The project sees him shed the ascending, angelic whims of prior works. Now, ‘Baby’ becomes fully immersed in the gritter, grungy tones he’s been grounding throughout the alt scene.
Dijon has long been sewing the roots of his distinct sonic style – from cult-classic collaborations with Mk.Gee to more recent production and features on the 2025 releases of Bon Iver and Justin Bieber.
‘Baby’ is the product of a masterful fostering of Dijon’s distinctive sonic ethos. It thrives on the paradoxical harmony of scratchy distortions and mellow reverberations. Sporadic, rambling lyricism adorns echoing improvisational adlibs and sturdy, foundational beats. The consequence is a rustic, homegrown quality – the album born from birth itself, named after his young son.
Its titular track is addressed to its namesake. Dijon opens with a signature vulnerability; diaristic lyricism recounts ‘Baby’s origins, from his marriage’s conception to the birth of their child. His nostalgic, pure words warm and swaddle listeners from scratchy vocals and electronic strums. “Baby, I’m in love with this particular emotion” he crones on Yamaha while musing over newfound fatherhood. Meanwhile, ‘Higher!’ Sees the triangle of love Dijon shares with his son and partner described as both a “healing” “miracle” and a “gallery”. It certainly rings true that this is a personally-archival, collagist’s record, from experimental layered production to vocal layering and adlibbing. This style feels almost impulsive, his love and raw emotion sprawling.
There is something distinctly special in ‘Baby’s deft production; its collaborators have endlessly thrilling credits, like Ethan Gruska (Phoebe Bridgers) and Jim-e Stack (Bon Iver, BROCKHAMPTON’s Bearface, and most recently Lorde). The precious gem of Dijon’s music is his ability to fill a space – both sonic and emotional – and envelop listeners. His prior album, ‘Absolutely!’, arrived in tandem with a film; a string of live tracks from the album are contained within a living room performance. Toeing the line of kitsch, the result is a simultaneously heartwarming and invigorating 25 minutes of innovative, homemade collaboration. From using an abandoned lollipop as percussion to the popularly-applauded chemistry between the singer and his then guitarist Mk.Gee, his work gleams with both adoration and rusticism. In contrast to steady, hip hop-inspired drums and crescending, screeching vocals, what continuously truly drives Dijon’s musicality is the love it contains.
Although, while Dijon’s musings become domesticated, his production takes a much more industrialised turn. Stylistically, ‘Baby’ presents a security in his artistic identity – offering a fully-developed sonic world. It sees a departure from the smooth vibrancy of his most notable recent collaborations, like ‘DAISIES’ (Justin Bieber) and ‘Day One’ (Bon Iver), potentially an intentional choice toward carving his own singularity. ‘Baby’s sound features diversions into sonically-abrasive experimentation alongside signature choices of 5/4 tracks and mellow, acoustic lapses. However, the coexistence between abstract experimentation and warm familiarity becomes streamlined. Particularly, this masterful cohesion is most notable within the transitional tracks ‘Automatic’ and ‘Kindalove’.
Not all of his sonic maturations arrive in the form of grittier, earthy distortions. Tracks like ‘Another Baby!’ and ‘Higher!’ balance electronic notes and unrefined, emboldened percussion. Meanwhile, ‘Yamaha’ takes a different turn, delving into a glittering synth backing – resonant of both his work on Mk.Gee’s breakout album, ‘Two Star and the Dream Police’, and a dazzling Wang Chung era 80’s nostalgia. Though, songs like ‘Rewind’ and ‘loyal & marie’ lull listeners back into the honest, rich realism that has become a treasured expectation form Dijon’s music. In its harmonious entirety, Baby is an ardent byproduct of fatherhood – both literal and of a distinct, sonic approach – that sings and hums of love.
Evie Johnson
Image: ‘Baby’ Official Album Cover
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