Polson musician releases first EP album
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“The mountains to the east have got a hold on my soul,” and “I will never leave Montana” are the lyrics to a song by Polson musician Joe Martinez. Martinez, a 2022 Polson High School alum, recently released his first extended play album on Spotify. His debut album, titled “Montana,” includes some of the very first songs Martinez wrote. Martinez’ love of Montana and the Mission Valley where he grew up are evidenced in the EP’s five songs: “One of These Days,” “Let’s Get to Lovin’,” “Montana,” “Highway 93,” and “Movin’.”
Martinez says his musical inspiration comes from artists like Elvis Presley, The Beatles, Johnny Cash, Marcus King, and Chris Stapleton. Those influences can be heard in his music. His Spotify artist bio describes Martinez as musician “with a soulful voice, dynamic style, heartfelt lyrics and skillful guitar playing.”
Having grown up in a very musical family, Martinez took an interest in music at a very young age. He credits his brother as the person who got him to started on his musical journey by getting him to join band in the 6th grade. Since then, Martinez has known that playing music is what he wanted to do with his life. In his sophomore year of high school, Martinez found another avenue for music when he joined his high school’s choir. Even though he wasn’t previously interested in singing, choir opened his eyes to a whole new side of musical performance. It was then, that he decided to pick up his dad’s guitar and learn to play. As a senior in high school, Martinez became the first Polson student to be accepted into the All Northwest Jazz Choir. He joined a local musician’s co-op and began playing music at the Polson Farmer’s Markets and the Ronan Co-op Brewery. He’s now been performing live for three years. In addition to listening to his music through Spotify, Martinez plays every Wednesday at the Finley Point Grill from 6-9 p.m. with his band The 95.
