Josh Fuson - On Disappearing

Josh Fuson

On Disappearing
self-released; 2014

3.6 out of 5

By Ted Rogen

After college Josh Fuson moved to Nashville. As with most people who moved to Nashville he befriended a number of musicians because that’s mostly the kind of people you will run into there. He started working on On Disappearing with his friend and collaborator Nate Dort. Dort ended up moving to Montana which put the project on hold. Years later in what I believe could be called a moment of serendipity the two friends found themselves living in Denver. It was there that the album was completed.

On Disappearing is an inventive album that displays a lot of originality from Fuson. I was having a hard time pinpointing his musical influences which in my opinion is a good thing. At its core On Disappearing revolves around guitar and vocals. Even though the instrumentation isn’t that varied Fuson does a good job at creating different textures and tones within the songs.

The music lies somewhere between experimental folk and indie rock. There were some unexpected twists and turns that started to define Fuson’s style. The majority of the material  works but some of it displays kinks in his armor.

The album starts with “Silhouette” which is more or less an intro. It’s under a minute long but quickly establishes that Fuson has skills. It reminded me of Elliott Smith in some ways. The next two tracks “Ask Me Again” and “Medicine Take” are highlights. I thought the electric guitars were especially effective on “Ask Me Again”. The chorus is catchy when he sings “But if you ask me again maybe I will. Yeah, if you ask me again maybe I will.”. “Medicine Take” starts off with a number of unconventional, disparate sounds but starts to make sense once the vocals and guitar enter. 

“Go Slow” is atmospheric on the verge of ethereal. Fuson somehow makes it works and doesn’t sound too juxtaposed against his previous songs on the album. I have nothing against cursing in a song but the when Fuson sings “So put your arm around me and tell me we'll be ok. Or tell me to go fuck myself.” it sounded oddly out of place against the warm guitar and uplifting melancholy.

On Disappearing has some missteps but nothing that made me cringe. It was an easy, enjoyable listen to my ears that contained a number of noteworthy songs.

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