Sneak Peek: Suddenly by Caribou

Dan Snaith, under the moniker Caribou, is releasing a new album called Suddenly on Feb 28. This is the first release as Caribou since 2014’s Our Love. Ahead of the release, there are three tracks released on streaming and to the radio stations. Put simply, these tracks are divine and generate exactly the sort of pre-release hype that an artist is hoping for!

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@cariboumusic is back with his first new album in more than five years, Suddenly, out February 28. Listen to the new single "You and I" now at digital services and pre-order Suddenly on digital, CD, and LP. Catch Caribou on tour in the new year across North America and Europe. Some of the shows are already sold out, so be sure to get your tickets soon. Caribou on tour: Mar 16 Hamilton, ON – The Studio (SOLD OUT) Mar 17 Toronto, ON – Danforth Music Hall (SOLD OUT) Mar 18 Toronto, ON – Danforth Music Hall (SOLD OUT) Mar 19 Toronto, ON – Danforth Music Hall (SOLD OUT) Mar 20 Chicago, IL – Riviera Mar 21 Detroit, MI – Saint Andrews Hall Mar 22 Ottawa, ON – Bronson Centre Mar 23 Montreal, QC – M Telus Mar 24 Boston, MA – House of Blues Mar 25 Philadelphia, PA – Union Transfer Mar 26 Washington, DC – 9:30 Club Mar 27 Brooklyn, NY – Brooklyn Steel (SOLD OUT) Mar 28 Brooklyn, NY – Brooklyn Steel Mar 30 Brighton, UK – The Dome Apr 01 Liverpool, UK – Invisible Wind Factory Apr 02 Leeds, UK – O2 Academy Leeds Apr 03 Manchester, UK – Victoria Warehouse Apr 04 Glasgow, UK – The Barrowlands (SOLD OUT) Apr 05 Birmingham, UK – O2 Academy Birmingham Apr 06 Bristol, UK – O2 Academy Bristol Apr 07 London, UK – O2 Academy Brixton (SOLD OUT) Apr 21 Hamburg, DE – Grosse Freiheit 36 Apr 22 Leipzig, DE – Werk 2 Apr 23 Prague, CZ – Forum Karlin Apr 24 Vienna, AT – Gasometer Apr 25 Munich, DE – Muffathalle Apr 26 Zurich, CH – Kaufleuten Apr 27 Paris, FR – L'Olympia Apr 28 Cologne, DE – E-werk Apr 29 Utrecht, NL – Tivoli Vredenburg / Ronda Apr 30 Brussels, BE – Les Nuits Botanique – Chapiteau Jun 25 Rome, IT – Roma Summer Fest Jul 09 Bilbao ES – Bilbao BBK Live Jul 10 Lisbon, PT – NOS Alive Jul 11 Dublin, IE – Iveagh Gardens Aug 12 Vilnius, LT – Botanic Park Aug 15 Berlin, DE – Zitadelle (Caribou and Friends) Aug 16 Kiev, UA – Art-Zavod Platforma

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Personally speaking, Caribou is a recent discovery for me. I listen to a lot of KEXP to discover new things to play on the streaming services or vinyl to buy. When I hear something that I like, I use the app to get the track info and then I do deep-dive explorations into albums and artists that resonate with me. For days, every electronic track I heard that I loved would come up with the band name Caribou! It’s exciting for me to discover something new like this as these sparkly glints on the radio lead me toward the veins of gold that exist deep in the Spotify caverns. I’ll do a deep-dive post on Caribou’s backlog as I have time.

For now, though let’s listen to the three tracks that are coming this month.

Album link on Spotify

The lead single on the release is Never Come Back and is an absolute gem. It’s a chillout banger, if you’ll excuse the mixed metaphors. The song moves along at a brisk 128 bpm and keeps you grinning with it’s F Major key but it’s not a straight-forward house track. My wife will groan if I play her house music a la Kaskade or Deadmau5 but this track got immediate approval with a smile. This is the music to play on the way to the dance party; just as everything is coming together for a great night ahead. The Roxbury Guys would love this shit!

You and I is the second track on the release and comes in with a slower pace and an introspective vibe. Clocking in at 112 bpm this is solidly in the downtempo range and more fitting of a the post-party comedown. The minor key leaves you with a sense of yearning for more. What is it that your hungry for? These freaking breakdowns! Just when you feel like you’ve got a grasp on the song, the bottom drops out and you’re cut loose, swimming in the psychedelic seas.

The last track on the release is Home, which hits another vibe entirely with it’s callbacks to a 70’s Motown sound via it’s soulful vocal sample and guitar heavy instrumentation. Don’t get me wrong, this is still a Dance track but it’s slow 97 bpm pace separates it from the other tracks in this release. It will be very interesting to see where this fits in the final album as it has the feel of a callback interlude between a couple of more anthemic tracks.

Overall, these three songs leave me super excited for the upcoming release. The songs show a diversity that makes me wonder about the flow and storytelling of the complete album. Where will these fit in? It’s obvious that the lead single is the anthem that is intended to sell the album but the other two make me think this is not going to be a straight house dance album. It’s going to be along the lines of a Four Tet release where it covers a lot of ground and fits in to a lot of different life spaces than just “going out dancing”. I’m sure that this will be an album that blows some minds when I play it late night for my friends!