Baker Man started in Philadelphia in 2012 as an outlet for graduate students Andy Elijah (The Ambulars) and Mike Five (YoungLionApprentice). The two were bound by their mutual love of shoegaze and slowcore, and inspired by the energy of Washington, DCs’ post-hardcore scene. The duo evolved into a quartet as drummer Tom Emmerling (Bitter Dolores) and guitarist Andrew Ghrayeb (Kilion and Mahlon) were added to the fold. The band's live shows drew comparisons to Sunny Day Real Estate, Sebadoh, and My Bloody Valentine, so the members began to apply the tag of “shoegazi” to their music. After drummer Emmerling relocated back to his native Pittsburgh, he was replaced by Evan Nutt (Make Me). Baker Man began recording their self-released EP When We Collide in 2014 with Jeff White (Mesmeric Haze) at Permanent Hearing Damage studios in Philadelphia. After it was finished in 2015, Ghrayeb relocated to Little Rock, Arkansas, Brian Decker (Red Cedar Strings) was added on bass, and When We Collide was released; it received positive press from WXPN’s The Key, who said that the band “would have fit nicely in the mix of the Matador Records roster circa 1995”. The band released its first LP, Skeptics,Observe! on November 11th, 2018. Recorded between the fall of 2017 and the winter of 2018 with Kyle Pulley (Thin Lips) at Headroom Studios in Philadelphia, the album features eight songs of the impassioned, shoegaze-fueled indie rock Baker Man has been creating for almost seven years.