and nothing to do with them. So I started a band and called it SMiiLE. It’s an anagram of my last name, a reference to one of my favorite albums by the Beach Boys, and also a reference to a philosophy Timothy Leary had called S.M.I.I.L.E. It’s an acronym for Space Migration, Increased Intelligence, and Life Extension. It’s very science-fiction, and I thought kind of resonated with the vision of the band.
Can you give our readers some background on your art?
I make music. I write songs. I compose. I enjoy playing live shows and curating a magical experience for people in that way; however, my greatest passion is in the recording arts. I love the world you can create within a recording. A world that you can revisit over and over again if it’s a song that you love, and it will take you to that transcendent place. Every recording is like a time machine that only goes to one place. It’s beautiful.
I spent the last year building a home recording studio, and now that it’s complete and operational, I spend every day in heaven. I get to bring the song ideas to life as soon as they come. It’s become an obsession, and I’ve always thought obsessions are very healthy. They ward off boredom, uncertainty and even fear. When you’re obsessed, you know your purpose, and there’s nothing else you can do. It’s actually quite comforting. So I craft songs from head to toe in these tiny universes, about love, political unrest, psychedelic quandaries, anything. They are rich in rhythm, and harmony and hopefully some unusual sounds that turn your head as they whir by.
I hope the music makes people feel like they’re the protagonist in a riveting movie with fantastic plot development and nuanced characters. After countless trials, the hero emerges with beaming optimism on the horizon, and dark scars in their past.
I’d like people to know that, for me, there is no urgency to become popular fast. I don’t write any songs to please anybody except myself, and that is a challenge because it’s hard to make money from music unless you try and become popular fast. Which, ya know, good luck with that! But I know that the more honest I am with my art, the deeper the connections to other people through the art will be. It’s important for me to maintain that artistic integrity and I believe that does resonate with people.
What would you recommend to an artist new to the city, or to art, in terms of meeting and connecting with other artists and creatives?
Artists are often looking to collaborate. These days, I find that my only friends are people I collaborate with. I don’t have time for anyone else. I suppose the practical thing is to go to art shows exhibiting the medium that you enjoy, and then network with people. I usually find it’s more organic than that, and the right collaborators will come to you as long as you put your work out there for people to see. I also believe that a lot of alone time is critical to being an artist. You have your best ideas and your deepest thinking in solitude. I’d recommend meditating above all else to solve loneliness.
What’s the best way for someone to check out your work and provide support?
SMiiLE music is available on all streaming platforms. We have several new music videos that I’d encourage watching. Follows, likes and comments on social media platforms are all great ways to boost our visibility as a band. Our handle for all of the social media accounts is either smiile or smiilemusic. Buy our records online through our website, smiilemusic.com and come out to a show and see what all the commotion is about!
Contact Info:
- Website: smiilemusic.com
- Phone: 512-772-9122
- Email: smiilemusicatx@gmail.com
- Instagram: smiilemusic
- Facebook: smiile
- Twitter: smiilemusicatx
Image Credit:
Harrison Anderson, Jackson Montgomery Schwartz, Carlo Nasisse
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