Love Language explores identity in the pressure cooker of a colonialist society.
Our inner selves are constantly warring with what is expected of us, whether by our family, workplaces, or the general public. The need to be polite and not cause a scene is ingrained in most of us from a young age, but what do you do when your identity is something the government literally tried to destroy at one point in time? We live in a weird landscape where land acknowledgements are standard, but a greater understanding of Indigeneity is not. To someone like Tashiina Buswa of Love Language, the Indian and the Cowboy are incompatible, and she has to be both.
“Indian Cowboy,” the centrepiece of this EP of the same name, is a song of exasperation with this Catch-22. Slacker-rock instrumentation usually codes as chill, but Buswa is exasperated. “I blame it all on Jesus H. Christ/that crazy guy wears me out,” she sings drily. The chorus just repeats the “uh” sound and then “You’ve got your Indian cowboy.” While tiredness is a symptom of dealing with deeply rooted colonialism, there’s also a sense of triumph. By the end, the guitars are louder, and Buswa’s tone changes from capitulation to challenge. You want an Indian cowboy so badly? Well, now you’ve got one, motherfucker.
The rest of Indian Cowboy explores how our identity morphs and attacks itself. “New Power” is a raucous song about finding a new love and having it consume everything. “I don’t ask for much, I just want to see you every single night,” Buswa sings. “New Money” addresses self-sabotage: “All I want is to destroy/all the things that bring me joy.” The tension in the song builds until the refrain at the end, as Buswa repeats, “Can you do it? Would it happen?”
There’s a genuine wistfulness in “Leave this Province,” the double-edged sword of leaving your home and your friends to find a better life elsewhere. Like other songs on the EP, it doesn’t stay gentle for long, the anxiety of making that kind of decision swelling into something unmanageable. Each of the five songs feels like a distinct mood, and Buswa’s ability to move from high to low vocal registers quickly shifts the atmosphere of each piece. If you’ve ever felt uncomfortable in your own skin, Indian Cowboy will speak volumes. If you’re doing fine, stick around for the delicious rock and roll.
