For the last six months, Sultans of String have been plugging their new release, Walking
Through the Fire. This is an album of various Indigenous ideas about where this culture was
and where it would like to go. It is an album filled with every emotion that speaks of the recent
Canadian horrors of our school children but also really conveys the openness to healing
hundreds of years of genocide.
Hugh’s Room was packed with open-minded people who understood the power of healing on
Saturday through two sets of this deeply conveyed message. The band hit the stage and took
us on a metaphysical journey through the minds and hearts of this culture. From my
perspective, it was about our totally disconnected relationship with each other and our planet
and searching out ways to reconnect to find a balance of peace and harmony again in this
universe.
We got to witness the power of a Canadian legend, Louis Riel, and see him from a more
profound point of view about his historical persuasions. At the end of this poignant song, the
crowd rejoiced and engaged in a jubilant hoedown to celebrate his life.
Dr. Duke Redbird made an appearance and recited masterful poems that were both humbling
and inspiring. We witnessed the playfulness of throat singing and the deep connection of spirit.
The audience was also enchanted by the origin story of the Orca whale. The name of that song
was “Luna.”
One of the more powerful moments came when Forrest Eaglespeaker shared his story of five
years of sobriety. He grew up without much education and lived through drug abuse. When we
spoke after the show, the real message that hit me was the more you talk about coming through
darkness, the less powerful it becomes.
This brings us to the show’s second half when Shannon Thunderbird got up and introduced the
song “Lost and Found.” This is one of the most profound songs in our Canadian library. It clearly
states the horror of finding our children’s gravesites on school properties, but the perspective of
peace, forgiveness, and truly letting go was deeply heartbreaking as well as healing. This is a
song I will never forget. I found out later that this song just poured out of her within minutes, and
she never changed a thing.
Right after everybody’s cry, Dr. Redbird returned and sent us out into the universe, looking at
the wonder of our planet and how we need to take care of Mother Nature. It was a prevalent
calling to reconnect with each other, and the room felt as one…
Forrest and his wife in Nevada came back to the front as The North Sound. Dr. Duke Redbird
wrote the lyrics for the next song, “Sweet Alberta” and their performance made this yet another
great folk song in the library of songs. They stayed on stage, and things got dark and angry as
they continued this emotional journey with “Take off the Crown.” This was originally done by

Digging Roots for the album, but The North Sound sang it strong, and the resentment really
came through.
Well, the Sultans were not going to leave us in a bad mood. They filled our cups again with
fancy fiddling that got everyone on their feet and clapping until the very end. We stayed on our
feet as one of the most exciting songs, “Black Winged Raven,” finished the evening. It was a
high-flying song that let our hearts fly away as the evening came to a close.
If you want to see Sultans of String, they will be back in Hugh’s Room on December 21st to do
their annual Christmas show. I saw it last year and will be there again this year.
If you want to own one of the year’s most important albums, click this link and buy it from the
band’s website.

Sultans of String – Merch MRKT

Here are some images from Sultans of String