Our next spotlight is on number 2 from The List, submitted by MetalheadDana.
Tanya Tagaq is a woman of immense talent. She’s the bestselling author of Split Tooth, a stunning piece of fiction/memoir set in 1970s Nunavut, written in both poetry and prose. Her English/Inuktitut picture book for children, It Bears Repeating, is set to come out in August this year. She’s an activist and overall exceptional human being, not afraid to speak her mind and call people, corporations, and governments out for the crimes they have committed against her people, others, and the environment. She co-directed and -wrote the documentary Ever Deadly, about her own life and career. And, more recently, she’s an actor, appearing in season 4 of True Detective, which she also provided the soundtrack for.
Which brings us to what she’s most known for, and why we’re here. Tanya Tagaq – often performing under the name “Tagaq” – is an award-winning experimental musician and composer, combining Inuit throat singing with improvisational vocals and various backdrops such as avant-garde classical violin, jazz, electronic beats, or nothing else at all. She’s collaborated with artists such as the Kronos Quartet, Buffy Sainte-Marie, and Björk. While she often performs at folk festivals, Tagaq’s music is truly the most metal thing you could possibly hear.
The first I heard Tagaq’s voice was on the first track of Björk’s 2004 vocal album and utter masterpiece, Medúlla. From day 1, Medúlla was instantly my favorite Björk album, not in small part due to Tagaq’s incredible guest vocals (especially on the track “Ancestors”, which reappears on Tagaq’s first LP, the 2005 Sinaa, co-produced by Björk). It would be nearly 10 years before we (myself and MetalheadDana) finally got to see Tagaq live, in an old movie theatre, improvising a soundtrack to the 1922 silent film Nanook of the North with the film playing on the screen behind. There we picked up copies of Sinaa and the 2008 Aux / Blood (or ᐊᐅᒃ, in Inuktitut syllabics). We got to chat with her for a few minutes while she signed our CDs, and she was giddy to mention that she was thinking about doing some covers for future albums, Pixies’ “Caribou” and possibly also some Iron Maiden. Soon after that performance, she released the 2014 Animism (which we’ll come back to another day since it also appears on The List).
While I typically listen to Tagaq’s later work, going back to Aux / Blood, I think this is perhaps her most accessible album in her discography. If you’re not familiar with Tagaq’s gripping music and/or Inuit throat singing in general, this is a great introduction. Fans of Faith No More will be happy to pick out Mike Patton’s guest vocals on the album. And, for Canadian folks from Edmonton/Calgary/Vancouver, make sure you check out “Force”, “Burst”, and “Construction”, which feature the brilliant beat-boxer Shamik (also of Too Attached, Shamik’s duo with his sister – another woman of immense talent – Vivek Shraya; the duo has also performed alongside Tagaq).
Finished True Detective season 4. Overall I enjoyed the dark and moody atmosphere and the performances, particularly by Jodie Foster, Kali Reis and Finn Bennett, but I thought the momentum caved in (pun intended, for those who've seen it 😉) at the end. The revelations in the final episodes felt rushed and unnecessarily far-fetched.
I enjoyed True Detective Night Country with Jodie Foster along with the official podcast. I have not seen previous seasons. May watch S1. Read that same show runner is doing S5. I wonder if Foster will return since I heard her express interest on #ThePilotTVPodcast but she also alluded to the anthology nature of the series. With today’s news I hope she comes back. #truedetective
Listened to the latest Vanity Fair: Still Watching podcast today. Great insights on #TrueDetective S4 from show runner Issa Lopez. It is a shame she felt she had to make SM accts private. Crazy story about former show runner.
HBO has renewed anthology series "True Detective" for a fifth season, with Issa López, who just signed an overall deal with the network, returning as showrunner. The fourth season, 'Night Country', has become the most-watched of the entire series (in spite of creator Nic Pizzolatto's criticism on social media). #TrueDetective#HBO#StreamOnMAX#Entertainment#Television#TV#Streaming
"...And as for the “all time classic dialogue” that was “butchered” and “misappropriated” by López, Pizzolatto’s admirers seem to have forgotten that much of Rust Cohle’s dialogue in season 1 was borrowed from #horror author #ThomasLigotti"
Episode four, season four of #TrueDetective#NightCountry was another great one, really featuring the #noir aspects of the series, and blending hefty amounts of personal #horror with (sometimes no so subtle) hints of supernatural horror. Hard to believe they'll wrap up the whole storyline in two more episodes. I would love to see more seasons with a similar feel.
Finished season 3 of True Detective (after skipping 2) and it was excellent, actually preferred it to season 1.
Season 1 wanted to you to drown in existential emptiness, season 3 wanted to remind us that if you are lucky, you grow old, become full of regret, just waiting to die.
Anyway, now I am watching Percy Jackson on Disney in the hope of cleansing the palate.
True Detective: Night Country Finale Hits Season Ratings High (www.thewrap.com)
“True Detective: Night Country” wrapped up its mystery with a ratings high for the season, ending as the most-watched installment yet
‘True Detective: Night Country’ Hits Series Ratings Highs for HBO (www.hollywoodreporter.com)
The fourth season of the anthology has passed the first in total viewers.