Dylan Tauber – “Eternal Choir” / “Harmonic Parallax”

Dylan Tauber – “Eternal Choir” / “Harmonic Parallax” – Singles Review

This guy!  Always with the water themes and such.  Gonna have to start calling him Aquaman for short.

If we’re talkin’ about quality first impressions y’all…”Eternal Choir” is the kind of track that should have you instantly diving into the rest of the album it comes from, which is called Turquoise Lagoon.  Out and available now…I might not have heard the whole thing even myself yet, but I can tell you that over the course of the past four years or so, Dylan Tauber, aka Aquaman for the purposes of this review and any other reviews I end up writing about him in the future, has rarely if ever dropped the quality of his work by any measurable amount.  One of the most consistent artists out there in the scene, it was literally no surprise to me whatsoever to push play on a track like “Eternal Choir” and hear things come out so favorably for Tauber…this is one of those dudes that just gets it and knows precisely what he wants to get out of his sound, and the incredibly high standards of quality and focus always show up in his work.  Which makes logical sense – if you read through his pages online, you’ll learn that he’s put out something like twenty-five records over the past thirty years…we’re long past Dylan’s first rodeo at this point, but it’s equally fair to state that if you were to listen to anything he’s doing at any point in his career, it probably still sounds like the guy is on his way up.  He’s constantly innovative, relentlessly creative, and it has always been pure joy to have this dude’s music booming through these speakers of ours over here.  The sheer sonic depth he creates on a cut like “Eternal Choir” is all the proof you’d need to know everything I’m saying is true – the ideas are spectacular to begin with, but the execution and the production of those ideas, is freakin’ staggering.  To hear Dylan Tauber getting his music done right is just what we call another Friday around these parts over here, but it always makes me smile to push play on whatever he’s come up with next to confirm that yes indeed, the guy is still awesome at all that he does.  I loved how much the vocals play a role in “Eternal Choir” – you’ll find vocals in a lot of Tauber’s tunes over the years, but he’s always found exceptional ways to use them like additional instrumentation in his digital creations, and I’d tell you he’s done a magnificent job of that once again here in this sample from Turquoise Lagoon.  Bright and bold and soulful, I love the fact that he never seems to feel the pressure to use vocals in the typical ways most folks are accustomed to.  “Eternal Choir” is a stellar example of the kinds of smart choices he makes in how to use vocalizations to great effect to create unique art that speaks to you in ways that songs with dedicated verse/chorus/verse structures could never do.  Without using any actual words, or even his own voice for that matter, he’s always been able to create these remarkable songs that flow as fluidly as water, yet never sound like anything you’d want to relegate to the background of your day – you wanna pay attention to Tauber’s music, every time.  So yeah…not surprising to hear him crushing it once again, but certainly welcome.

There it is though…that’s what I’m personally looking for.  Man…I tell ya…there are some artists that, when they get it right, they get it REALLY right.  Don’t get me wrong, everything I’ve told you all about “Eternal Choir” above is completely, 100% true from my perspective – but what kind of makes that even more amazing, is that with all the incredible things I just told you about it, this other track I’ve got is somehow even better.  “Harmonic Parallax” finishes off the set-list on Turquoise Lagoon, and you can tell why that is as you listen to it for yourself.  Filled with gorgeous melody and sincere sound from the lefts to the rights, it’s a perfect example of Dylan doing what Dylan truly does best.  I think there is a ton to be admired in the sleek artistic design of a track like “Eternal Choir” for sure, but by the same token, I’d tell you that a song like “Harmonic Parallax” has the kind of compelling universal sound to it that we can all enjoy.  Again, I’d always tell you that Tauber’s music is likely to appeal to a great many listeners anyhow, and I’d readily confirm there will be a ton out there that love what they hear in a soulful song like “Eternal Choir” – I’m just saying there are that many more that’ll fall in love with what they hear on “Harmonic Parallax” is all.  The most I’d concede to you is that we’ve somewhat come to expect this level of greatness from Dylan Tauber’s music…that’s quite likely true for all of us – we know just how amazing he can be from all that he’s achieved in the past…but we should never take that for granted.  To hear such an extraordinary connection between an artist and the music they make…to hear the stunning degree of consistency in the material straight across the board…to know that he’s going to deliver you a slice of sonic excellence, every single time…I mean…you all understand how much work would have to go in to creating a reputation like that for yourselves, right?  Yet here we are, and that’s the case – he has put in the work throughout a career that now spans three entire decades-plus…and he’s still going.  Heck, if you listen to a song like “Harmonic Parallax,” you realize the only limitation that Aquaman has in his musical powers is what Father Time would impose on him eventually, but we’re clearly far away from that being a factor.  If you listen to a song like “Harmonic Parallax,” you’d only rightly assume that Dylan Tauber can (and will) keep doing what he loves forever, because it all still sounds as fresh and inspired as it ever has if we’re to judge by what he’s got here in these two cuts from Turquoise Lagoon.

So yes…I’m more than happy to confirm that Dylan is just as amazing as you remember him being, and that his latest music sounds every bit as mesmerizing, artistic, and alluring as it ever has.  Tauber stays continually at the top of his game and never overlooks anything from performance to production at this point in his career.  I’m thrilled with the results he’s achieved in these two songs, and he should be too.

Find out more about our friend Aquaman and his brand-new record Turquoise Lagoon, from his official website at:  https://www.dylantauber.com

Ya ha!  This link right here is the key to being the next artist or band featured here at sleepingbagstudios, so instead of just ignoring it, click it instead!