How Sebastian Gaskin Found His Voice
The songwriter reflects on the importance of his relationship with his guitar on his path to creating his tender debut, LOVECHILD.
By Adriel Smiley
Photo by Norman Wong
- Published on
His cousin was really into ‘80s and ‘90s metal bands, like Metallica and Pantera. Gaskin would watch him jam and quickly took an interest, eventually getting his first unofficial lessons learning Metallica’s “Fade to Black.” This really lit a spark in him and led to his mother buying him his first guitar from Wal-Mart.
A couple decades have passed since and Gaskin is well beyond being that wide-eyed child. In a moment years in the making, the award-winning artist is finally gearing up for the release of his debut album, LOVECHILD.
He comes from an Indigenous family with an extensive history in residential schools. In fact, he is the first in three generations to avoid them. Growing up in Tataskweyak Cree Nation in Northern Manitoba, Gaskin’s success illuminates the road behind him, showing the youth that it is possible.
“[It’s about] having the youth in my community see that somebody from their remote community can make it out in the big world and be successful in an industry that wasn’t made for them,” he says.
Gaskin is doing just that: in 2024, he took home a group of awards, including the Vince Fontaine Indigenous Song Award, which recognizes emerging Indigenous artists. Last September he observed National Day of Truth and Reconciliation by releasing his single “Brown Man.” The emotionally charged record received a strong response from the Indigenous community.
Earlier in his career, “Brown Man” would not have been possible. Gaskin deliberately left out any mention of his culture in his music at the risk of being pigeonholed as “the Indigenous artist.” “Brown Man” was cathartic, freeing himself from that way of thinking – “There was a big pivot in my writing,” he says.
“I thought, why am I trying to kill this part of myself, that is very deeply a part of me and makes me who I am?” Gaskin continues. “I broke down that wall within myself, moving forward from that.”
Gaskin was immediately rewarded for his bravery; it already stands as one of his most streamed songs. The visuals, in addition to the lyrics, are reflective of his identity. LOVECHILD is a well rounded album, and Gaskin’s growth as a songwriter is the glue that ties it all together.
“ADHD Interlude” is one of the records where that growth cuts through. It provides a sonic break in the album, and what feels like a deep sense of self manifests as artistic confidence.
“It’s a stream of consciousness, I remember little bits of what I said, but I literally just hit record,” he says while reflecting on creating with ADHD. “I hit record, I hit record, I just was saying whatever came to my mind, because sometimes that’s what my brain sounds like.”
The traditional hand drums that come in toward the end also hold some significance. His heritage helps ground him in more ways than one.
“I put the hand drum in there because I find solace within my cultural practices when sometimes it gets too much.”
— Sebastian Gaskin
“I put the hand drum in there because I find solace within my cultural practices when sometimes it gets too much,” he says. “If I’m having a particularly rough day controlling my thoughts or whatever, then I’ll light up a smudge. Lake sage and sweet grass, and that kind of brings me back down to the bassline.”
Gaskin also has the uncanny ability to successfully identify and pen a commercial record. Songs like “Medicine” & “Cherie Amour” are great examples. Before their release, he knew they would be “great for radio.” His intuition bore fruit when “Cherie Amour” went number one on the Indigenous Music Countdown.
The album’s outro, “I Don’t Want To Feel Anymore,” is one of the most beautiful records on the album and a fitting ending to the story that is LOVECHILD. The song features an intimate piano and, according to Gaskin, was heavily inspired by Bon Iver. “That was written with Justin Meli who co-produced several songs [on the album],” he says. “It was the last song to make it onto the record actually. We wrote that in 15 minutes.”
Some songs just come together effortlessly; although he says none of this is to brag. “He started playing this thing on the piano, and I was like ‘Keep that going.’ Within 15 minutes we had an entire song. Obviously we spent more time on the production side of it. I feel like it kind of wraps everything up in terms of just a theme for the project.”
After decades of writing music and years of releasing it, his highly anticipated debut album is here. The journey was not an easy one, and even now, there is one constant that remains: his guitar.
“The guitar has become my best friend; maybe it’s a little cheesy to say, but the guitar knows me better than anybody else.”
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