Motewolonuwok is a landscape of rolling hills, gullies, open horizons and bright stars. The Two-Spirit 2018 Polaris Music Prize winner composes this scene with an earthbound orchestra and populates it with 12-person choirs made up of his close friends. It’s a defiant, gorgeous, collective taking-up of sonic space, brought to an emotional fulcrum on “The Land That Holds Them.”
Featuring Cindy Lee, Nemahsis, Wyatt C. Louis, and more — These Canadian artists all commandeered our headphones this year in a compelling way.