{"id":18642,"date":"2019-11-20T09:00:52","date_gmt":"2019-11-20T17:00:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.nexusnewspaper.com\/?p=18642"},"modified":"2019-12-05T09:31:52","modified_gmt":"2019-12-05T17:31:52","slug":"nehiyawak-navigate-the-intersection-between-traditional-and-contemporary","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nexusnewspaper.com\/newsite\/2019\/11\/20\/nehiyawak-navigate-the-intersection-between-traditional-and-contemporary\/","title":{"rendered":"n\u00eahiyawak navigate the intersection between traditional and contemporary"},"content":{"rendered":"

The North Saskatchewan river kisisk\u00e2ciwanis\u00eepiy flows through the heart of amiskwaciy (Edmonton) on Treaty 6 territory. In their new album, nipiy<\/i> (Cree for \u201cwater\u201d), Edmonton-based post-rock\/ambient\/pop band n\u00eahiyawak echo the pace with which that river flows.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhen we think of nipiy<\/i>, there is an intellectual and physical resource there that those waters, these rivers, have given our families and I hope that the album speaks to those perspectives,\u201d says n\u00eahiyawak drummer Marek Tyler.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Tyler\u2019s mother reminded him of the importance of understanding the meaning of the word \u201cnipiy<\/i>\u201d if he was going to use it.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat does water mean? It\u2019s foundational, it\u2019s most stable at its lowest point, it\u2019s used in teachings, it\u2019s used in ceremony,\u201d he says. \u201cIt\u2019s one of the first things I think of when I think of Edmonton.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
n\u00eahiyawak bring elements of history and tradition into their new album, nipiy<\/em> (photo by Levi Manchak).<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The album begins and ends with tracks that represent the river, in name and in tempo. These soundscapes are atmospheric and evocative, carrying a flow into nipiy<\/i>. And the stories told in nipiy <\/i>are part of a larger conversation, influenced by the Idle No More movement and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a very distinct, unique perspective by Indigenous people in general that Kris [Harper, lead singer] does a fantastic job of capturing and presenting in an informed way,\u201d says Tyler.<\/p>\n

The band recorded the soundtrack for the 2017 documentary film otenaw<\/i>, which focused on Dwayne Donald, an academic who teaches at the University of Alberta. Donald\u2019s teachings found their way into nipiy<\/i> as well.<\/p>\n

\u201c[Donald] spoke to the layers of people and history that have walked through the valley here, and he spoke about the relationship that we\u2019ve had with the water that has flowed through here. It gave us a perspective that we\u2019ve been here, we are here, and we\u2019ll always be here,\u201d says Tyler.<\/p>\n

Those elements of history and tradition are also evident in the instruments n\u00eahiyawak used on the album. Recording at the Hive Studios with Colin Stewart, known for producing bands like the New Pornographers and Black Mountain, the band was gifted three drums by Carey Newman, a Kwakwaka\u2019wawk and Sto:lo artist living on Lakwungen territory. The elk hide drum used on the recording was part of Newman\u2019s influential art installation, The Witness Blanket<\/i>, crafted from items retrieved from residential schools.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe process of accepting that gift and caring for that drum and using that drum in a good way, that informed the recording,\u201d says Tyler.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The band also made use of a carved cedar log drum, provided by Newman, that recreated the sound of wood on wood from Tyler\u2019s childhood attending pow-wow.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe sound of it, the tone of it\u2026 it\u2019s just stunning,\u201d he says. \u201cIt\u2019s what I heard when I was a kid, but it\u2019s a lot more because it was a drum from that territory.\u201d<\/p>\n

Navigating an intersection between contemporary and traditional on this album, the band used this opportunity to explore their voices and their sound, and the result is one filled with pride\u2014and at a n\u00eahiyawak show, the audience can expect to feel that pride radiating from the band.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m so proud of who I am and I want to blow on the coals of those good feelings,\u201d says Tyler. \u201cOn the west coast, they have a term, Ey\u0113\u0294 Sq\u0203\u2019lewen\u2014that good feeling inside\u2014and I hope that people feel that.\u201d<\/p>\n

The pride that Tyler has for their work is vibrant, particularly when describing the brilliance of his bandmates. Community is the heart of n\u00eahiyawak and building that feeling of community is fundamental to their message.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re part of a bigger community, you and me and everyone,\u201d says Tyler, \u201cand whatever we can do to support that, let\u2019s try and do that.\u201d<\/p>\n

n\u00eahiyawak
\n8 pm Friday, December 6
\n$15, Lucky Bar
\nluckybar.ca<\/a><\/p>\n

Correction: This story originally said Carey Newman was a Lekwungen artist living in Victoria; Newman is actually a Kwakwaka\u2019wawk and Sto:lo artist living on Lakwungen territory. We apologize for the mistake.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The North Saskatchewan river kisisk\u00e2ciwanis\u00eepiy flows through the heart of amiskwaciy (Edmonton) on Treaty 6 territory. In their new album, nipiy (Cree for \u201cwater\u201d), Edmonton-based post-rock\/ambient\/pop band n\u00eahiyawak echo the pace with which that river flows.\u00a0 \u201cWhen we think of nipiy, there is an intellectual and physical resource there that those waters, these rivers, have […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":18643,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,244],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-18642","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arts","category-november-20-2019"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nexusnewspaper.com\/newsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18642","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nexusnewspaper.com\/newsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nexusnewspaper.com\/newsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nexusnewspaper.com\/newsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nexusnewspaper.com\/newsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18642"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.nexusnewspaper.com\/newsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18642\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18732,"href":"https:\/\/www.nexusnewspaper.com\/newsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18642\/revisions\/18732"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nexusnewspaper.com\/newsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/18643"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nexusnewspaper.com\/newsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18642"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nexusnewspaper.com\/newsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18642"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nexusnewspaper.com\/newsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18642"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}