Make Like A Shovel | TAUK
By Donovan Farley May 24, 2015 • 1:00 am PDT
The sixth edition of “Make Like A Shovel,” highlights TAUK, an Oyster Bay, New York-based instrumental four piece whose intoxicating mix of heavy prog rock and melodic jamming has garnered an impressive amount of critical acclaim in their short career. It’s common to hear a jam band say they “meld genres” when describing themselves, but few are able to craft such an instantly intoxicating brew from such seemingly disparate genres so adeptly. Imagine a band fronted by Omar Rodriguez-Lopez if he spent a few summers on Phish tour.
One of the attributes that makes TAUK –Matt Jalbert (guitar), Charlie Dolan (bass), Alric Carter (keyboards) and Isaac Teel (drums) -noteworthy to me is their ability to translate their impressive live show into an effective studio record. In a genre hardly known for it’s ability to excel in the outside of the live setting, TAUK stands well above almost all other young bands of their ilk, with albums like last year’s Collisions providing a strong example of what the band is capable of. When I spoke to bassist Charlie Dolan recently I asked him if that was a conscience effort by the band.
“It’s a huge thing to us, because for us it’s part of the development of the band,” said Dolan. “I mean, record sales aren’t really a huge thing anymore and most bands aren’t basing their livelihood on a record deal or record sales, but to us it’s still very valid. These days most acts, pop or electronic or whatever, will do one track and put it out there, but to us putting a record out is like making a statement. It’s a picture of where we are as a band and where our live show is. And in the process of making a record, it’s obviously a whole other thing than a live show where you’re not working in a box. When making an album it’s like you’re under a microscope, we take our compositions and take every piece of it apart, and we really like that aspect of it .”
Undoubtedly, one of the reasons for the band’s music translating so well on record is producer Robert Carranza. Dolan called the four-time Grammy Award winner with credits including the likes of The Mars Volta, Jack Johnson, G. Love & Special Sauce, Ozomatli, Seu Jorge and The Growlers, the band’s “fifth member” and someone with whom TAUK immediately clicked. When considering the wide range of artists Carranza has worked with, it’s easy it see why he was the perfect fit for the quartet’s mix of heavy progressive and melodic rock. Carranza has developed an intriguing and symbiotic relationship with the band, and will also be at the helm of their upcoming live record.
Even with the band’s ability to make successful statements on record, it’s impossible to deny their live shows are how they’ve made their name. The kind of band you hear from afar at a festival and think, “Holy shit. Who is this?” TAUK is an absolute force live. While researching this piece and listening to their live material, I more than once had the thought that I was hearing something akin to jazz musicians jamming on metal -or vice versa.
“At the end it’s all about the live show,” Dolan said. “As much as we want to concentrate on making great records, it definitely all leads toward the live show.”
An obvious comparison in the jam scene for me is Umphrey’s McGee, a group with whom TAUK has already begun forming a strong relationship. Having already shared the stage with UM, TAUK scored a highly coveted slot opening for the Chicago band on July 3 at Red Rocks.
“It still doesn’t feel real (laughter) it probably won’t feel real even after we play it,” Dolan said about the Red Rocks gig. “Those guys have really put their necks out for us and have really put us in positions to succeed, and we can’t thank them enough for it. Red Rocks in the ultimate. The first time we played in Colorado it was minus 17 outside or something and we didn’t care, we still went to Red Rocks just to see it. It’s amazing and a real honor that we’re about to play there so soon.”
With the unnecessary and limiting lines drawn between varying music scenes blurring more and more in response to the ease of access brought by the shift to digital, it’s easy to see even bigger things in store for TAUK. One might think that there is a ceiling for the success for an instrumental prog/jam/rock band, but before writing this article I never thought I’d be marinating on what Omar Rodriguez-Lopez after Phish tour would be like. And as always: the proof is there in the music, all you have to do is open your mind and listen.
TAUK Tour Dates
5/22 -Counterpoint -Kingston Downs, GA
5/23 -Summer Camp -Chillicothe, IL
5/24 -Revival Festival -Clarks Grove, MN
5/28 -The Chop Shop -Charlotte, NC
5/29 -The Charleston Pour Hose -Charleston, SC
5/30 -Blind Tiger -Greensboro, NC
5/31 -OBX Brewfest -Nags Head, NC
6/3 & 6/4 -Wakarusa -Ozark, AR
6/5 -Duling Hall -Jackson, MS
6/18 -6/20 -Mad Tea Party Jam -Hedgesville WV
6/20 -Nikon at Jones Beach Theater -Wantagh, NY (supporting UM & Panic)
6/24 -Beachland Ballroom -Cleveland, OH
6/25 -6/28 -Electric Forest -Rothbury, MI
7/3 -Red Rocks -Morrison, CO (supporting UM & Papadosio)
7/9 -7/12 -All Good -Summit Point, WV
7/23 -7/25 -Paradise -Hustonville, KY
8/8 -The Werk Out -Thornville, OH
8/9 -Stone Pony Summer Stage -Asbury Park, NJ (supporting moe.)
8/13 -8/16 -Peach Music Festival -Scranton, PA
8/15 -Hyperion -Spencer, IN
8/21 -Camp Barefoot -Bartow, WV
9/5 -9/6 -Great North -Norridgwock, ME
9/19 -9/20 -Bristol Rhythm & Roots -Bristol, TN
9/25 -9/26 -Resonance Festival -Pataskala, OH
9/27 -TALOA -Guthrie, OK
10/3 -10/4 -Luna Light -Darlington, MD
1/6/16 -1/11/16 -Jam Cruise 14
