Maiah Wynne | Into The Waves

"Into the Waves" was written, produced, and for the most part recorded by Wynne herself during a particularly tumultuous period of her life. The album came to be between her first international tour, a move to the other side of the world, a return to the education system, and the building of a new life after several years of isolation. Many of the recordings were made on tour in hotel rooms with just a laptop, and Wynne herself plays more than a dozen different instruments on the album. The project was completed with mixing and additional production by Justin Abel (Noelle Johnson, The Talbott Brothers), before Alan Douches (Sufjan Stevens, Motörhead, LCD Soundsystem) handled mastering.

As on her debut album, Wynne is joined by an impressive array of musicians, including cellist Bethany Joyce, violinist Avelyn Reynolds, guitarist Brooks Berg, drummers Adam Brzycki and Randy Cooke, and flugelhorn player Henry Sheppard. Rush legend Alex Lifeson also features on guitar, further strengthening the connection between Wynne's solo career and her role as lead singer in Envy of None.

Musically, "Into the Waves" moves effortlessly between intimate, folk-inspired songwriting, grandiose alternative rock textures, and cinematic arrangements, where each song serves as a chapter in the album's overarching narrative.

One of the album's most moving moments is "Girl Dinner," which was only added to the album late in the recording process after the song had become a favorite at Wynne's concerts. The track includes recordings of the audience singing along during the tour, capturing the feeling of togetherness and shared release that became an important part of the album's story.

Wynne has been writing songs since she was seven years old and has built an impressive career over the years. She has performed at festivals such as Northwest Folklife and Upstream Music Fest, written and performed "The Ballad of Lefty Brown" for the credits of the acclaimed 2017 film of the same name, won the International Music From The Moon songwriting competition, and in 2019 became the first participant in NPR's Tiny Desk Contest. Most recently, she has achieved international recognition as the lead singer of Envy of None alongside Alex Lifeson, Andy Curran, and Alfio Annibalini, where she has received great praise for the emotional depth and versatility of her performances on the band's two studio albums.