In her former musical life, Sheenah Ko was seen on stage with The Besnard Lakes, Le Couleur, The Blaze Velluto Collection and Antoine Corriveau, among other musical projects. The model accompanist and synthesizer expert reinvented herself as an author, composer and performer during the pandemic: this is the transformation that gives its name to this second album of experimental pop, performed in French and English, that the musician, now rooted in Saguenay, will launch from the roof of the Rialto Theatre on September 27.
It all started with a providential phone call from the renowned Centre d’expérience musicale (CEM) in Chicoutimi, offering her a creative residency in the middle of the pandemic winter, says the musician, who was reached at her home by the river.
“Before, I was always on the road, performing. The phone call came at just the right time, all my tours had been cancelled. So, I went up to Saguenay for a month to work on my material, my compositions, my project,” for the first time in her career.
Sheenah Ko never left. “As soon as I arrived, I was touched by the welcome from the people and the support I was given,” she who made music that was marginal, electronic, exploratory — and sung in English, to boot. She was adopted by the CEM family, an organization founded in 1982 and dedicated to the development and dissemination of creative music, particularly through its artistic residency program.
“The people at CEM attract a lot of artists to the area, creators from here and elsewhere,” Sheenah says in excellent French, which she admits she has improved through contact with her new co-workers. “It’s also, to my knowledge, the only place where they take care of filling out the paperwork and submitting grant applications on behalf of the artists—it’s like they’re paying you to come here and develop your art, it’s amazing!”
I am influenced by the language we speak — and the Quebec language, to be precise, since we speak differently in Saguenay!
She, who knew so little about the region, ended up buying a house in Chicoutimi. “I understood that culture was important here. The quality of the artistic offerings is interesting, the variety too. There are something like nine theatre companies, right here! So I said to myself: ‘I love the vibeI love nature, I buy. I fell in love with the area,” says the American-born Hawaiian, born to parents with Chinese and Irish roots.
From this creative residency were born the songs of Future Is Nowa first solo art pop dance album influenced by Kate Bush, Enya, who her mother listened to a lot, and the electronic pop that rocked her youth, in the 1990s, which she was invited to present at Mutek.
Still pop, but more dynamic and mysterious, rich in its contrasts between the piano and the acoustic guitars (played by friend Navet Confit) and its analog synths (with a preference for the Prophet-6 from the Sequential company), Transformation suggests a more self-confident composer, so confident in fact that she sings in French for the first time.
“It’s certain that my region influenced the writing of this album. I made the effort to write in French because, for me, it was important to better connect with my audience by expressing myself in French. That’s why I give concerts, to create connections with people. I am influenced by the language we speak — and the Quebec language, to be precise, since we speak differently in Saguenay!”
“Also, contact with nature contributed to the writing of the album,” Sheenah continues. “It’s inspiring here: I see water every day. I kept my apartment in Montreal for a long time, but I always felt better when I returned to Saguenay. It’s always been very important to go into nature, for me, and I believe that to be a better artist, you need to feel good. The artist works on himself to have something to share with people, and I consider nature as my personal therapy.”