Mali Obomsawin Releases New Single 'Wawasint8da'

The new single from Wabanaki composer, bandleader, and bassist, Mali Obomsawin, is out today. "Wawasint8da" channels a 17th century Jesuit hymn from the Wabanaki through the lens of jazz improvisation, fractured brass and colliding choral arrangements.

Obomsawin's uncovering the ley lines that have always lain at the intersections of Native adaptation, Western colonialism, jazz, and tradition. Their new album, Sweet Tooth, is coming October 28, 2022 on Out of Your Head Records, and this single is just one of the stories from the new album. Find out more below!

"Wawasint8ada" is a Jesuit hymn taken from the strange story of "The Harrowing of Hell," an obscure religious tract that tells of Jesus traveling into hell to liberate souls who had died outside of the Catholic faith. Folded into the arrangement of "Wawasint8da" is an ancient mourning song taught to Obomsawin by a Passamaquoddy citizen.

Listen to the new singel here: