March 10 – MXD is a nine-song set of expansive, progressive, art-leaning rock epics adorned with celestial saxophone, singular vocals, and kaleidoscopic arrangements. The project grew from an “old-school New York manager putting together a boy band” moment when veteran manager Steve Saporta connected the two artists when McCaslin needed a vocalist for his 2018 solo album Blow.
Inspired by a conversation Ryan had with Donny’s young son Henry about his day, lead single, “Henry Takes The 5th” reframes the mundane through a child’s lens where the everyday feels enormous, heavy, and extraordinary.
Driven by panoramic drums, elastic bass, bubbling synth textures, and McCaslin’s skybound saxophone, the song balances awe with weight and innocence colliding with adult scale. It sets the tone for a record that refuses format and thrives on contrast.
What began as remote collaborations evolved into touring together — from Vancouver club stages to a debut performance alongside the Metropole Orkest in the Netherlands and eventually into a full creative partnership spanning Brooklyn, Vancouver, Toronto, and Los Angeles.
McCaslin (3x Grammy nominee, bandleader on Blackstar by David Bowie) and Dahle (Limblifter, Age of Electric, Mounties) built the record from skeletal Sibelius demos intentionally dry harmonic blueprints that allowed the band to avoid attachment to early atmospheres.
The result: maximalist, immersive songs that explode beyond their frameworks later brought into sharp psychedelic focus by mixer Dave Fridmann (Flaming Lips, Spoon).
Genre labels are intentionally elusive. Art rock, synth-driven progressive pop, post-rock, jazz-inflected psychedelia — all may apply, none fully define it.
Recorded across Brooklyn, a Gulf Island off Canada’s west coast, Toronto, and Los Angeles, MXD features contributions from members of the Blackstar band — Tim Lefebvre, Jason Lindner, and Mark Guiliana alongside Owen Biddle, Steve Wall, Jeff Taylor, Megan Bradfield, and Jonathan Maron.
Track Listing:
- Henry Takes The 5th
- Clickbait
- Calendar Eaters
- Dark Matter Talk
- Swingin Back To You
- Whisper Campaign
- Astrid
- Minor In Myth
- Magnitudes
About McCaslin Dahle:
Donny McCaslin is a 3x Grammy-nominated saxophonist and bandleader for David Bowie’s final album Blackstar. His 2025 release Lullaby for the Lost appeared on multiple year-end best-of lists.
Ryan Dahle is a Canadian songwriter, producer, and multi-instrumentalist known for his work in Limblifter, Age of Electric, and Mounties.
Together as McCaslin Dahle, they operate without template building songs from skeletal harmonic frameworks and allowing the band to erupt outward.