Alaska-based singer/songwriter Josh Fortenbery’s songs offer honest observations about the world around him. He refers to his focus as “both neurotic folk and existential country”.

Recently, he released a surprise EP, a follow-up to last year’s Tidy Memorial. Where the album itself “mourned a variety of circumstances”, Fortenbery moves towards “healthy perspective” with the EP, Oh Rejoice.

He says:

I’m finding these strange flecks of optimism creeping into my cynicism. I’m at a point in my life where I don’t know if that’s a taste of the wisdom of age or the dregs of youth.

He adds:

This EP started as a collection of misfits—a few songs I’ve been playing live that won’t fit on the next record, and a few I’ve only played at home but wanted to record before I forgot about them. Still, there is a bit of a common thread running through these tunes—loneliness, looking for meaning, and the comedy of finding meaning for some people.

Among Fortenberry’s proudest identities is that of an Alaskan artist and a founding member of The Muskeg Collective.