Exposed Vocals Interviews Miramar Drive

Miramar Drive currently consists of only Jacob Craddock in the studio, and 2-4 additional members in a live show setting. Jacob Saul Craddock is a 17-year-old American Rock musician based out of Orlando, Florida. He writes, records, and performs original music as well as covers. He is the frontman of the band Miramar Drive, which has gone through several line-ups as well as locations.

Jacob has been recording music professionally since he was 13 years old. Living in Newport Beach, California, Jacob was inspired to once again pick up the guitar after giving it up earlier that year. He began by traveling to Los Angeles to record single songs at several recording studios, but soon realized that he could make professional recordings at home at a much lower cost. He loved doing everything himself, but he really needed some help musically. He then started the band Miramar Drive; consisting of Michael McCardle on bass and vocals, Elijah Gamboa on Drums, and himself on guitar and vocals. That went well for a few years, but Jacob was unhappy living in California.

He struggled to develop real friends. Most of the kids at his school were rich, snobby, and stuck up. He really just want to go home, back to Orlando, Florida. That ended his time with Miramar Drive in California. Soon after moving back home to Florida, Jacob was hungry to be in a band again. So he continued the legacy of Miramar Drive by keeping the name, and recruiting Tristan Villacampa on bass, Jack Bramuchi on drums, and Matthew Sechler on guitar as full time members.

It went well for a while… but fell through with the all of the members busy schedules. The band agreed that no one really had the time or energy to be in a band. So that was that. For the second time, Jacob was back to square one. He felt that being in a band in his circumstances was just too difficult. It was hard enough to get himself to do something, but it was even harder to get three other people to do the same. So now Jacob is doing this, doing himself, playing himself, and most importantly being himself. He is Miramar Drive.

He recently finished recording his first full length album Back to Orlando and is getting set for its release. It is currently up for preorder on Apple Music here. It will be available worldwide on Apple Music, Spotify, Google Play, and more on October 31st (halloween)! You can stream the first two singles off of the album on the official MiramarDriveVevo page.

Exposed Vocals: So tell us your story. Where did you grow up? What made you decide to become an artist?

Miramar Drive: I grew up mostly in Orlando, Florida, but spent some of my teen years living in southern California. I decided to become an artist because I wanted to be like Tom Delonge from blink-182 and Angels & Airwaves. Everything that he does has inspired me over the past 4 years or so. I want to write, record, and perform songs that I will cherish and also get recognition for. My childhood and hometown have played a huge role in my music to this point. My upcoming album “Back to Orlando” is the story of my moving to southern California, but coming back to my hometown Orlando, Florida because that was where all my friends and family were. This album is near and dear to my heart, and has inspired me to keep pursuing music. I recorded and wrote this album completely on my own, doing all instruments and vocals myself, and I am really proud of it.

Exposed Vocals: How did you come up with that name? What was your inspiration behind it?

Miramar Drive: Funny story, I actually didn’t come up with the name. I started a band as a freshman in high school when I was living in Newport Beach, California. We booked a show, but we still hadn’t come up with a band name. We had been arguing for a week straight about it but the drummer Elijah Gamboa just blurted out “Screw it! Why not Miramar Drive? The street you live on Jacob. Kinda like Linkin Park”. It seemed to stick. Although that band ended when I moved back to Orlando, I started recording solo material under that name and I still do.

Exposed Vocals: What do you think about online music sharing? Do you ever give your music away for free? Why?

Miramar Drive: I think that online music sharing is awesome! I can show the world my new song, new album cover, or behind the scenes looks at what I am up to. The only problem with it, is that it is so easy to share music online. So all of these bands are spamming their friends with this stuff, and audiences kinda start to drown in a sea of crap and stop caring about it. So you have to be sparing with what you share, make them work for it a little. And in answer to your second question, yes. I give away my music for free all the time. I think giving away content to your fans is very important because it keeps them interested and engaged. The two main obstacles for fans of music today are money, and convenience. They can either pay a dollar for a song to listen to it with a click, or they can go on your Soundcloud and stream it for free. Most of the time they are willing to put in the extra effort to listen and avoid the cost of buying your content. No one is making money selling records anymore, so just gain more fans by giving away your music for free. Because guess what? They will pay you loads of money later in ticket sales and merchandise purchases.

Exposed Vocals: Since everyone was a start-up once, can you give any smaller or local bands or artists looking to get gigs and airplay some tips?

Miramar Drive: Don’t send out mass emails! I have learned from my mistakes with that. Music industry executives can smell a mass email from a mile away! You want to be professional when trying to book a show, or get played somewhere, but don’t underestimate the power of your personal touch. Become the persons friend, give them a call, follow up. Form real relationships with these people because it will only extend your outreach with your music. People. Talk.

Exposed Vocals: Do you ever make mistakes during performances? How do you handle that?

Miramar Drive: All the time, are you kidding? You are going to mess up live, it’s inevitable. Even the biggest and best musicians in the world make mistakes. Nobody is perfect. The way I handle it is to just keep playing no matter what, don’t stop. Because honestly people aren’t going to really notice if you mess up, but if you stop playing altogether… then people will start scratching their heads.

Exposed Vocals: Do you tour? Anything interesting happen on tour that you think our readers would enjoy hearing about?

Miramar Drive: I have not been on tour yet, but I am scheduling one to follow up my upcoming album “Back to Orlando”. Maybe I will have a hilarious story for you next time.

Exposed Vocals: Where do you usually gather songwriting inspiration? What is your usual songwriting process?

Miramar Drive: Just listening to my favorite bands, listening to amazing songs inspires me to write amazing songs. My songwriting process is usually me just fiddling around on guitar, playing whatever the hell I want. Usually I’ll play something on accident and I’ll be like “Woah, this sounds rad!”. After I find that “Woah, this sounds rad!” riff, I just run with it. I construct a drum beat in my head, and then just lay it down. Then I play down the guitars, synths, and bass. Vocals usually come much later just because lyrics are a chore for me. That’s why I had my friend Karli Cheek write over half the lyrics for my upcoming album “Back to Orlando”.

Exposed Vocals: Do you have a band website? What online platforms do you use to share your music?

Miramar Drive: Yes you can the website at miramardrive.com for everything Miramar Drive. I use many platforms to share my music. You can find me on Apple Music, Vevo, YouTube, Spotify, Google Play, Amazon, Soundcloud, Bandcamp, and more.
Exposed Vocals: What are some really embarrassing songs that we might find on your mp3 player?

Miramar Drive: Honestly nothing. I only download really good and respectable music! Nice try though.

Exposed Vocals: If you were given half a million dollars and a year off, what would you do? How would you spend it?

Miramar Drive: I would record an album, construct a live band, and tour all year. That really what I want, to be a free musician.

Exposed Vocals: Any planned studio upgrades? What are you working with now?

Miramar Drive: No upgrades right now, but I am happy with my equipment. You know what is funny, my recordings sound very professional but I use a very old MacBook, Garageband, one microphone, an interface, and headphones. That is literally it! I use real guitar amps, but my set up is very minimal and I make it sound freaking awesome!

Exposed Vocals: How do you find ways to promote your music? What works best for you?

Miramar Drive: Reaching out to bloggers, journalists, and music promoters. I build strong relationships with these people and help them keep doing what they do. I scratch their backs and vice versa. Social Media is also a great tool for promotion but I have to be careful not to spam people.

Exposed Vocals: If you could perform anywhere and with any artists (Dead or Alive) where and who would it be with? Why?

Miramar Drive: Tom Delonge recently quit blink-182, so if I could go replace him in the band instead of Matt Skiba, that would be a dream come true. I love performing those songs live myself, so to do it with those guys would be amazing!

Exposed Vocals: So, what’s next? Any new upcoming projects that you want to talk about?

Miramar Drive: Yes! My upcoming album “Back to Orlando” is available for preorder now on Apple Music http://goo.gl/WvI7aq and will be available worldwide on Halloween (October 31st)! Follow Miramar Drive on Facebook and Instagram for all the latest.

Exposed Vocals: If you weren’t making music, what would you be doing?

Miramar Drive: Wow, tough one… I think I would be doing graphic and web design. I do enjoy doing that kind of stuff.

Exposed Vocals: Do you remember buying your first album? Who was it? What was going through your head?

Miramar Drive: I think that it was Angels & Airwaves’s second album “iEmpire”. That was everything to me when I bought it, I kept it on repeat for hours.

Exposed Vocals: How do you juggle the rest of your responsibilities while trying to stay ahead in your music life?

Miramar Drive: I spend all of my free time either with my friends, or working on stuff related to my music. Period.

Exposed Vocals: What should fans look forward to in 2015?

Miramar Drive: My upcoming album “Back to Orlando”, and for some tour dates to be announced!