Dan Snaith

Dan Snaith

Daniel Victor Snaith (born 1978) is an electronic musician recording under the stage name Caribou.

Snaith grew up in Dundas, Ontario (which is also the name of a song from his debut album Start Breaking My Heart) and studied mathematics at the University of Toronto. He is the son of Victor Snaith, a mathematics professor at the University of Sheffield, and the brother of Nina Snaith, a mathematics professor at the University of Bristol.

Career

Snaith previously recorded under the stage name Manitoba, but changed it in 2004 under threat of an American lawsuit by Richard "Handsome Dick" Manitoba , who had used the surname professionally since the 1970s (but had not released any music as a solo artist). As Snaith himself commented, "It's like The Smiths suing John Smith or something". Manitoba countered, stating that "This was like someone using the name, Madonna." Uninterested in and unable to afford the contest, Snaith opted to rename his project. Snaith is quoted as saying that he chose the name "Caribou" while on an LSD trip with friends in the Canadian wilderness.

Snaith usually performs with a live band when playing gigs, often assuming the role of percussionist (as well as electronic composition, he is an extremely accomplished drummer). Currently, Snaith's live act is made up of Ryan Smith, Brad Weber (of Winter Equinox and Solitary Extraction), and Andy Lloyd. Sets also often include complex video projections on a large screen, a DVD of which was released in November 2005. "[I]n music I will have an idea to put some different sounds together or a melody that meshes with a chord sequence or a sonic mood," said Snaith in an interview. "I'm not the type of person who takes physical things apart and plays around with them, but I like taking mental ideas apart and playing around with them. That's what appeals to me about what I've spent my life doing."

He completed his Ph.D. in mathematics at Imperial College London in 2005. His thesis, titled Overconvergent Siegel Modular Symbols, was written under the direction of Kevin Buzzard. Snaith currently resides in London, England.

Discography

as Manitoba

• People Eating Fruit EP (30 October 2000)
• "Paul's Birthday" CDS (26 February 2001)
• Start Breaking My Heart (26 March 2001)
• give'r EP (26 November 2001)
• If Assholes Could Fly This Place Would Be an Airport 12" (13 January 2003)
• "Jacknuggeted" CDS (24 February 2003)
• Up in Flames (31 March 2003)
• "Hendrix with Ko" CDS (14 July 2003)
• Up in Flames (Special Edition) with bonus disc (29 September 2003)

Most of Snaith's older Manitoba material has been subsequently rereleased under the Caribou name.

as Caribou

File:DanSnaith.jpg

Snaith in 2005

• Start Breaking My Heart (re-released 2004)
• Up In Flames (re-released 2004)
• "Yeti" CDS/12" (22 March 2005)
• The Milk of Human Kindness (18 April 2005)
• Tour-Only CD (Super Furry Animals Tour, Fall 2005)
• Marino (DVD) (November 2005)
• Andorra (21 August 2007)
• "Melody Day" CDS (August 2007)
• Tour-Only CD (September 2007)

External links

• Official web site
• Template:Last.fm
• Thorough story regarding Caribou name change
• Interview (12/2005)
• interview (07/2005)
• Interview (05/2005)
• "Finally Fitting In: The ever revolving sounds of Manitoba" CBC Radio 3 Session
• Daniel Snaith, at the Mathematics Genealogy Project

Video links

• Caribou RBMA video lecture session Pt.1
• Caribou RBMA video lecture session Pt.2
• Exclaim! TV Interview