Music / announcement
Laura Niquay Announces 'Nir Wactenama,' Out Nov. 6
The Atikamekw singer-songwriter's new album pairs rock and blues with an all-female band and songs about family and self-discovery.
Atikamekw singer-songwriter Laura Niquay will release her new album, Nir Wactenama, on Nov. 6 through Musique Nomade. Sung entirely in Atikamekw, it brings her songwriting into rock and blues with an all-female band.
"With my all-female band, we wanted to go all out on a more rock and blues album," Niquay said in the release.
The album's title translates as "I, the Light." Simon Walls produced the record and co-composed its music with Niquay. Her band is guitarist Raphaëlle Chouinard, drummer Sarah Dion and bassist Marie-Philippe Thibeault-Desbiens.
The focus track, "Mikwetc," which translates as "Thank You," is a tribute to her father and his place in her life and music.
Niquay is from Wemotaci, Quebec. Nir Wactenama follows her album Waska Matisiwin and the children's project Comptines Atikamekw – E Aistahiak (Les six saisons), an initiative of Wemotaci's Six Seasons Early Childhood Centre to pass on the language through music.
She plays Montréal, Granby, Ottawa and Quebec City in November, including a Nov. 26 show at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa.
