Alberta-born Métis singer-songwriter Cynthia Hamar is no stranger to the Canadian music scene. With three studio albums under her belt and many kilometers on the road – including a tour across Canada by train (through VIA Rail’s on Board program) – Hamar can execute timeless songs that stand up with the sound of Buffy Sainte- Marie, Tom Waits, and Feist.
With her much anticipated album Joint & Marrow on the way, Hamar shares a new single “Light A Fire” (out August 26, 2022 via Neon Moon Records). The track combines a country groove that switches into a reggae feel under the chorus’s sunny refrain “Light a fire, light a fire – inside these bones, inside these bones” Hamar explains her thought process behind the song; “I wrote this feeling extremely burnt out struggling with ambition. I was thinking how a tiny spark can set a whole forest on fire and I wrote the melody attempting to kindle some fresh creative joy inside me.”
Produced by Paul Johnston, and featuring her son Zadok Hamar along with acclaimed Alberta session musicians Chris Andrews, Jamie Cooper, Paul Johnston and Toronto’s Joel Schwartz, “Light A Fire” didn’t initially come together easily in the studio; “This song almost didn’t make it on the album. I was struggling to communicate my vision for the tune and I was close to pulling it feeling deeply exhausted.” explains Hamar, “Sunday evening after successfully capturing my main choices Paul cheerfully says lets do “that” one. I knew what he meant; my crazy one that was all feel. The guys were like, “ let’s just have fun and we’ll follow you”. We ended up setting up the studio so we were all separate but they could all see me and just let it fly. It ended up being one of my favorites and I’m so thankful I pushed through and allowed that spark to fire up in me again. The theme of the tune was truly manifested in the recording of it.”