Asteroid is one of several musical vehicles employed by resourceful Anchorage, Alaska-based pop-rock auteur Paul Jacks, whose diverse musical arsenal also includes his long-running, similarly intoxicating collective Smile Ease, along with a variety of solo and group projects. Asteroid's appropriately titled 2017 debut album Intimate is packed with distinctive songcraft that's both melodically accessible and deeply personal, with such distinctive tunes as "Chandelier," "Confessions from A Bedside" and "The Fatal Mistake" mixing an appealingly warm melodic sensibility with distinctive, vividly insightful lyrics. Asteroid is the brainchild of dedicated songwriter-musician Paul Jacks, whose output with his long-running combo Smile Ease maintains a similar, gently intoxicating vibe. Smile Ease has been releasing albums since 2007, and had been going for a decade when Jacks and company recorded Intimate. That project was initially intended as the third Smile Ease album. But after a personnel shakeup within the band, it was decided to credit Intimate to a new band entity. In addition to Jacks, Intimate features a band lineup that includes Smile Ease veterans Eric Price and Ian Worthington, and new members Colton Ciufo (keyboards) and Ben Gauthier (drums).