Ya Tseen - Knives (ft. Portugal. The Man)

What this video is

Released March 10, 2021, 'Knives' is the debut single from Ya Tseen's album Indian Yard (Sub Pop, April 30, 2021), a project led by Nicholas Galanin, a Tlingit and Unangax̂ artist from Sheet'ka (Sitka, Alaska). The name Ya Tseen translates to 'be alive' from Galanin's Tlingit name, grounding the project in Indigenous identity. The video's surrealist stop-motion language — crafted across Seattle and Guadalajara —…

Why it matters

Represents a landmark moment in Indigenous-led art-pop on a major indie label (Sub Pop), merging psych-pop songwriting with stop-motion surrealism. The cross-border US-Mexico production pipeline (Seattle/Guadalajara) and the handcrafted animation aesthetic signal a broader 2020s movement toward…

The director

Carlos Cruz is a Seattle-based photographer and director who began his career as an assistant for fashion, editorial, and lifestyle photographers in Guadalajara, Mexico. He works across live-action, stop motion, and motion graphics, exploring themes of…