Like the tides of the Bay of Fundy on which she was raised, or the steadfast city line that broods along its port, Kylie Fox has been devoted to honing her craft as a songwriter for as long as she can remember. Growing up with a mother who would sing to her and a father who sat at the helm of every kitchen party with his Yamaha and uninhibited voice, it became clear to Fox from a young age that music was how to show love, how to express identity, and how to connect with the people around her.
Having recognized Fox’s creativity as a child, her mother enrolled her in the Interaction School of Performing Arts in Saint John, New Brunswick. She found a home on the stage and developed a passion for acting that led her to study theater at Concordia University in Montreal, and a love of singing that led her to study opera at Mount Allison University in small town Sackville, New Brunswick. It was in university that Fox started sharing the songs that had filled her journals, performing at open mics, coffee houses, and to a group of friends who’d compare songs in their dorms. She spent her summers working as a tree planter in British Columbia, strumming her guitar around backwoods campfires, swimming in endless lakes, and developing a fortitude for hard work.
Sequoia (due out September 13th) is deeply rooted in folk-Canadiana elements that have characterized Fox’s career, while also exploring folk-rock and jazz-pop fusion. The album could be described as ’70s “Sesame Street” meets Sharon Van Etten. “The 11 songs that make up Sequoia are reflections on gratitude in relation to the women in my life, my environment, my relationships, and myself,” says Fox of the forthcoming album. The title Sequoia refers to the source of inspiration for the project which struck upon hearing a news story that told of firefighters working throughout the night to prevent a sequoia tree from burning in a forest fire. “It resonated with me how severely nature and time have been taken for granted,” concludes Fox. Like Joni Mitchell’s “Big Yellow Taxi,” the collection of songs on Sequoia acknowledges moments when something was taken for granted, while also functioning as pieces of gratitude in and of themselves in how they uplift and celebrate love and life.
Today Glide is excited to offer an exclusive premiere of the video for the standout track “Alberta,” which captures Fox’s soulful Americana-folk sound. Putting her vocals and lyrics in the spotlight, the song captures the spirit of travel while also reveling in Fox’s own memories and nostalgia for the places she’s been. Her band accentuates her music with a subtle yet wonderfully textured sound complete with a twangy pedal steel guitar. All of these warm feelings of life on the road are brought to life with camcorder-shot visuals her Fox and her band on tour. While there are plenty of smart lyrics to savor, this is ultimately a song about forgiveness.
Watch the video and read our conversation with Kylie Fox below…
What is the story behind this song? What inspired it? Why is it important to you and what about the song really speaks to you?
I wrote “Alberta” in a tent. I was a first-year tree planter in British Columbia and Alberta. My summer was spent waking up in that tent at 5:30am, eating breakfast around a fire, driving out to a burnt forest, and planting a new tree every two steps. We worked in the mountains, in the thick forest, in the middle of nowhere, and it was freeing to spend three months seemingly isolated from the world. In BC, where we had our first contract, there was an air of being on a road trip; there were camper vans in all the Walmart parking lots and all the boys had man buns. I was also crushing on another tree planter who let me sleep in his tent. Our last contract was in Alberta, in a town called Slave Lake. We soon learned that most folks at the bar were also from out East, there to make a buck. It was a completely different vibe, not to mention I felt dumped by my bush-camp boyfriend.
One day, on a night off, my friend and I saw a billboard for a rodeo. We borrowed someone’s car and tried to find it, driving forever it seemed. It started to rain, and eventually I pulled into a campground to see if it was worth driving any farther. We met Judy behind the bar, eating a creamsicle. She sat us down and spoke to us for over an hour about life, and how forgiveness is the best thing to learn, and how we would have to find our cocoons if we ever wanted to be butterflies. We never found the rodeo, but we left there feeling enlightened.
I wrote “Alberta” about that summer. It’s about forgiveness. To me, at the time, the little guitar riff I wrote as a very new guitar player reminded me of guard rails passing on the highway.
What made you choose this song as a single?
This song paints beautiful pictures for me. People gravitate to “Alberta” because there’s something simple yet cinematic about it, and maybe some relatable concepts of being on the road, being disappointed, learning as you go, working out West, and coming into forgiveness. It’s also a beautiful-sounding song, a folky chime that will sound nice on a playlist with First Aid Kit or Courtney Marie Andrews.
Are there any lyric lines that you really love or that really speak to you? What do you feel makes them resonate?
I love the lyric “the nearest lake is my ocean.” There’s so much East Coast home-sickness in that line. When we arrived in Slave Lake, Alberta, all of the East Coasters in the truck gasped at the sight of the lake, because we couldn’t see the other side and for a split second it felt like we were on the ocean, like we were home.
If listeners can take away one thing from having heard this song, what do you hope that is?
I sing “I’m making stories that how dare you try to save me from” about a friend whose parent was really upset they went planting. The stories we make and the adventures we have, especially when we are young, are the most valuable, precious fabric of our lives. There’s a little rebellion, there’s a little nostalgia, I hope folks take away a sense of adventure.
How does this song fit in among the others on the forthcoming album? How is it similar or different?
“Alberta” is one of the more folky songs on “Sequoia.” It lives in the same world as the album’s title track, “Sequoia,” which compares a tree to the things in life we take for granted, as well as the song “Armadillo,” which compares trees to women. Trees are a motif I reached for frequently in writing this album.
How would you describe your music to people who haven’t heard it before?
My music is rooted in folk storytelling, fusing with elements of jazz and alternative rock. Think Joni Mitchell and Kate Bush meets “Sesame Street.” It’s quirky, and it’s an authentic representation of how I see the world.
If you have a video for this song, whose idea was the concept? Who directed and filmed it for you? What do you like best about it?
The video is a montage of home video footage from touring with my band through the last year and a half. It’s mixed in with professional footage taken from us performing to a sold-out audience, opening for Matt Minglewood. It was directed by Jon Mann.
