‘My songs are all over the map’

White buffalo, an anomaly in the natural world, are regarded as sacred signs that carry great spiritual importance in many Native American cultures.

Los Angeles singer-songwriter Jake Smith, more commonly known as the White Buffalo, likewise is an anomaly in the music world. His raw voice at times sounds strikingly similar to that of Eddie Vedder.

“I didn’t learn the meaning behind the name until I’d adopted it,” Smith said. “My friends came up with the title because I’m a ‘big white gentleman,’” he laughed.

Either way, it’s fitting.

Even his LArrivée D-50 and 000-60 guitars set this legend-in-the-making apart from the rest, as does his aggressive strumming.

“I played a Takamine N-20 for [many] years, which I recently had to lay to rest,” he said.

Smith, alongside bassist Tommy Andrews and drummer Matt Lynott, will perform at 10 tonight at the Detroit Bar in Costa Mesa.

Whether he’s playing solo or as part of a trio, in an intimate setting or for a crowd of thousands, the Buffalo knows how to captivate his audience with heartfelt words, mesmerizing sounds, and a core-shaking performance.

With a self-titled EP and his first full album “Hogtied Revisited” released earlier this year, Smith said he’s written hundreds of more songs that are unrecorded.

“I’m in preproduction of what to put out next,” he said. “I’ve got so much material to work with; it’s nice to road test new songs and get a feel for what people are into.”

The Huntington Beach native whose parents raised him on country-Western music, said he’s always been moved by legends like Waylon Jennings, Merle Haggard and Johnny Cash.

“The inspiration didn’t hit until I was 20, when I picked up my first guitar,” he said. “Then I sort of discovered my voice out of nowhere.

“Now I have no idea what else in this world I’d want to be doing other than music.”

Also greatly influenced by folk-rocker Bob Dylan, Smith said his lyrics are a reflection of anything and everything going on around and within him.

“I’ll write a line or two based on a stream of consciousness, and build a song around that,” he said. “My songs are all over the map.”