The Great Sea — Nadjiwan's full-length followup to his 2022 covers EP Resurgence — is here, just in time for its sweeping tides to carry you into spring.
Described as Nadjiwan's most personal collection of songs yet, The Great Sea is a complex ode to his hometown of Thunder Bay, ON, informed by his experiences as a member of the Chippewas of Nawash Unceded First Nation Cape Croker. With family that lives on Atikameksheng Anishnawbek — an Ojibway First Nation located on the shores of Whitefish Lake — Nadjiwan imbues The Great Sea with a roiling vastness, a power that moves like waves.
"I've always wanted to record an album that pays homage to northwestern Ontario," Nadjiwan said in a statement about the record. "Much of this record was written on a drive from Toronto to Thunder Bay I did a couple of years ago. I found the scenery between Sault Ste. Marie and Wawa so inspiring that I made many stops along the way to jot down some basic ideas before getting back on the road. It wasn't until I returned to Toronto that I actually started putting the various ideas together into an overall theme of life on the northern shore of Lake Superior."
The record includes the dynamic, organ-infused country-meets-blues swirl of "North of Superior," a swelling wave of a song that speaks to environmentalism and spirituality.
A love letter to Northern Ontario's beautiful and unforgiving landscape, the record's lived-in blend of coppery folk-rock, blues and country music was recorded with Nadjiwan's usual band — guitarist Jean-Paul De Roover, bassist Adam Gomori and drummer Alex Mine — and captured at the Chippewa Park Pavilion near Fort William First Nation, before overdubs were applied later in Toronto.
"With each new record we make I learn something from that process," Nadjiwan said of the collaborative, fluid experience that birthed The Great Sea. "I learn what worked and what didn't, but I don't over-analyze them either. When I first started 30 years ago, I found myself writing alone most of the time. Now I find myself collaborating with other musicians more often. I found I could learn and experience more by exchanging ideas with others as well as be inspired."
Stream The Great Sea below.
Described as Nadjiwan's most personal collection of songs yet, The Great Sea is a complex ode to his hometown of Thunder Bay, ON, informed by his experiences as a member of the Chippewas of Nawash Unceded First Nation Cape Croker. With family that lives on Atikameksheng Anishnawbek — an Ojibway First Nation located on the shores of Whitefish Lake — Nadjiwan imbues The Great Sea with a roiling vastness, a power that moves like waves.
"I've always wanted to record an album that pays homage to northwestern Ontario," Nadjiwan said in a statement about the record. "Much of this record was written on a drive from Toronto to Thunder Bay I did a couple of years ago. I found the scenery between Sault Ste. Marie and Wawa so inspiring that I made many stops along the way to jot down some basic ideas before getting back on the road. It wasn't until I returned to Toronto that I actually started putting the various ideas together into an overall theme of life on the northern shore of Lake Superior."
The record includes the dynamic, organ-infused country-meets-blues swirl of "North of Superior," a swelling wave of a song that speaks to environmentalism and spirituality.
A love letter to Northern Ontario's beautiful and unforgiving landscape, the record's lived-in blend of coppery folk-rock, blues and country music was recorded with Nadjiwan's usual band — guitarist Jean-Paul De Roover, bassist Adam Gomori and drummer Alex Mine — and captured at the Chippewa Park Pavilion near Fort William First Nation, before overdubs were applied later in Toronto.
"With each new record we make I learn something from that process," Nadjiwan said of the collaborative, fluid experience that birthed The Great Sea. "I learn what worked and what didn't, but I don't over-analyze them either. When I first started 30 years ago, I found myself writing alone most of the time. Now I find myself collaborating with other musicians more often. I found I could learn and experience more by exchanging ideas with others as well as be inspired."
Stream The Great Sea below.
