Snaith grew up in Dundas, Ontario, Canada, which gave its name to a song from his debut album Start Breaking My Heart. He studied at the University of Toronto as an undergrad, but was based in the UK for several years until he completed his Ph.D. in mathematics at the Imperial College, London in 2005.
Snaith previously recorded under the stage name "Manitoba", but changed it under threat of a lawsuit by Handsome "Dick" Manitoba, frontman for The Dictators, a punk-rocker with an appetite for litigation. Uninterested in the legal stoush, Snaith is quoted saying that he chose the new moniker "Caribou" while on an LSD trip with friends in the Canadian wilderness. He then climbed a tree and didn't come down until he finished his first album under the new moniker, which was four months later.
He has recorded five full lengths: Start Breaking My Heart, a jazzy, "folktronica" IDM album, Up in Flames, the critically acclaimed shoegazer with analog synths and sometimes live, sometimes sampled drums, The Milk of Human Kindness, his krautrock-inspired album that bleeds 70's prog and 70's drugscapes, the psychedelic pop record, Andorra which landed him the prestigious 2008 Polaris Music Prize on September 29th, 2008 and Swim a disco / dance inspired album created from the idea of making dance music that sounds like being under water. A few years prior to the recording of the album, Snaith's wife gave him swimming lessons as a Christmas present, prompting him to take it up as a new hobby. This partially led to the eventual ideology behind Swim.
His eclectic live performances are renowned, in part for their use of simultaneous drummers and synchronised visuals. The live band currently consists of Dan Snaith (guitar, keyboards, vocals, drums, flutophone), Ryan Smith (guitar, keyboards), Brad Weber (drums) and John Schmersal (bass, vocals).
Sundialing
Caribou Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
An arrow drawn in time
That's pointing to me standing here
With your words on my mind
And every night I dream of you
While lying in my bed
And ever since I was a boy
(Promises, promises, promises, promises)
And when we meet
My mind is making promises of you
And when you go, I know you know
It breaks my heart in two
The lyrics of Sundialing by Caribou are a depiction of a feeling of longing and attachment towards someone else. The opening line, "Of pictures and of promises", suggests that the subject of the song is fixated on the images and commitments made by another person towards them. The line "An arrow drawn in time That's pointing to me standing here" implies that the subject feels fated to be with this person. The subject is preoccupied with the other person's words and thoughts, as shown by the line "With your words on my mind".
The second verse reveals that the subject dreams of the other person every night, indicating their intense desire for them. The line "Keeps running through my head" reveals that this person has had a powerful influence on the subject since childhood. The repetition of the word 'promises' in the chorus emphasizes the importance of this theme to the song. The lines "And when we meet My mind is making promises of you And when you go, I know you know It breaks my heart in two" suggest that the subject is emotionally dependent on the other person and struggles when they are not around.
In conclusion, Sundialing by Caribou is a song about the desire and longing for someone who has made promises to the subject. The subject feels fated to be with this person and is preoccupied with their words and thoughts. The song expresses the intense emotional attachment and dependence that the subject feels towards the other person.
Line by Line Meaning
Of pictures and of promises
Memories and commitments that were made in the past
An arrow drawn in time
A symbol that represents a specific moment in the past
That's pointing to me standing here
The moment that the arrow represents is pointing to the present
With your words on my mind
Thinking about what was said in the past
And every night I dream of you
Subconsciously thinking about the person on a regular basis
While lying in my bed
During a time of rest and relaxation
And ever since I was a boy
This has been a recurring thought since youth
Keeps running through my head (Promises, promises, promises, promises)
The repetition of the word "promises" emphasizes how much it has consumed the artist's thoughts
And when we meet
At the point of interaction with the person in question
My mind is making promises of you
The artist's thoughts are creating a version of the person that may not match who they actually are
And when you go, I know you know
The person being spoken about is aware of the singer's feelings
It breaks my heart in two
The emotions are so strong that it feels like something physical is happening
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: Daniel Victor Snaith
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@DrDowns-un3cz
Still listening beautiful music reminds me of the mountains of southwest Colorado
@FreeLoutre
so soft <3