November 21, 2024
Two years ago, our region experienced an unprecedented drought. 2022 truly broke all records, with temperatures surpassing 41°C (105.8°F) multiple times. Birds were found dead by the thousands in our beautiful marshlands. We lost vast areas of forest to massive, uncontrollable wildfires that firefighters battled for three weeks. The smell of smoke, the ash, everything ended up on our terrace, even though we were more than an hour's drive away. One can easily imagine the apocalyptic scene, with an orange sky and zero visibility amidst the embers.
In June 2023, the same thing happened in Canada, but on a much larger scale, to the point where European firefighters were sent as reinforcements to North America. This is what inspired Canadian artist Wellens to write this single. Known for his beautiful, contemplative folk melodies that make you dream, he couldn't help but pick up his pen to describe what was happening on the road.
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More info and the full article can be read in our magazine on Patreon.
The song has been added to "Niko's Music Mixtape", our monthly virtual CD on Spotify.
Wellens's take on "Parallel 45"
It was about that day in June 2023 when I was returning from Quebec City, where my son had a baseball tournament. It was during the worst forest fires in living memory that Quebec had ever experienced. It was also a period of personal stress and emotional distress for me. I was in the middle of the potential sale of my business (a physiotherapy clinic – the sale is now finalized, and the transfer will take place in three weeks). The 3-hour drive mostly follows Highway 40, and the plains on both sides of the road were so filled with smoke that you couldn’t see the horizon ahead.
It was indescribable, orange, and straight out of a post-apocalyptic movie. In short, I did a lot of thinking during those 3 hours separating me from home, contemplating this surreal vision. I already had a good part of the song composed but without lyrics. The next day, I laid the foundation for what became "Parallel 45." I like that the song is mostly in a major key, but the subject matter is serious—it gives it a serene feel at the same time
A bit more about Wellens
Musician since my teens, I have early on started to compose and record demos in my room in my parent's basement. I now work as a physiotherapist, for the last 23 years, but I always long to go into my studio and write music. I love recording and production just as much as I love to play. It's only since 2020 that I started to work on serious projects and release music out into the world. But really, I have been composing and recording since around 1998. And I hope to keep doing so for a long time. Almost every song you hear on my profile was entirely played, recorded, produced, mixed, and mastered by me alone. I am no pro at this craft, so it's all just a work in progress, full of guesswork, mistakes, and imperfections. But that's where the fun is, not in the final product, but in the process! Enjoy!
Reach out to Wellens
More songs from Wellens on Spotify
Lyrics
Ahead on the 40 west
It’s horizonless
And the sun is burning red
I can almost taste
The spruce on my lips
It’s no eclipse
It’s so weird, my own fire is burning low
My fire is burning low
It’s a 3-hour drive
Between here and my life
The blazes are miles and miles wide
North of parallel 45
With an unsteady pulse in my chest
I feel alone, aimless
Although everyone’s around
Everyone’s around
It’s a 3-hour drive
Between here and my life
The blazes are miles and miles wide
North of parallel 45
The entire ride
In the shadows of the night
Seeking for a beacon of light
North of parallel 45
Oooohhhh have I been trying too hard?
OOOOoohh Has it been there all along?
oOOoo hhh have I been looking too far, too far, too far?
Lost in my head on the 40 west
I’m still horizonless
Lit by faint glowing embers
Faint glowing embers
