TAUK

TAUK may be an instrumental band, but even without words, the group’s extraordinary new album, Chaos Companion, manages to speak volumes about the ups and downs of a year that challenged—and transformed—us all.“Everyone’s got a chaos companion, something that keeps you grounded in the midst of all the madness,” says bassist Charlie Dolan. “Maybe it’s your spouse, maybe it’s your kids, maybe it’s your dog. For us, it was the music.”
Recorded at the band’s newly completed studio on their native Long Island, Chaos Companion is indeed a work of profound comfort and catharsis, but more than that, it’s a testament to the kind of growth and evolution that can emerge in the face of struggle and uncertainty. Forced off the road for the first time in years by the COVID-19 pandemic, Dolan and his bandmates—guitarist Matt Jalbert, drummer Isaac Teel, and keyboardist Alric Carter—used the rare break from touring to stretch themselves as writers and instrumentalists, leaning into the sense of liberation and possibility that came with an empty calendar and letting it guide them toward uncharted musical territory. The resulting songs push TAUK’s sound to bold new heights, fearlessly fusing elements of progressive rock, funk, soul, EDM, and hip-hop into a richly melodic, groove-driven blend, one that’s complemented perfectly here by the equally adventurous production work of longtime collaborator Robert Carranza. Add it all up and you’ve got an evocative, cinematic collection that hints at everything from 70’s film scores and 80’s videogame soundtracks to 90’s R&B and modern dance music, an immersive, transportive record that blurs the lines between the analog and the electronic as it balances old school grit and futuristic sheen in equal measure.