Long Island multi-instrumentalist Dylan Taganas enters a pivotal new chapter with his debut album, A Moon of Mercury. The record, entirely self-written, produced, recorded and mixed, draws from unfinished material first conceived with his former band The Mercurys. Driven by loss, memory and a determination to preserve songs once performed live before the group’s 2024 disbandment, Taganas transforms years of home demos into a unified statement of artistic evolution. The album moves between the thunderous rock of ‘Rattle Stones’, the raw punk-metal of ‘Drained’ and the jangly, introspective guitar work of ‘Live Your Mind’, echoing the influence of The Smiths. More than a debut, A Moon of Mercury captures a formative period and asserts the independent vision of an artist forging ahead.
In the following interview, Taganas discusses the album’s creation, the sense of absence that shaped it, and his next steps.
Hey, thanks so much for sitting down with us today – what’s been the absolute best part of your week so far, music aside?
Thank you for having me! The best part of my week, or should I say the last few days, was hanging out with friends at a Halloween party and going to a haunted house attraction for the first time! It was way more hilarious than scary, though, but that’s a fun thing!
Which genres best describe your music?
I would say alternative rock, indie rock, a few pop elements, and some folk elements! I would call the genre of my music “everything rock” due to the many influences in my music.
If someone wanted to understand the real vibe of the band beyond the music, what’s one story from your everyday life that says it all?
Well, there are many stories, not just one; it’s hard to pick a single one. But I’d say one everyday story is about overall vibes and connecting with people. As an empath, I can pick up what people are going through pretty much every day through their interactions with me, and I sort of absorb the energy they put on me. So I take in their experiences, relate them to my own, and translate them into music and words.
What’s the wildest creative risk you’ve ever taken in the studio that actually paid off in ways you never saw coming?
I wouldn’t call this a wild creative risk, but I did everything myself: recording, performance, production, arrangement, and mixing. The best part about working on the songs by yourself is that you have total creative freedom. You have more room to explore. Not working with another person in the creative process has its ups and downs, but the best part is that you can make any decision you want. The biggest risk out of all of these things was the mixing process, because I wanted to get the desired sounds I wanted, but at times I was overthinking and thought, “Is this instrument loud enough?” “Is the vocal loud enough?” “Are the drums sounding what I want them to sound like?” All those things. But what helped me move past the technical aspects of each song was the Duke Ellington attitude: “If it sounds good, it IS good.”
How often do you hope to release new music?
I’m spacing out the releases a bit since I just recently released my debut album.
What is the date of your next planned single/EP/Album release?
I’m not entirely sure. I’m planning on promoting and performing the songs from my debut album, “A Moon of Mercury” (released two weeks ago), for the time being, with a couple of new songs; and if the reception is good enough for those songs and if I gain traction on them, I will release more tracks, hopefully in the summer or fall of next year.
What is your main platform for distributing and promoting your music?
I’m currently using DistroKid to release my music, but I’m looking to switch distributors because of their AI controversy. For social media, I mainly use Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube to promote my music.
If you could change one thing about the modern music industry overnight, what would it be?
One thing I would change is to focus on talent rather than image. I mean, yes, it’s true that you need a strong brand and image to market yourself, but sometimes I see audiences who disregard the art, or, I should say, the music, and only focus on the image of the performer. Back in the day, you had a few artists who didn’t look or dress like rockstars or pop stars but were still famous and immensely popular; unfortunately, you don’t see that much today. If you have both the talent and the image, you are already set, but in my opinion, talent matters more. If that changes, more unknown artists could be signed. Overall, there are many things that I would change, but that is one of them.
Do you see AI as a threat to musicians, a helpful collaborator, or something else? How do you plan to keep your music relevant as the industry changes rapidly because of these tools? By embracing AI, avoiding it, or taking a different approach?
I definitely see AI as a threat and a hindrance to musicians and artists. AI once stole my song, and it sucked. Many artists have had their songs stolen by AI. The only time AI is useful is when I separate instrumental and vocal stems from stereo recordings, or, in other words, de-mixing, because it’s not generating anything from them. I always avoid AI because human-made music is what gives the imperfection its perfection, its heart and soul. Generating music with AI is plain laziness and a complete disregard for the arts.
Who even knows if famous major artists today use AI in their releases? You can’t trust them all the time. If artists at least put their soul – their human touch- into songs without AI or a music generator, that’s showing they actually put work into it. It’s not only music that’s ruined by AI, but also album/single artwork and flyers. People can say all they want about it – “oh, it’s free”, like no. It’s way better to pay someone who does a better job than AI-generated artwork, or just learn to do it yourself. In my honest opinion, spitting out something to the public generated by AI is a death sentence.
What is the single biggest challenge you currently face as an independent artist/band?
The biggest challenge is definitely keeping the passion alive. One can rely on motivation, but it can’t be the main thing that keeps artists and bands going because it can die down at some point. There are micro-challenges within a challenge: finances, creating new material, marketing, independent managing, etc., but if you have that drive that keeps you running, it’ll definitely be worthwhile.
What core themes were you hoping listeners would connect with in your latest track?
One main theme on my new debut album is memories and experiences. Each song has its own theme and story, ranging from anger, confusion, and discontent to the longing to be seen and heard, and looking back on experiences that you have to come to terms with. Like on the album cover, I wanted to have that “burdened absence” feeling throughout the album.
If you could revisit one decision from your artistic journey and do it differently, what would it be?
I know it may sound odd, but honestly, I wouldn’t change a thing. I’m happy with everything that has happened on my artistic journey so far. Things happen for a reason. When anything happens, whether good or bad, it helps me grow in many ways, and I learn from it. I would ask myself, “Why did it happen this way?” and so I try to look deeper into the overall meaning behind those events. Either I live with it or put it aside to not look at it again, but of course, it’s much better to live and learn.
What’s one unexpected influence, maybe from outside music, that keeps showing up in your work?
Poetry. Absolutely. After I got back from vacation in late winter 2026, I started reading poetry by 19th- and 20th-century authors. The funny thing was, I wasn’t a big fan of books in general, and during my vacation I became curious about reading again. It helped. From there, I tweaked some lyrics in songs I hadn’t released yet (and later released on my album), and they flowed much better than before. Whenever I’m in a state where I want to start writing again, I turn to poetry/books for inspiration.
What’s one fun or ridiculous moment from the studio or road since this release that still makes you smile?
The biggest moment since releasing my debut album is the relief of finally finishing the recording, mixing, and mastering process. That same feeling comes in two moments: finishing the recording itself, and finally releasing it and thinking, “I don’t have to worry about overthinking the creative decisions for those songs anymore.” I remember playing the full album for my friends on the night of its release, and they were grooving and dancing around to the songs; they were very pleased and proud of what I created.
Listen to A Moon of Mercury:
