Video Premiere: N NAO - Miroir

Tomorrow marks the release of the first new music from Montreal’s N NAO since being longlisted for the Polaris Prize last year, with their new EP Miroir hitting streaming services tomorrow. We’re pleased to premiere the lead single and music video from that EP, the title track “Miroir”. Produced alongside Sylvain Deschamps (Klô Pelgag, Flore Laurentienne), the new EP features three songs that revolve around themes of withcraft, secrecy, and spirals.

It’s a rare privilege as a music writer to be at a loss for words, but “Miroir” and it’s accompanying video leave me in such a state. It’s a contemplative piece, one that ebbs and flows, bringing meaning to the sparse poetry of the lyrics through a symbiotic relationship between the words and the composition. N NAO strikes a balance between the abstract elements of the song and the delicate structure underpinning it, that gives it a sense of forward momentum and purpose. It’s beautifully done, with the percussion and drum tracks deserving of extra praise; the free, highly processed rhythm tracks are really special, and when they finally coalesce into something resembling a drum beat near the end of the song, the entire song snaps into focus right before disappearing once more into the ether.

The video, shot by Léa Taillefer and N NAO on 16mm and Super 8 film, and directed by N NAO (aka Naomie de Lorimier) comes out everywhere tomorrow, alongside the other two songs on the EP. You can watch it a day early below, and you’ll be able to purchase a copy of the EP via N NAO’s Bandcamp page tomorrow.