Tancred on Margaret Atwood and the importance of everyday interactions

I first read a Margaret Atwood novel when I was 16.

I read a lot of her poetry around that time, too. I was drawn to her work as she speaks to a lot of things that directly pertain to me as a woman and it is primarily feminist in nature. I grew up around a lot of women so had a lot of female energy in my life. It’s a long story but basically, I have a lot of Moms. It means a lot that Margaret Atwood is perpetually writing through the lens of women.

The combination of that, as well as, the cultural sense of impending doom within the novels were two key influencers for me. I feel like the idea of the world ending has been pretty constant for human beings for centuries. It feels even more real now that we can actually pinpoint ways that we are destroying the earth. From the mixture of feminism and the default sense of doom that everyone always has - you get this really relatable and a scary introspective look at the world from her.

Nightstand totally relates to what I was going through at the time I wrote the album. There is a theme in the album for me of, not necessarily death, but of how we accept the reality of our mortality and therefore reflecting that into how I choose to spend my time on this planet. I have historically always thought of things in a bigger picture and I really drew that in and was way more introspective in thinking about my personal relationships with people when I was writing Nightstand.

Realizing that all of us are going to die was hitting me particularly hard at the time - and with that knowledge, being a good person became very important to me. Reading dystopian books where everyone was facing the reality that they could die at any time - in a much more immediate sense - helps you see what people's priorities really are.

In pretty much all of Atwood’s books the characters are going through that idea that their death was imminent. In every other chapter these characters are reflecting back on what life was like before they were in this situation and having these beautiful memories of the things they were taking for granted previously. The really subtle, small, moments between, say, the main character and someone they loved and how remembering those moments becomes basically a survival tool for them really stayed with me.

A theme that is present throughout my writing was to stop focusing on the bigger picture and place more importance on the small sensitive moments in life. Realising that those are the things I'm going to carry with me throughout the rest of my days.

I think there is a lot to be said for any interaction people have with each other - even if it is just walking by someone on the street and perhaps they do something really nice that helps you out in that second – a fleeting moment where you don't even exchange names. That is what gives me a sense of hope for humans. Even something much bigger, like sleeping with someone, sharing one night with them, even if it is a short experience, is hugely important. You still share something really personal, it is just with a time limit. You do it because you want to, and it is something positive and I think that is an interesting way to look at each experience you have with someone. On “Queen Of New York” I wanted to focus on the positives that you take away from sharing a night with someone.

Any kind of real connection and kindness is important. I don’t want to be the person that harps on about the damage of technology - I'm not trying to get all Black Mirror on you I promise - but we do have a lot more room for human beings to focus on themselves rather than others these days. Like looking at our own selfies, deciding which to post, and then sharing them on four different platforms at once. It is nice to see times when people are engaging with someone else in a way that is completely free of ego. I guess you have to bring a pretty big dose of ego to have a one-night stand! Though I guess my point is that the other person and your immediate relationship makes the night what it is.