Ambassador for Inuit culture, Elisapie represents the wild and rough beauty of the North. Her new album, The Ballad of the Runaway Girl, is the musical tale of an expatriate Inuk. On June 19th, 2020, Elisapie returned with a new single called Asuguuq. This song is a gift to Inuit communities in the wake of National Indigenous Peoples Day.
In September 2018, Elisapie released The Ballad of the Runaway Girl, her third solo album. Arguably the most significant work in the singer-songwriter’s career, the album earned her two Felix awards (for Album of the Year - Other Languages and Best Album Production) and a total of five nominations at Gala de l'ADISQ, one nomination for Indigenous Album of the Year at the 2019 JUNO Awards and a feature on the 2019 Polaris Music Prize short list. In addition to taking her all over North America and Europe, this intimate album has amassed great reviews. Rolling Stone France called the music a delicately violent album that seduces as much as it questions, while NPR said Elisapie synthesizes stories from her eventful life with hypnotic arrangements that channel ‘70s rock, indigenous folk music and the low, moody rumble of barnstormers like Tom Waits. On June 19th, 2020, Elisapie returned with a new single called Asuguuq. This song is a gift to Inuit communities in the wake of National Indigenous Peoples Day.
Ambassador for Inuit culture, Elisapie represents the wild and rough beauty of the North. Her new album, The Ballad of the Runaway Girl, is the musical tale of an expatriate Inuk. She sings about the different facets and challenges of being a woman, but also an adopted child, a mother and a lover. Through this exploration of her northern roots and her femininity, we learn about an Inuk who is proud of her origins and who works for the recognition of her people's historic difficulties. Elisapie’s journey started when she was given up for adoption as a baby, on the tarmac of an airport. She went on to grow up in Salluit, dreaming of the South. Then came her escape to Montreal, where she started a family and forgot about the extremes of the North.
The artist is now reconnecting with her origins, offering her soulful down-home folk music as she tenderly looks back on her heritage. Her style is direct as she tells her story and makes aboriginal musical classics shine. This album goes back to her roots, with both soft and raw moments and her very own mix of Inuktitut, English and French, unveiling the woman behind the music.
The Ballad of The Runaway Girl joue de ces singularités : mélangeant inuktitut, anglais et français ; imposant une musique désertique aux rythmiques ancestrales ; des syllabes s’étirant et s’épanchant sur des pans autobiographiques.
Rolling Stone FranceOn her fourth album, The Ballad of the Runaway Girl, she [Elisapie] synthesizes stories from her eventful life with hypnotic arrangements that channel '70s rock, indigenous folk music and the low, moody rumble of barnstormers like Tom Waits and Morphine.
NPRHarnessing the romance of French, the personal nostalgia of English and the resilience of Inuktitut, she created such a profound statement with this record […] Not only does her third solo album and first since 2012 have openly impactful lyrical chops, exploring heartfelt themes of internal strength and spiritual growth, its sounds and arrangements are lush and diverse works of understated beauty.
Exclaim!Instrumentation filée comme de la dentelle, une voix aérienne et séduisante [...] Elisapie retourne aux sonorités chaleureuses des instruments acoustiques et à la rudesse des guitares électriques, et on l’écoute encore et encore.
ICI MusiqueElisapie’s first album in six years is an extraordinary set that seamlessly merges aboriginal themes and sounds with an alt-rock sensibility, powered by some of the city’s best indie players […]
Brendan Kelly, The Gazette[…] Elisapie nous saute au cou. Ou plutôt à l’oreille, avec sa voix si particulière, légèrement nasillarde, qui nous emporte par sa beauté sauvage et douce, gracieuse et sensuelle, pleine d’une étrange poésie.
Elle France