Two years ago we visited Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota and there we met the buffalo rancher Ed Iron Cloud from the Oglala Sioux Tribe. We shared meals, thoughts and music and I was asked to write a song about the buffaloes. The song appeared after a heavy flu some months later, and from then the pieces really started to fall into a great puzzle. More energies, thoughts and melodies materialised and Iwashere came to life!
Our first song "The buffaloes of Ed Iron Cloud" is a tribute to Ed and his family for the important work they are doing on their homeland. One of Ed's stated goals has been to educate his community about the buffalo’s cultural and spiritual significance to Oglala Lakota people. Iron Cloud is a board member of The Knife Chief Buffalo Nation Society on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, dedicated to protect and revitalize Lakota culture and sacred traditions.
The video features the amazing world champion jingle dancer Acosia Red Elk from The Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Nation. She is a fantastic cultural communicator and storyteller, reaching both the elder and the younger generations.
Additional singing and drumming by Níimiipuu Trail Drum, recorded at Tamkaliks Celebration in Wallowa in 2017.
The song is recorded, mixed and mastered in Klokkereint.
Video by Alexander Rostad at Rostad Film.