Cree Métis artist iskwē | ᐃᐢᑫᐧᐤ (short for waseskwan iskwew, meaning “blue sky woman”) is sharing a new release which reimages a crucial piece of her most recent album, nīna, a 10-song collection of both electronic and sweeping chamber pop which evokes the intense emotions of a turbulent period in her life.

Recorded in Mexico City at Panoram Studios at a point in the pandemic when in-person contact was only beginning to resume, this rendition of nīna album track, “Caught In The Waves,” utilizes an incredible group of musicians and friends to create rich harmonies and a nimble orchestral backdrop to iskwē’s vocals.

Of the song’s themes, the artist shares that “Caught In The Waves” zooms in on the conflicting emotions of a turbulent love affair. Featuring Latin instrumentation including the charango, marimba, and cuatro, this live recording trembles with a delicacy that echoes the vulnerable nature of iskwē’s past relationship.

Where does this story begin…Argentina? Mexico? Zoom? I fell for a man I had met six years earlier while traveling through Buenos Aires, a man who was like no other. He is the salt in the sea, the breeze that tickles your skin once the sun goes down. He is also the one that breathed life back into my sunken lungs. Our story was one of love and of history, truths resurfaced as we rode into the night holding our trust and uncertainties as tightly as we held hands.

This song brings a certain nostalgia of an era that could never be repeated, even if I tried. The adventure this person and I went on together, clawing our way out of total isolation and back to the water’s edge, seeking a refuge in each other’s temporary company, only to be thrust into a sea of flavours and colour and art and music. We found life again, we found ourselves again, and while our paths parted at that point – the memories will always be. –  iskwē