Released in 2004, Taima’s self-titled album is the result of a collaboration between Inuk singer Elisapie and Abitibi-born composer Alain Auger. To celebrate the 20th anniversary of the duo's only opus, Bonsound is releasing a remastered version of the album, out today on all music services, thus giving new life to its soaring, sensual and sometimes abrasive atmospheres. Characterized by its unique blend of musical styles, including folk, alternative pop, rock, trip-hop and traditional Inuit music, the album will also be available on vinyl for the first time, as well as on CD, on November 8th, 2024.
Taima’s self-titled album is available on all music services.
Pre-order the album on vinyl or CD.
In Inuktitut, Elisapie's mother tongue, Taima is a popular expression meaning “it's over”, “that's enough” and “let's move on”; an idiom that accurately embodies the spirit of the album. Made up of 11 songs, the record features lyrics in Inuktitut, French and English, and deals with themes such as love, solitude, reconciliation and identity. It also explores the relationship between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people, as well as the relationship between humans and nature.
About Taima
Taima was formed by singer-songwriter Elisapie, originally from Salluit, Nunavik, and musician-composer Alain Auger, hailing from Abitibi. The two artists first met in July 2000 at a photo exhibition dedicated to the North. Despite coming from very different backgrounds, the pair discovered a similar artistic vision that inspired them to collaborate on a multilingual musical project exploring the relations between Inuit and non-Indigenous people.
The band made their debut in 2002 at the Coup de cœur francophone festival in Montreal, before embarking on a tour across Canada, the U.S. and France. In February 2004, they released their only album, Taima, which was praised by critics and garnered several nominations, including at Toronto's Aboriginal Music Awards, where Taima took home the awards for Best Folk Album and Album Cover of the Year.
Taima went on to perform all over the world, most notably in Brazil, Greenland, South Africa, Norway and even at the Glastonbury festival in England where they played not one but three shows. In 2005, Taima also won the Juno Award for Indigenous Album of the Year.
In 2007, Elisapie and Alain went their separate ways. Alain chose to devote himself to scoring films while Elisapie pursued a successful career as a solo artist.