[Cover photo credit to Lucas Zafiris]
Juno nominated drummer, Producer, and composer Salin has hared a single and video “Painted Lady.” This is the latest offering from her upcoming LP, Rammana, out March 28, 2025, and taps into an “underlying current of turmoil of watching the world rush forward at an uncontrollable pace.”
The track draws inspiration from the Painted Lady in Avatar: The Last Airbender, an animated series influenced by monastic Tibet, Japanese villages, and Thai kingdoms. A “benevolent spirit revered for her healing and protective abilities,” the Painted Lady is the central figure of the series who was forced to leave her village due to water contamination and later returns to assist the villagers with river cleanup.
Salin has released a live play video where she impersonates Painted Lady to reflect “her feeling of helplessness towards our destructive behaviors towards nature.” Additionally, “The vibrant falling leaves symbolize the decaying of seasons” and Salin’s drumming “reflects the chaos brought by human progress.”
Salin says:
‘Salin’ also means river/water of life in Thai, reflecting my connection with the Painted Lady. I made a prayer that if there’s an Indian summer, I would film this video, as Canadian fall weather is simply too cold for anyone to be outside without a coat. One weekend, Indian summer came and the leaves were the perfect color for us to film ‘Painted Lady.’ I found the perfect location where the sun hits perfectly during the golden hour. In one of the takes, the leaves coordinatingly blow around me during the peak of the song. We simply couldn’t plan all of this. This shows that when things just happen perfectly, it is only through an act of God and he/she is there whenever we need.
Salin’s current music explores the sounds of Northeast Thailand and marries it with the 70’s psychedelia of West Africa. Through her music, she ponders themes of “identity, spirituality, and humanity, all paired with a dose of fun to create a unique sonic journey for her listeners.”
Working with both local Thais as well as Canadian musicians, Salin is bringing together elements of East and West in the form of her second full-length album, Rammana.
