Miles Jenson is strung out in the Country Club in his pointed and powerful new single and visualizer — showcasing today on Tinnitist.
The genre-defying singer-songwriter introduces his uncompromising artistic vision with the lead single from his upcoming debut EP Sunshine Goldmine — a bold, genre-blurring work slated for release on June 20. Produced by Grammy-winner King Garbage (Jon Batiste, The Weeknd, Leon Bridges), the soulfully cinematic three-song collection introduces Jenson as a fearless and uncompromising new voice.
On the whimsical Country Club, Jenson pairs lush grooves with hard-hitting social commentary. The song critiques the disparity in media coverage of addiction — how suburban struggles are met with empathy while urban communities are often criminalized. Inspired by a news story on Atlanta’s “Heroin Triangle,” Jenson explains: “The story is compassionate in its coverage of the suburban kids doing opiates, but then shifts into criminalization when reporting on the addictions of downtown youth.” He rips away the facade with a striking first verse: “Quarterback in cotillion / Prom queens on heroin / Father on Ashley Madison / Detox with a four-car drive.”
Sunshine Goldmine explores the personal, the political, and the personal that is political — confronting racism, classism, negative self-perceptions, societal conditioning, neuroses, self-evolution, and obsession. “There is social commentary in these songs, but there is also a lot of inner dialogue,” Jenson shares. “I speak candidly about my flaws because, when you’re honest, you invite in grace.”
Jenson welds a thrilling, genre-defying aesthetic, drawing inspiration from the greasy grooves of Stax Records as well as the abstract, literate artistry of Radiohead and Fiona Apple. The three-track EP is dark, lush, and unflinching, marking the true arrival of an artist who has taken the long way to find his voice.
Jenson’s path has been anything but conventional. His father was a jazz musician, but didn’t teach him to play. As a four-year-old kid, he would pound the keys on the family piano until he discovered a sonorous cluster of notes. After his parents split, Jenson moved to Nashville, where he discovered country music’s storytelling tradition. Songwriting remained a personal escape until his early 20s, when a producer encouraged him to pursue it seriously. At the time, however, Jenson was mired in active alcoholism.
Eventually, he got sober and signed a record deal. “I was making fear-based decisions to be what the label wanted me to be,” he says. “But I realized that the only way I could connect with others was through being myself.” Frustrated with label red tape, he left the contract behind, moved to L.A., and began releasing a series of increasingly esoteric piano-driven pop singles. A cold call to King Garbage turned into something more when the producer immediately understood Jenson’s vision. “He was the first person that understood what I was doing. He made me feel seen,” Jenson says. Their collaboration laid the foundation for Sunshine Goldmine.
With Sunshine Goldmine, Jenson emerges as a magnetic new artist committed to truth-telling, genre exploration, and emotional resonance. “This EP is my first true expression — it is me finally honoring myself,” he says. Up next, Jenson will record his debut full-length with King Garbage, furthering his musical aspirations for authentic connections with his fans. “I want someone to hear my music and say ‘I always have struggled to name that feeling and now it has a name,’” Jenson explains. “That’s what it’s always been about for me. It’s such a relief when you hear your feelings articulated in a song.”
Watch the visualizer for Country Club above, pre-save Sunshine Goldmine HERE, hear more from Miles Jenson below, and follow him on Instagram.
