Songwriter Dan Snaith, who records as Caribou, released his first record in 2000 under the name of Manitoba (he changed it in 2004 after a lawsuit from "Handsome" Dick Manitoba of New York protopunks the Dictators). Snaith, a Canada native, found an immediate transatlantic audience for his digital psych-pop polyrhythms, gaining critical acclaim alongside blissed-out freakbeat producers such as Four Tet.
Beginning with 2005's The Milk of Human Kindness, Caribou transitioned from Manitoba's mirthful sample pockets to pulse-anchored German rock dynamics. Now, with Swim, Snaith believes he has moved on to the next chapter of defining a sonic signature, sequencing disco, acid-house, tech-funk, and a renewed confidence in individual tones.