Lanois stands by ‘aboriginal compadres’
Daniel Lanois is not the first person one might think of to include as part of APTN’s Aboriginal
Day Live celebrations, but he’s not entirely out of his element.
“I have aboriginal blood on both sides of the family,” the veteran singer/guitarist/producer said by phone from his Toronto studio. “It’s pretty watered down, Mi’kmaq and Algonquin. A lot of people say (they’re part native), but with the French in Canada, it’s normal — everybody is practically Métis.”
Lanois’s sense of identity is as fluid as his music. The multi-Grammy winner’s lengthy CV includes production work with Brian Eno and U2, recordings with Bob Dylan, Peter Gabriel, Emmylou Harris, Willie Nelson and Neil Young, not to mention a solo career combining his bilingual heritage and an infatuation with everything from soul music to the blues. He’ll be among those holding down the Montreal contingent of the elaborately co-ordinated cross-Canada Aboriginal Day showcase on stages from Halifax to Vancouver by way of Yellowknife, broadcast live Wednesday on APTN.
Nelly Furtado (in Winnipeg), Zachary Richard (Ottawa) and Black Eyed Peas rapper Taboo (Vancouver) will brush shoulders with Inuit throat singer Kathleen Ivaluarjuk Merritt (Edmonton), Pat Vegas of ’70s American indigenous rockers Redbone (Halifax), Winnipeg Métis singer Marijosée (Montreal) and Northwest Territories alt-rocker Digawolf (Yellowknife).
Lanois will be joined by aboriginal dancers on two songs, and there will be an aboriginal film component to another. He will complement his standard pedal steel guitar with a rack of electronic consoles brought straight from his workplace for the occasion.
“I’ve been doing these lovely things in the studio for a long time that never make it to the stage,” he said. “They just make it to record. I decided to bring along the computer rig and have these preparations be part of the tapestry. It’s just a way of having a bit of fun.”
Asked about his thoughts on the situation of indigenous communities in Canada and how he views his participation in such an event, Lanois said: “The beat goes on. These people have been mistreated for a long time, and the mistreatment goes on. Anything that brings awareness to our native and aboriginal compadres is a good thing.”
Lanois can shoot the breeze on any topic that comes his way, but he’s most comfortable when he lets his guitar do the talking. He does just that on his aptly titled 2016 album Goodbye to
Language. With a wink to the 2014 film of the same name by French auteur Jean-Luc Godard, the instrumental song cycle consists solely of him and California singer-songwriter Rocco DeLuca weaving atmospheric soundscapes on their pedal and lap steel guitars, respectively.
“It was a nice opportunity for me to investigate other harmonic territories,” Lanois said. “The chords and melodies are more complex than I’ve encountered before. It’s what I imagine it might be like to be an Eastern European classical composer.”
Lanois has been riffing — musically and conversationally — with DeLuca since attending one of his performances in L.A. in 2009. He has since helped out on his younger friend’s albums and seen the favour returned in kind. The two explore the outer limits on Goodbye
to Language, leaving conventional songwriting techniques in their wake.
“It came about by not operating by preconception,” Lanois said. “It became about true freedom. In these times of predictability, it’s nice to allow ourselves to venture into unknown territory. Once we came upon some magic, then I let those moments be my guide. As usual, if I find something special, I water it and give it some encouragement.”
More surprising may be Lanois’s recent work with Venetian Snares, the Winnipeg electronic music artist known for his mix of complex melodies and drum-and-bass beats. The pair teased songs from their forthcoming joint album in a performance in Toronto in late May.
“He’s absolutely the master of what he does,” Lanois said. “The basis of broadening one’s scope is going toward what you don’t know. (His music) is very intense, very powerful rhythmically, with sounds I can’t make myself. I get the sense when working with him like when I first worked with Brian Eno. There’s no link other than imagination.”