Elisapie: Qimmijuat (Wild Horses)
Pure and haunting vocals give new life to a classic Stones ballad.
By Kerry Doole
Elisapie - Qimmijat (Wild Horses) (Bonsound): On Sept. 15, this acclaimed Canadian Inuk singer/songwriter will release a new album, Inuktitut, her fourth. It comprises 10 covers of classic rock and pop songs from the '60s to the '90s, given fresh life by being translated into Elisapie's native tongue, the thousand-year-old Inuktitut language.
This new single follows Uummati Attanarsimat (Heart of Glass), Taimangalimaaq (Time After Time), and Isumagijunnaitaungituq (The Unforgiven), which caught the attention of Rolling Stone and Lars Ulrich, who played on Metallica's original version.
A label press release notes that "Every song from the album is linked to a loved one or an intimate story that has shaped the person Elisapie is today. Through this act of cultural reappropriation, she tells her story and offers these songs as a gift to her community, making her language and culture resonate beyond the borders of the Inuit territory."
Qimmijuat (Wild Horses) is described as "a tribute to a childhood friend of Elisapie who had a difficult home life due to his parent's separation and a strained relationship with his father. Wild Horses became a source of comfort for him and his obsession with it was palpable, as if he was riding away from all his problems on the back of this song."
Much loved as one of the Rolling Stones' best ballads, Wild Horses is graced here by the pure and haunting voice of Elisapie and the skilful accompaniment of A-list Montreal players Joe Grass, Robbie Kuster, and Leif Vollebekk. Lovely stuff. The complementary charming video uses footage shot in Inukjuak and Salluit, Nunavik.
Elisapie was born and raised in Salluit, a small village in Nunavik, and is now based in Montreal. Since winning her first Juno Award in 2005 with her band Taima, Elisapie’s body of work has earned major praise. Her 2018 album The Ballad of the Runaway Girl was shortlisted for the Polaris Music Prize and earned her numerous Félix Awards as well as a Juno nomination. Since then, she has performed with the Orchestre Métropolitain de Montréal at the invitation of Yannick Nézet-Séguin, at the SummerStage Festival in New York City’s Central Park, and at the NPR offices for her own Tiny Desk Session, as well as at several local and international venues and festivals.
Elisapie will be taking her new album to the stage on a 50-date tour. The dates include five performances of Uvattini, a special live show presented exclusively at Usine C in Montréal and the Grand Théâtre de Québec. This summer, Elisapie will also travel to Kuujjuaq to premiere her new show before heading out to Rouyn-Noranda to perform at FME. More concerts are scheduled in France in November 2023 and April 2024. Visit elisapie.com for more details.at the NPR offices for her own Tiny Desk Session, as well as at several local and international venues and festivals.
Links
Publicity: Susan O'Grady, New Moon Publicity
Management: Opak
Booking: Bonsound
