Chicago-based musician Taylor Rogers releases her new single called “Dayback” Tuesday, Dec. 9 that was shot in the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore over the summer.
Multi-faceted musician, philosopher and activist, Taylor Rogers, returns with new a new single/video called “Dayback.”
“I want to think about what it means to embrace those parts, so that we can embrace them in others, too.," Rogers said.
With rich textures of layered vocals, guitars, and electronic tones drawing influence from folk music and ambient electronica, “Dayback” showcases Rogers’ skills.
Collaboration is at the heart of this work, featuring five fellow Chicagoans.
Tom Harts leads vocals and percussion, along with mixing and mastering. The video was shot and directed by Sean Comerford, while movement artists Madeline Klein and Jackie Pitts improv as Alien No. 1 and Alien No. 2, respectively.
"In making this video, I knew I wanted to incorporate aliens, isolation, and exploration. I needed something that could look otherworldly and uninhabited. Personally I also love backpacking and wanted to go on an adventure," Comerford said.
In recent years, Rogers collaboration with Lillian Walker focused on a feature-length philosophical ‘music film,’ NOA, which was released over a four-year period—beginning with a
short music video in 2017, followed by the full-length NOA album in 2019, and completed with the feature-length NOA: a music film release in 2021. NOA sprawled as a multi-year meditative project that, while melody-centric and accessible to casual music fans, pushed against boundaries of pop and folk music formats.
The first releases picked up nods from respected outlets including Folk Radio, For Folk’s Sake, and Northern Public Radio. Following its release, NOA: a music film took on an unexpected life of its own, gaining traction on the film festival circuit, and sparking academic discussions on university campuses and in publication, including Symposium and an upcoming chapter in a book published by Duke University Press.
“Dayback” heralds the first glimpse of Rogers’ next music film. “In this second film, we’re going to world-travel through inner-landscapes of darkness and doubt, finding light and hope in strange places,” they explain.
She continues: “At a time when academic and artistic freedom is being threatened, I’m eager to continue creating works which transmit feelings of empathy and hope across the gulf of human differences we face.”
