TRIO FROM TREATY 6 SHARES NEW SONG “copper”
LISTEN TO "copper"
SHOWS WITH REUBEN AND THE DARK BEGIN OCTOBER 27
starlight EP artwork // DOWNLOAD HIGH-RES
nêhiyawak hails from amiskwaciy in Treaty 6 Territory. The trio of Indigenous Canadian artists – Kris Harper (vocals, guitars), Marek Tyler (drums), and Matthew Cardinal (synths, bass) – transcends a new intersection of contemporary sound and the traditional storytelling of their ancestry. Their music is a resonant expression of indigeneity in the modern world.
Following the release of two singles this summer – the intricately textured “somnambulist” and the liquid narrative arc of “page” (featuring spoken word by poet Marilyn Dumont) – nêhiyawak announces the starlight EP: a collection of five songs that reflect the vast range of a band emboldened with the powerful inflection of its rich cultural connection.
“starlight shines a torch into the shadows of colonial ideologies,” says Harper. “What is erasure? What are the depths man will go to to extinguish culture? Recognition of and education on the forms and techniques that impact indigenous, POC, LGBTQ, and our mothers, sisters and daughters assist in the reformation and reparations sought by survivors in our day.”
The announcement is marked by the release of “copper,” the third single to be shared from the five song EP collection. “copper” is nêhiyawak at its most strident, with icy synths, heavily plated guitar, and tense log percussion underpinning Harper’s strained vocals – a song about the “importance of understanding who you are and where you are from,” says Harper. “Our most powerful tool against the forms of violence presented in our modern cultures.”
LISTEN AND SHARE “copper”
FREE DOWNLOAD FROM nehiyawak.com
Produced by Colin Stewart (The New Pornographers, Black Mountain, Destroyer), nêhiyawak’s music is personified by chiming guitar, terrestrial rhythm, sheer ambience, and resilient poetry. starlight is at times grand and emotional, at times cool and reticent, combining the terse post-rock of Mission of Burma and Godspeed You! Black Emperor with the baroque pop backdrop of Grizzly Bear and Blonde Redhead. The starlight EP will be released digitally on November 27 via Arts & Crafts.
PREORDER starlight EP
nêhiyawak will join A&C label mates Reuben and the Dark for a run of dates throughout Western Canada beginning October 27. Full itinerary and EP tracklist are below.
TOUR DATES w/ REUBEN AND THE DARK
Oct 27 - Winnipeg, MB - WECC &
Oct 29 - Edmonton, AB - Winspear Centre
Oct 30 - Calgary, AB - Jack Singer Concert Hall
Nov 1 - Saskatoon, SK - Broadway Theatre
Nov 2 - Regina, SK - Westminster United Church
Nov 3 - Lethbridge, AB - Southminster United Church
Nov 7 - Victoria, BC - Capital Ballroom
Nov 8 - Vancouver, BC - Imperial Theatre
PURCHASE / STREAM “somnambulist” HERE
PURCHASE / STREAM “page” HERE
WATCH “page” VIDEO FEATURING MARILYN DUMONT
nêhiyawak starlight tracklist
1. starlight
2. page
3. copper
4. somnambulist
5. open window
Photo Credit : Levi Manchak // DOWNLOAD HIGH-RES
NOTES
nêhiyawak ᓀᐦᐃᔭᐊᐧᐠ
Pronunciation: neh-HEE-oh-wuk
Meanings: Cree People, People of the Plains, Plains People, Exact People
Note: There are no letters capitalized in Cree language. Please write name in all lower case.