Roots Round-Up (Nuxalk Radio, Beau Cheval, Laurie Lewis and more)

It’s been a joy seeing the rise of Northwest Coast Native American music recently. Recent albums from Saltwater Hank and Khu.éex’ have shone a light on songcraft in the Ts’msyen and Haida languages respectively, and with Nusximta (Nuxalk Radio ★★★★★), the debut from a collective of singers and radio hosts called Nuxalk Radio, we have a new album, and one of the few entirely in the Nuxalk language from around Bella Coola, British Columbia. With just four fluent speakers of the Nuxalk language left, the Nuxalk Radio station was formed to promote learning the language for the Nuxalkmc. The hosts from the radio took it upon themselves to record an album of new songs, and it’s remarkable. You can hear the deep traditions in the singing, and some songs sound like gorgeous folk songs, but there are also more modern touches of electronica, funk and hip-hop. The voices are beautiful (and of all ages, from children to elders) and the language is enveloping.

Another excellent release with Indigenous roots, Louisiana Cajun outsider folk artists Beau Cheval bring original songwriting, a bit of punk attitude and a flair for mystery to their new album, Promesses d’Amour (DK Records ★★★). I’ve been wondering for a while who they are exactly, as the Cajun scene is remarkably small and there’s virtually nothing about them available online. It took a while to track down the story, but Beau Cheval is led by Acadian/Mi’kmaq artist Remi Dean. Dean grew up speaking French in New Brunswick’s Acadian Peninsula (home to some fascinating traditions of Acadian fiddling), and Acadian French is surprisingly close to Cajun French. Joined by fiddler Justin Léger, accordionist Noah Trahan and ’tit fer (triangle) player Sunny Boicourt, Dean and his bandmates come to the music from a real place of love, writing songs that fit well into a tradition that struggles between recreating the past or pushing through language difficulties to make something new. As the generation of elder fluent Cajun speakers is rapidly decreasing, the scene needs fresh input from fluent Acadian French speakers, and there’s long been a real history of love between Louisiana’s Cajun Country and parts of Acadian New Brunswick.

At a sprightly 73 years old, bluegrass pioneer Laurie Lewis seems to show little indication of slowing down, and thank goodness for that. Her new album, Trees (Spruce and Maple Music ★★★), rolls through some of her different takes on the genre, incorporating her love for nature and her recriminations against those who tear it apart, as well as touching on some surprisingly robust blues and yodeling, and beautiful love songs. These songs take on extra poignancy as this is Lewis’ first album without longtime musical partner Tom Rozum, who developed Parkinson’s. I think of Lewis and Peter Rowan in the same kind of light, both elders of California bluegrass, with music unafraid to make a statement and to push for human compassion in a genre that’s all too often jingoistic or simplistic.

Jontavious Willis has a great new album out in August, West Georgia Blues (Strolling Bones Records ★★★), that brings a lot of hope for the old country blues which are so rare these days. Though there are country blues players pretty much anywhere you look, the music has largely been co-opted by white musicians for white audiences. It’s a shame, because the blues is Black music and lies at the heart of most modern American music. Willis seems determined to bring the roots of the blues back with his new album, full of calls to the dance floor, tales of heartbreak, and juke joint vibes. There’s a bit of a whiplash at times between a heavier electric blues in ‘Lula Mae’ and a quieter, acoustic blues as on ‘Ghost Woman’, but Willis is clearly showing his range with this album and showing the kind of range the blues can have too.

It’s nice to see Québécois trad musicians showing a gentler side these days. New band La Pastourelle, made up of François-Félix Roy, Marc-André Arsenault, Julie Massicotte, and Louis-Philippe Morel, have released their debut album, Le Roy des Amoureux (La Pastourelle ★★★★), focused it seems on the quasi-mythological bird songs of French Canada. The nightingale, known as ‘le Roi des Amoureux’ (King of the Lovers) is a common character in Québécois songs, bringing messages between lovers. Funny that, as nightingales don’t live in Canada! It’s a remnant of the Old World, as are many of the influences on La Pastourelle’s new album, from the stately, almost medieval French melodies to the twang of the guimbarde (jaw harp) and the soft breathiness of the wooden flute.

This column originally appeared in the October 2024 issue of Songlines. Never miss an issue – subscribe to Songlines today