Baio

For an artist best known for anchoring Vampire Weekend’s rhythm section, Chris Baio’s solo work is a masterclass in stepping into the light. Under his own name, he swaps the signature Rickenbacker bass for the meticulous architecture of synth-pop, a world he began building on EPs for London’s Future Classic before releasing full-lengths on Glassnote. Records like the politically-charged Man of the World (2017) and 2021’s Dead Hand Control reveal a sound forged by his time as an American expat: a tight grid of cerebral, groove-obsessed electronic pop, equally informed by David Byrne’s braininess and the pulse of a new city. It’s dance music you can think to.