Let’s take a break from being angry at politics and listen to some good music, shall we? With that in mind, I give you Guelph native Basia Bulat:
Erin and I stumbled upon this young woman when I happened to grab a free iTunes song from Starbucks (an excellent promotion, by the way). The song was a studio version of the piece shown above, and it really caught Erin’s attention. She had been looking for music to go on her soundtrack album for her work in progress, Children of Peace. The sharp, clear tones of Basia’s voice, the simple percussion, and the whole strength of the song really spoke to Erin’s setting and her lead character. Very quickly, we researched what Basia Bulat was about and, before long, purchased her album, Heart of My Own off of iTunes.
There is just something really authentic and powerful about Basia’s music. Her voice is showstopper, and her songs are multilayered and deceptively simple, easy to listen to for the first time, and for the hundredth time. A folk singer and a daughter of a music teacher, she also plays guitar and the hammer dulcimer. It’s the use of this latter instrument that really grabbed my attention for this song below — a beautiful piece called simply “The Shore”.
If you are at all a fan of folk, or of good songs written and performed by a supremely talented woman, then you need to add Basia Bulat to your playlist.