‘Baby’ is the latest single from innovative electronic producer Four Tet, from his upcoming album Sixteen Oceans. It’s a pretty simple track, at least on the surface. It features a driving, repetitive house beat, although with the unique drum style that was pioneered by the likes of Burial and Four Tet himself. On top of the beat are chopped up vocals from Ellie Goulding, and some very pleasant, light synths.

Despite being a song meant for the dancefloor, it has a very natural, organic feel. Especially during the ambient interlude in the middle, with sounds of running water and birds chirping mixed in with the synths. It feels like it would be great either at a club or at home. The song really reminds me of 2019’s ‘Only Human’ (by Four Tet, released under the alias KH), which was one of my favorite songs of the year. ‘Baby’ is almost like a more polished version of that track, although it’s more subdued and less of a banger.

This is a song that particularly benefits from a great pair of headphones or speakers. I pulled out my nice headphones to listen as I wrote this review, and it really blew me away. Four Tet’s innovative production style really shines in this setting, with the driving bassline, the little samples (including one from ‘Two Thousand and Seventeen’ off his previous album) floating around the mix, and the extremely pleasant vocals. I can only imagine how good it would sound on a killer soundsystem. 2020 has barely started and ‘Baby’ was just released, but it will probably end up being one of my songs of the year, and it makes me very excited for Sixteen Oceans.