Taboo

I watched Taboo way back in 2017, and I honestly still think it’s great. If you’re into historical fiction with a heavy dose of mud, mysticism, and Tom Hardy being intensely brooding, this is definitely your show.

The story is set in the soot-stained, treacherous streets of 1814 London. It follows James Delaney, a man thought long dead, as he returns to play a high-stakes “three-dimensional chess game” for control of Nootka Sound. Since the land sits right on the border of the United States and Canada, James finds himself at the center of a deadly tug-of-war between the British Crown, the Americans, and the East India Company.

Rather than selling out, James tries to build his own trade empire—all while navigating dark family secrets, assassination attempts, and his own unraveling mental state.

On a side note, I did some research on the East India Company, and as it turns out, the show’s portrayal of their terrifying power is pretty spot on. By 1814, the Company was exactly what the show depicts: a private entity that functioned as its own sovereign power. They had their own currency, their own laws, and a private army that was actually twice the size of the British Army at the time. They could declare war and seize territory while answering to no one but their shareholders. It’s a pretty wild bit of history.

What really ties it all together for me is the atmosphere. The music is from composer Max Richter, who (to me) really put the post-classical genre on the map with his most famous piece, On the Nature of Daylight. The score in Taboo is just like Tom Hardy’s character: dark and brooding. It’s figuratively in the title of the main theme, “A Lamenting Song.”

You might also like to play…

On the Nature of Daylight | fingerstyle guitar + TAB

Hamnet: Of the undiscovered country | fingerstyle guitar + TAB

First Love and the Falling Snow | fingerstyle guitar + TAB

How to play A Lamenting Song | fingerstyle guitar

The guitar tab for this piece is beautifully written across 2 pages. A 1:36 long, it’s a perfect étude (practice piece) for beginner and intermediate guitar players. Enjoy, the guitar tab is available below:

You’ll play each section within the ||: repeat brackets :|| 2x.

[guitar tab] **Taboo (2017): A Lamenting Song (Max Richter) | Fingerstyle Guitar

A Lamenting song is played in standard tuning with a capo on the 2nd fret.