Search - Kashtin :: Akua Tuta

Pleasant folk-rock album in Innu language

woburnmusicfan | Woburn, MA United States | 05/10/2004

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Kashtin is two singers of Quebec Innu descent who sing in the Innu language. The title track here was included on Robbie Robertson's excellent "Music for 'The Native Americans'" album. It's a fantastic track, even though this re-mixed version removes Robertson's guitar solo. The rest of the album is pleasant folk-rock, though none of the other songs is remotely as memorable as "Akua Tuta". My favorites are "Tshekunu Mak", "Ne Puamun", and "Ashtam Nashu". Manu Katche, who has played a lot with Peter Gabriel, is the drummer on several tracks, and Robertson contributes a backing vocal.(1=poor 2=mediocre 3=pretty good 4=very good 5=phenomenal)"

An album called Akua Tuta ... And another one...

starlight | 09/06/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Did you know Kashtin produced 4, not 3, full-length CD albums? Did you know they named TWO DIFFERENT albums the same title: Akua Tuta? There's the rare one of 1994 which every one knows and holds on to ( as opposed to their former album, Innu, which people are re-selling all over the place for just a few cents); and then there's the rarest, almost impossible to find, hardly-known one of '92.



Why on earth did Kashtin produce 2 different albums with the same title? I can't say, but perhaps when they realized their progress after e.g. creating the hit song Akua Tuta, they may have decided to re-do some of the Innu (1991) album's songs and add their new ones to these, and make up this "supermix" of 1992, Akua Tuta the first? Then, the Akua Tuta song changed under the influence of Robbie Robertson, and the many people who discovered Kashtin through compilations such as Robertson's or Odissey would expect to find the known version of the song Akua Tuta on a Kashtin album, so kashtin named their next album with the known version after this title, too? Anyway... Here are the two tracklists:



I/ AKUA TUTA, the 1994 ALBUM:



As listed on this Amazon page



II/ AKUA TUTA, the 1992 ALBUM:



1. Akua Tuta " version accoustique " : A (slightly) different version from the known one, for example without Robbie Robertson's guitar on it.



2. Ne pua mun ( my dream): This one is actually the same as on the other AT album; funnily though, the summed-up translation given for each differs



3. nekashtuamani!



4. Nte tshekuan nikan'kuian



5 Apu Tshekuan Nikuan Nikan'kuian: A new version of this title from the Innu album; this one is only 2'46 long (instead of 4'30), and is one of my favourites!



6. Apu Min'tan



7 Nikanish: sounds the same to me, though length is said to be 2'58 instead of 3'09



8. Tshinuau: A new version; it's only very slightly different



9. Son of the sun: There's no word to describe this glorious new version of son of the sun! Dreamy, transporting, ...this is a very different version, 4'30 long instead of 3'29 as previous, it's just great.



10. Uishama (written by Claude's grand-father! A ritual song meant to welcome a new woman entering the clan during a ceremony for her): This is a new version, slightly longer too.



11. Iskuess



12. Akua Tuta " version rock "- Another really glorious song. I might not have called it rock though, or any more rock than the one we all know: in fact it has some of the dreamy quality of the above Son of the son's new version; it is more well-rounded than the barer version we know, but with gentle instruments, nothing heavy. Some New Age touch there too. Very different from (and I'd say nicer than) the one we know.





On the whole quite a satisfying and new CD, of 12 tracks and good variety (as opposed to the also good but less varied first, self-titled album of 1989) - even though it's always slightly irritating to find some same songs over different albums. Quite an improvement on Innu in any case , which I think may have been the meaning for this 're-make' in the 1st place.



8-page leaflet included, with summary of each song's meaning, as with their other cds; some photos we know, the one on the covers I didn't. The front cover has a large photo of Kashtin (more or less a close-up) playing guitar, singing - and laughing at the same time - in red lights, probably in concert. The back has paint art."