The songs are all based around a single beats-per-minute ratio and feature two of the principal players from the earlier project. However, don't call Taggart & Rosewood — the new synth-throb duo with Zach Coulter and Ryan Olson — Gayngs Lite.

"I think it's very different," said Olson, alluding to the ambitious visual presentation promised for Friday's release party at the Triple Rock. "People will see how different it is at the show."

Named after the cop duo that teams up with Eddie Murphy in "Beverly Hills Cop," Taggart & Rosewood started as a home-recording project while the twosome was rooming together in the aftermath of Gayngs, the 2010 all-star band that Olson masterminded with Solid Gold leader Coulter. It evolved a year later when Olson went to the Austin, Texas, studio of Spoon drummer Jim Eno to produce the first Poliça album. He recruited Eno to drum over T&R's electronic beats.

Now that it's finally coming to light, the duo is taking on another new shape in the form of the live show. The guys didn't want to reveal too much, but Olson promised, "It's going to be one of a kind."

"The visual aspect is really half of what this is all about," said Coulter, who sports long, fake, vampire-like fingernails in all of the band's visual presentations so far, while both he and Olson are seen in weird face-net masks.

Their album, "The Killingest," boasts creepy sci-fi overtones set to ethereal waves of slowly rippling synth and plodding beats. All of its 11 tracks are set to the same tempo, 55 beats per minute, a noticeable slowdown from the Gayngs record's 69 bpm — but in a lot of ways more invigorating to create, the musicians both said.

"The limitations kind of force you to tap into different tones," Olson explained. Said Coulter, "Without sounding too arty about it, it's sort of like being told to paint with only one color."

Both guys admit T&R is just a side project that may live on, but only sporadically. Olson is in the thick of working on Poliça's third album and planning for his buddy Justin Vernon's Eaux Claires Music Festival. Coulter has been working on projects with Har Mar Superstar and Cecil Otter but also plans to start working on new Solid Gold tunes around bassist Adam Hurlburt's current duties moonlighting in Aero Flynn, whose record (co-produced by Vernon) dropped Tuesday.

Clarifying Taggart & Rosewood's status — or at least trying to — Olson said, "It's really more of a happening than a band."

Random mix

Among the noticeably slimmed-down roster of local acts gearing up for a big push at the South by Southwest Music Conference in Texas next week are Hippo Campus, Allan Kingdom, all the Doomtree bangers, the Blind Shake and last weekend's triumphant Are You Local? contestant, Red Lake rapper Baby Shel. The conference invited Rhymesayers Entertainment to host a panel about its 20 years of indie success, which fits in nicely with the newly announced keynote speaker (Snoop Dogg). It also led to a big Vans-sponsored Rhymesayers showcase with Atmosphere, Brother Ali, Prof and deM atlaS. …

Bad news: The Lyn-Lake Street Festival, which returned from hiatus last year, has been called off again for this year. Coincidentally or not, the marquee for Cause nightclub was recently taken down, final proof that the venue has gone kaput. … And more bad news: Kid Dakota (Darren Jackson) is leaving us again after performing and recording in Minnesota in recent months. Monday's gig at the Turf Club with Sleep Study and Buffalo Moon (8 p.m., $5) will be his last before moving to Virginia. He, too, is headed to SXSW. …

Better news: The Nomad World Pub, which turned the long-declining 5 Corners space into one of the more unique venues in town, celebrates its 10th anniversary with a big gig Friday featuring Black Market Brass, Lucy Michelle's Field Trip and an all-star jam led by 4onthefloor's Gabriel Douglas (8 p.m., $5). … Experimenting with different friends/formats each Thursday in March for the Nomad's Minneseries, Botzy is going all in with a large band for his show Saturday at the Triple Rock (10 p.m., $5-$10). …

After touring with Jeremy Messersmith last year, Cloud Cult keyboardist Sarah Perbix is dedicating this year to opening the Sarah Jane Music School in northeast Minneapolis. Some of her Cloud Cult bandmates and fellow teachers such as Al Church and Julie Thoreen will perform for the open house Saturday from 1-5 p.m. (free, family friendly, 2522 Central Av. NE). …

Good enough to charm many a Texan at SXSW last year (including Dale Watson), the Cactus Blossoms are sitting out the big Austin fest this year and instead celebrating a new 7-inch single with a Turf Club show Saturday (9 p.m., $7) and a free in-store set Tuesday (7 p.m.). … Read about what the Blossoms will be missing starting Wednesday, when our coverage ramps up at startribune.com/sxsw.