[Archive 2007-11-06] Caribou plays the Bowery Ballroom

Historical archive — originally published 2007-11-06. This report records what was known on that date. It is not current news; subsequent events may have changed the situation. Wikinews closed in May 2026.

Daniel Snaith, better known as Caribou, formerly known as Manitoba until a lawsuit by musician Richard "Handsome Dick" Manitoba, recently played New York City's Bowery Ballroom. Below is Wikinews reporter David Shankbone's conversation with the electronica pioneer.

Caribou: It’s been really good so far. We started with a few festivals in Europe and then did a month around the UK, Germany and France. Over here we just did Canada and this is the start of a big tour for us around the States. Then Europe for another month. It’s pretty full on, but I love playing shows.

Caribou: I get asked that all the time and I feel people are expecting some kind of an answer like we are better received in Europe, and I don’t know if people expect that of an electronic musician.

Caribou: Maybe, but my experience is that people are more similar than different in all the shows, and the reaction is more similar than different.

Caribou: Yeah people are so connected to the interests that they share with other people around the world. It’s not like one place is completely different from another anymore.

Caribou: It’s about the same, again. When we play in London we play about same size venue and size crowd as we do here.

Caribou: A few, actually. Bowery Ballroom is one of my favorites. It's always awesome. The sound is so good here, which is really important. It sounds good on stage, which is important for getting into the show. We always have really amazing crowds in this place called Richards on Richards in Vancouver. This venue in Slovenia we played that is this old commune squat that has lots of gigs and art going over there called the Metalkova. The best ones are the surprises we'll play in a tiny little town in some venue that is like whatever.

Caribou: Something along the lines of this place we played in the south of France that was this 1920s arts patron villa where Cocteau and all these people lived and worked, and we played just outside there overlooking the French Riviera during this tiny little festival, so those ones are always fun when you just end up at some idyllic spot where they have put together a little festival with great bands. Those tend to be in Europe, to be honest. The surprise is part of the enjoyment when you arrive and it's like, this is an insane place to play.

Caribou: I can't remember, I think people—I'd love to go to Rio, but friends who have played in Brazil have said that shows are amazing everywhere.

Caribou: Not too much, directly, to be honest. The process of recording music, for me, is very insular. I'm just recording at home and it's very much headspace music. I'm escaping and I'm not a social commentarian or anything. It's more about escaping into this world of sound in my head. I don't think it's affected the business of us touring or anything at all.

Source and licence

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