Chantal Kreviazuk can now say she has found peace in her life.

The singer-songwriter's romantic liaison to Our Lady Peace lead singer Raine Maida helped shape much of the Winnipeg native's sophomore album, Colour Moving and Still.

"The love in your life ends up affecting so much of what you are generally," says Kreviazuk, who quietly tied the knot with Maida last week in Toronto. "I really see him in me by writing -- whether it's Before You or Until We Die. And if you're a writer or artist in any form, you end up putting that love out there for all to see."

Deep affection

Kreviazuk shows a deep affection for Maida, particularly on Until We Die ("But for now soon you'll be here/And heal in my arms as the night goes by"). Her hubby also contributed production and music to Little Things and Dear Life.

"Beyond that, I respect him as a musician and as a writer. And I bombard him with questions and support. And he gave me all the answers to what I needed to know and he's been completely honest with me. So he's a pretty amazing sounding board to have around."

Kreviazuk will be in town for New Year's Eve tomorrow night, joining Holly Cole at the Civic Centre's Mask Gala.

With her new-found happiness, Kreviazuk, 26, says she wants to embrace all life has to offer, considering all she's endured in the time prior to her 1996 debut Under These Rocks and Stones and this CD. A bad relationship led to a horrible moped accident a few years back, scars of which remain with her.

While on her first tour, she had a run-in with a man in New York State "who wanted to take me into a forest, rape and kill me."

Anxieties

And that's not to mention her anxieties of laying down tracks for both albums.

Through all that chaos, she developed a greater sense of self-confidence and says she's able to take the good with the bad.

"I'm beyond fine now," Kreviazuk says. "I wouldn't have found myself, my maturity and my centredness without that accident happening. I'm not taking things for granted. I'm just gonna accept myself and my past. I'm fine with it and I'm ready to embrace things like death and try to find the beauty in it."

- With files from Joshua Ostroff

By: Ian Nathanson