Portland-based singer and guitarist Owen Conforte has followed up last year’s “Lovely War” EP with a new batch of songs on the album “Cinders,” released in August.

Conforte has been honing his craft for many years with OC and the Offbeats, The Fogcutters and his solo work.

With “Cinders,” Conforte continues on his path of smart, catchy and upbeat songs, even when he’s singing about heartache with tracks like “You’re Doing Me Wrong.” He’s also reached new heights vocally on the funky title track.

The “Cinders” opener is the breezy “Last Time (Burn the Whole Thing Down).” The hopeful tune bursts with a sense of renewal and picking yourself up after some hard knocks. “Burn the whole thing down/Down to the ground/And build a castle with the ashes.”

Conforte’s online home is owenconfortemusic.com where you can listen to and purchase “Cinders” and sign up for his mailing list.

Here’s “Last Time (Burn the Whole Thing Down):”