The Theos Variant Chase Calm Through the Chaos on "Tales From Ataraxia"

The Theos Variant is a duo project. Dan Lentz sings whilst Geoff Haught provides excellent guitar riffs and produces. So, together they’ve built an 11-track album titled, "Tales From Ataraxia". They’re from Ohio, and the Orpheus Global Independent Music Awards named them 2025 Band of the Year, which is one crazy achievement! They also put out a four-song teaser called "Before the Nether"on September 18, so you can get a gist.

Ataraxia basically means a state of total calm, and this record is about how hard that is to find. Each song on this record is its own little story, but they all orbit the same question: How do you get peace when your head won’t shut up? Fair warning, it gets dark in places. But it also gets weirdly fun, even sweet at times, which is why this is one of the best albums I've listened to this week! I'll be reviewing each song in no particular order because some songs just stuck with me halfway through.

I’ll be upfront: this one got me after a few songs into the album. “Starfall” is about putting someone on a pedestal and then watching the whole thing collapse the second you notice they’re human. We’ve all done it, right? That line about a star falling when you find out someone’s not perfect is dead simple, and somehow it stings every time! My personal highlight, without a doubt.

Then comes "Mechanical Organisms" and I did not expect a sci-fi song here but I’m so glad it’s here. Underneath the robot talk it’s about wanting to wipe out pain so you’re nobody’s slave anymore. Then there’s the question that stuck in my head for days: if we became machines, would we finally feel complete? Kind of a lot to ask over a rock song, but here we are. Up next on my order is "Beacons." Chopped-up, strange lyrics and I dig it. After all that heaviness, we dive into “Into Ours.” It’s a fun little love song, and it’s the warmest thing on the record by a mile! I love that the song admits you’ll still hesitate sometimes, because real relationships don’t run on cinema romance energy. So earnest!

Then the album drags you right back down, and honestly, good, it is a rock record afterall. In “The Way Down,” the narrator’s lost, choking on bitter pills, asking whether anyone can even hear him. It’s the rawest song of the album, I believe. “Nights Are Lingering” is written to someone who’s struggling, and the narrator wants to help but feels totally helpless.

A little squirm-inducing, in a good way. It’s about obsession, the dopamine chase, the guilt, and finally walking away. It’s kind of a character study in three minutes, and weirdly enough, I kept wondering what I’d do in his place. I’m still figuring "Dark Anomaly" out. It's dreamlike, cryptic, full of ghosts whiles "Silent Remedy" is spiritual and lonely together. He sees God in one line and gets high on being alone in another, and somehow that contradiction feels true.

"The Final Bow" and "Netherveil" close the album. The seed idea loops back from “Silent Remedy,” and I love when an album remembers its origin.

So the album might be all over the place emotionally, but that’s why it works. Fear, love, obsession, robots, silent endings, all under one record. Is it flawless? No. A couple of songs lean on repetition. But I’d take a band swinging for something real over a forgettable record any day!

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