Indio Saravanja

Argentinian-born, Yellowknife-raised Indio Saravanja is a consummate lyricist with a powerful conscience and a keen eye for the world’s follies. Ten years on the road after a stint in New York under the mentorship of the late Jeff Buckley gave Saravanja time and opportunity to hone his songwriting along with a sense of self-assuredness rarely found on a debut recording. The culmination of his travels is this collection of compelling and perfectly crafted folk rock songs. The timelessness of his sound — unpretentious guitar lines with garnishes of fiddle, harmonium and wheedling Wurlitzer — is offset by contemporary subject matter peppered with numerous references to whiskey and epic Canadian snowstorms. An archetypal folk rockster, Saravanja takes a long, unflinching look at modern issues — from addiction, to our immoral wars, to the enduring effects of residential schools on the Native population — with a sensibility that is biting without ever slipping into bitterness.