That Eric Alper

Kingsville, ON’s blues alt-country soft-rock duo Fresh Breath are asking How Did I Get Here with the release of this, their new album — available now through their website or Bandcamp.

The six-song EP is a culminating reflection of the band’s married members, KT and Josh, and their own relationship stories — from the early days of when the couple first met, to their take on the world navigating isolation, all the way to the darkness they were forced to find in order to keep their own lights shining.

This year’s previously released lead single “World Gone Crazy” covered ground as an alternative protest piece around social injustices and pandemic fatigue, whereas newly unveiled songs “You & Me,” and the album’s title track, “How Did I Get Here,” land as sweetly tender and raw with revelation.

All in all, How Did I Get Here is proving to be the Kingsville, Ontario-based pair’s most revolutionary release yet.

“It’s no secret our world has changed,” Josh marvels, “and when you read through the track list of the album, it pretty much sums up what we went through in 2020.”

“It’s like the ‘World Gone Crazy,’ so we ‘Find Our Way Home,’ and worry there’s a ‘Rumour Going Round’ about ‘You & Me’…” KT adds. “And then, when we reminisce about ‘When We First Met,’ it’s hard not to think: ‘How Did I Get Here?’”

“This wasn’t actually planned!” the two insist. “We organized the tracks for the first time like this and, as we listened to the album as a whole, the flow of songs just worked so well. It all seemed too good to be true, so we stuck with it!”

It’s that same sentiment — the organic ease of things falling into place just as they should — that effortless ripples out through the husband-and-wife singing/songwriting duo’s entire artistic ethos; between Josh’s prowess on the guitar, bass, drums, harmonica, and vocals, and KT’s immersive, enveloping vox, they are a tour de force on the Canadian scene.

And with upwards of 100,000+ streams across Spotify alone, this dynamic new EP — and the pair’s previously released discography, including singles “Likes & Shares,” “Time For a Change,” and more — only further showcases the duo as the powerhouse storytelling lyricists and talented multi-instrumentalists they are.

Their collective talents don’t stop there; KT also designed the artwork for How Did I Get Here. “The idea behind the crows on the cover comes from the second track on the release, and could be said to represent Josh and I,” she explains, referencing “Find Your Way Home.” “It’s a song about wondering what it would be like if you were on Earth as something other than human… A line in the song reads, ‘I’d rather be a crow, on the side of the road; Just picking at a carcass, minding cars as they go.’

“By adding the windmills, farm fields, and telephone poles, I also wanted to represent the reality of our rural setting since we stayed so close to home during this pandemic,” she adds.

How Did I Get Here is available for digital download through Fresh Breath’s platform on Bandcamp, as well as on Apple Music; physical copies are available pressed to vinyl, as well. The release is a FACTOR-funded ‘Artist Development’ project, and was produced by Sound Foundry Studios’ Brett Humber.

How Did I Get Here is available now.