After years working on other musicians' albums —notably being the longtime bandmate of country outlier Boy Golden — FONTINE is standing in the spotlight, flipping the script with co-conspirators working on her album. Her beautifully warm voice; an ease and deft on the guitar; a vulnerability and quippy sense of humour take centre stage on her 2023 EP, Yarrow Lover. Intimacy reigns supreme through tales of love and tender moments offered in vividly portrayed landscapes that reflect her home province of Manitoba and a unique and insightful vision imbued with her Nehiyaw Iskwew heritage. Turtle Island lies at the base of her tales, which float like gliding birds riding updrafts across the Prairie sky. The EP moves at a deliberate pace, feeling like modern lullabies and finally crafted tracks by an immediately approachable artist. As she sings on ‘4AM’, “With the lights off/You wrapped me in a warm sheet” is both illustrative of her willingness to put her most personal experiences in her songs and an apt description of FONTINE’s gentle laments.
Biography by Derek McEwen