Photo by Katrin Braga
Tanya Tagaq is returning on October 21 with a new album called Retribution. It's her follow-up to 2014's Polaris Prize-winning Animism, in which the Canadian artist incorporated Inuk throat singing into contemporary, and surprising, recordings. She's keeping up with her own formidable pace on "Centre," which features Shad — a rapper as Canadian as the spelling of the song's title. With Shad's metaphysical verses as partner, Tagaq's utterances become a kind of dire Morse code from a dimension we exist in but can't sense. It's a message floating around the song's engaging medley of electronic and live instrumentation.
In an email, Tagaq told The FADER that "Centre" was inspired by her obsession with the microscopic role our planet occupies in the grand cosmic scale, and finding meaning regardless. "The song is about the idea of being centred," she wrote, "being rooted, being present, all of these things are about the knowing, knowing how to conduct yourself. Our lyrics are about electrons, gravity, the fundamental forces, looking at how physical laws can be applied spiritually and emotionally, and how to centre yourself. As a woman, I know my centering happens where I make my babies, it’s not in my head, it’s in the cavities of my body where I hold blood. It’s where we create. I find my womb very sacred and I wanted to address that."
Tanya Tagaq tour dates
Sept. 28 - MONTREAL, QC @ Red Bull Music Academy w/ Fucked Up
Oct. 1 - LOS ANGELES, CA @ The Broad
Oct. 10 - ST. JOHN’S, NL @ St, John’s Arts & Cultural Centre
Oct 12 - CORNER BROOK, NL @ Corner Brook Arts & Cultural Centre
Oct. 15 - CHARLOTTETOWN, PE @ Confederation Centre for the Arts
Oct 19 - MONCTON, NB @ Capitol Theatre
Oct 20 - SAINT JOHN, NB @ Imperial Theatre
Oct 21 - FREDERICTON, NB @ The Playhouse
Nov 10 - FAIRBANKS, AK @ Hering Auditorium
Nov 17 & 18 - SAN FRANCISCO, CA @ Yerba Buena Centre for the Arts
Nov 26 - OTTAWA, ON @ National Arts Centre
