Today, Norwegian progressive trailblazers Enslaved are honored to reveal “Spirit Helper”, which is unique and deeply powerful collaboration with Kevin Kicking Woman, an Elder of the Blackfeet Nation. The ditty has arisen partly from a relationship with Fire In The Mountains, which takes place each year within the Blackfeet Nation, Montana. Enslaved will be returning to the festival later this month to perform. Ivar Bjørnson from Enslaved and Kevin Kicking Woman explain the concept behind ‘Spirit Helper’ and the lengthy process behind it.
“Songs are the Blackfoot way of knowing. Expressing relationship and responsibility, belonging and accountability. The purpose of this song is having the performative expression giving meaning to life. Connecting to the universes through the cosmos, earth beings, water beings and spirit beings. Spirit Bjørnson adds: “Spirit Helper’ began taking shape long before the song itself existed. Its origins lie in years of conversations, festivals, travel, and shared experiences that gradually connected people, traditions, landscapes, and communities. For Enslaved, the path toward this collaboration began in Colorado in 2019. Through our extended musical family – including shared connections with Wardruna, our longtime management, and the wider community surrounding Fire in the Mountains – we were introduced to one of the festival organisers; Shane McCarthy and the vision behind the gathering that would eventually lead us toward the Blackfeet Nation in Montana. What initially began as conversations around performances and artistic collaboration slowly evolved into something much deeper: an exchange of perspectives, histories, and spiritual traditions shaped by many people along the way. Photo Credit: Raymond Flotat
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