Jowee BasH! Omicil - sMiLes (Album)

Picture Credit: Lucie Bigo sax by Henri Selmer Paris

sMiLes – Jowee BasH! Omicil’s Bold Call to Freedom.

Canadian Haitian multi-instrumentalist Jowee BasH! Omicil returns with sMiLes, his 11th album, a fearless celebration of freedom, authenticity and the beauty of imperfection. Across 11 tracks (plus a bonus featuring the mesmerising Dominique Fils-Aimé), Jowee invites us into his boundless sonic universe, from Cap-Haïtien to 52nd Street, from voodoo drums to cosmic jazz.

A true musical polymath, Jowee’s artistry flows across saxophones, clarinets, flutes, pocket trumpet, Rhodes, piano and voice. Every note feels spontaneous and alive, an act of trust in sound itself. His guiding principle “Trust the Note” runs through the album like a pulse, urging listeners to embrace instinct and imperfection.

Opening with a heartfelt nod to Abbey Lincoln’s Throw It Away, sMiLes unfolds as a manifesto for self-expression and creative courage. Jowee honours giants like Roy Hargrove, Wayne Shorter and Miles Davis, not by imitation, but by embodying their spirit of fearless exploration.

As ever, Jowee doesn’t just play music, he liberates it. sMiLes asks what happens when freedom leads the way, when rules fall away and joy takes over.

Adding another layer, The PoDBasH!, his podcast series, accompanies each track with reflections from inside the “BasH! Galaxy”, a peek behind the curtain at an artist in constant evolution.

Bold, joyous and uncompromising, sMiLes isn’t just an album. It’s a reminder that the truest music begins where fear ends.