“Like a wookish fat-tailed dwarf lemur, Taper’s Choice has been hibernating,” writes drummer Chris Tomson (Vampire Weekend) of the unapologetically jammy supergroup Taper’s Choice. Also featuring guitarist Dave Harrington (DARKSIDE), keyboardist Zach Tenorio-Miller (Aric Iris), and bassist Alex Bleeker (Real Estate), Taper’s Choice has awoken from its hibernation with the announcement of new 2026 tour dates and the release of a debut studio album, Prog Hat.
The above opening quote comes from the first volume of The Taper’s Voice, the band’s newly launched newsletter. Written by Tomson, The Voice proclaims, “And so it is that the thawing has begun and Jamband Spring is upon us: Taper’s Choice is back!” After playing just two shows in all of 2024, Taper’s Choice will dart in 2026 with a seven-city tour throughout the Eastern United States, plus festival appearances.
Following the band’s impending “Westlands” five-show, four-city run through California, Taper’s Choice will kick off 2026 in “Biscuits country” at the Ardmore Music Hall outside Philadelphia on January 30th. Dates will follow at Brooklyn Bowl (1/31) and in Washington, D.C. (2/1), Charleston, SC (2/3), Asheville, NC (2/4), Atlanta (2/5), and Jacksonville (2/6), before Taper’s Choice steps on the MSC Divina for its maiden Jam Cruise voyage (2/7–2/12). Then in March, the band will head south again to perform at the always-eclectic Big Ears Festival in Knoxville, TN (3/26–3/29). All of the band’s headlining shows will feature support from “ambient dude” Rich Ruth and his band.
“Each evening will be an unmissable night of upscale jambanding the likes of which are rarely seen,” Tomson promised, adding of Jam Cruise, “Personally, I’ve never been on a cruise ship before and I believe that I haven’t played the drums on a vessel at sea since the ‘Mansard Roof‘ video shoot in 2007, so I will need to study up on both fronts.”
Find tickets and a full list of upcoming Taper’s Choice tour dates here.
The other major news item from the first volume of The Taper’s Voice was the release of the band’s new studio album, Prog Hat. Recorded in just two days with three to four takes per song, the four-track, 34-minute album reveals densely constructed compositions that deserve far more than just the simple “jam band” nomenclature. With just four members, Taper’s Choice weaves intricate arrangements, like the euphorically sublime “Doner Wrap”. The sprawling, 12-minute “The Dave Test (Yes)” recalls the space disco of instrumental four-piece Circles Around The Sun, while album closer “Song Hat” features some rare vocals atop vintage ’60s psychedelia.
“I can’t tell you what a joy it is to have all this Taper’s action on the calendar,” Tomson wrote in closing. “The Choice is such a fun project with a special group of musicians that it always feels like a gift anytime we get to do our thing. I’m only speaking for myself here but I can say that having the band group chat alight with such phrases as ‘whole new songbook’, ‘we can work on the next studio record then too’, and ‘if we’re going to rehearse on a Sunday I need to know ahead of time so I can stockpile parenting hours to make that work’, we’re all pretty jacked up. See you out there!!!!!”
Prog Hat is available to stream across platforms. Subscribe to The Taper’s Voice here and check out the first edition below.
Taper’s Choice — Prog Hat
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