BAIO RELEASES TWO MASSIVE SINGLES “DEAD HAND CONTROL” + “TAKE IT FROM ME”
Synth-pop master BAIO returns in 2021 with two new mega singles, “Dead Hand Control” and “Take It From Me” both out today, ahead of his upcoming third studio album, Dead Hand Control, out on the 29th January via Glassnote Records.
Recorded over 18 months at Damon Albarn’s 13 Studios in London, as well as BAIO’s personal C+C Music Factory (founded with VW bandmate Chris Tomson in Los Angeles), Dead Hand Control takes its name from a rumored Soviet missile system designed to obliterate America (“Dead Hand”), and a legal strategy for attempting to control the beneficiaries of your will after you die (“Dead Hand Control”).
BAIO, who is also the bassist for the Grammy-Award winning band Vampire Weekend, explains, “I was looking at the past five years of American life and obsessing about topics like death, wills and nuclear war,” he says, of the album’s origins. “But at its heart, it’s about how the only thing you can control is the way you treat the people in your life.”
This is not an album about annihilation. Instead, BAIO zigzags joyfully between techno, art rock and a dash of funk, exploring what it means to care for one another in a society in upheaval.
“Dead Hand Control” is a song about anxiety and the limits of control. I was thinking a lot about how, as a musician, I have control over what a recording is, but that once I put a song out into the world, I no longer control its life. That’s essentially what the chorus line is saying – “Dead Hand Control / You can take my life but you will never take my soul” – you can do whatever you want to me, but the things I’ve made will (hopefully in some way) outlast me. I’d like to give a special shoutout to Jazz Ambassador Robby Sinclair for his absolutely heroic improvised drumming on the back half of the song. I filmed the video on my phone at home during Los Angeles’ second stay-at-home order.”
“Take It From Me” is an attempt at writing my version of a children’s song or a standard. Like many songs on Dead Hand Control, it is about being there for the people in your life to the fullest extent you can. It’s a song based around a very simple idea: you can take whatever you want in the world, so long as you take it from me.”
BAIO is the solo project of Chris Baio, who has been the bassist in American rock band Vampire Weekend since 2006. The band has seen great success receiving 2 GRAMMY awards and was the first act to have three No. 1 albums debut on the Billboard Charts.
Having embarked on his solo journey in early 2012, with his first EP release “Sunburn,” BAIO was infused with inspiration from electronic and dance music, displaying Chris’ DJ talents. Since then, he has released two studio albums, “The Names” in 2015 and “Man of The World” in 2017. Both albums received widespread praise for their skillful production and multifaceted musical depth.
In 2020, BAIO released “Endlessly Me, Endlessly” and “What Do You Say When I’m Not There,” also to be featured on the upcoming studio album. The tracks parallel each other in a sense – exploring a sort of duality of the enduring power of connection that many of us desire, and the struggles of not knowing how others truly feel. BAIO masterfully fuels both tracks with funky beats infused with electronic elements, perfectly complementing the heartfelt, storytelling qualities embedded within the lyrics.
“Dead Hand Control” + “Take It From Me”
are both available now on all streaming services.
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