Alfred Darlington, the artist better known as Daedelus, will release his 19th studio album next month, titled Taut.

We’re told that the album sees Daedelus utilizing Ableton Live for the first time in his career. The music was assembled at his home studio in Los Angeles in a “mode of transition and process refining.” The collection of 16 tracks features acclaimed trombonist Jonah Levine, Portland-based singer Sara Z, multi-instrumentalist Goodnight Cody, newly signed Alpha Pup artist Niels Broos, and The Breathing Effect’s Echo Go Away.

The live experience of Taut will feature a new mechanical concept, named Panoptes. Created by Los Angeles-based visual company Incite*, concertgoers can expect a “special treat” that taps into the meaning of Taut with spinning rope, creating volumetric visuals around Daedelus as he performs.

Scheduled for release on May 25 via Magical Properties, the new album coincides with a U.S tour alongside fellow Brainfeeder artist Lapalux and further worldwide dates. Meanwhile, you can check out first single “Raindrops” below with more music to follow. There will be a limited edition cassette version on May 25.

It will be Darlington’s first album since 2017’s Baker’s Dozen.

“Tightly wound. Loose knots. I am tied to the mast of an imperilled ship (music as business) and am struggling against these confines, but also am the one holding the rope taut. Less poetically, it is the bowing in an orchestra, chords on piano, harpsichords, slap bass, and guitar strings. Needed tension to get the tuning right. This is the way I’ve been dealing with the world at large, relinquishing by making so much music.”— Daedelus

Tracklisting

01. Pulse Width
02. Raindrops
03. Slack
04. Quest I(‘m) On (feat. Echo Go Away)
05. A Metallick Taste (feat. Jonah Levine Collective)
06. The Rabbit In The Moon
07. Tangled
08. Pull Through (feat. Goodnight Cody)
09. Carousel (feat. Sara Z)
10. By A Thread (feat. Niels Broos)
11. Monstrous Moonshine
12. Stretched Taut
13. Cast On Out
14. French Twist
15. Tongue Tied
16. A Slow Blush

Press photo: David Bodnar
Artwork: Debbie Cho