Small Black started with a name and worked backwards: a housemate of singer/multi-instrumentalist Josh Kolenik came up with the moniker on a cold Portland, Oregon night. The name stuck when he returned to Long Island, New York and began collaborating with Ryan Heyner, an area musician and former member of the hardcore band Silent Majority who shared friends with Kolenik. The pair holed up in the attic of the beach house and surfboard shop Kolenik's uncle owned to record songs with vintage keyboards and samplers, spending late 2008 and early 2009 recording as Uncle Matt made surfboards underneath them.
Though Kolenik had played in several bands before Small Black, the mix of shoegaze and synth pop he and Heyner hit upon felt special, and the group's lineup was complete once bassist/guitarist Juan Pieczanski and Jeff Curtin from Kolenik's previous band, Slowlands, joined to bolster production and fill out their live act. Small Black released their self-titled five-song EP on their own CassClub label in October 2009, and released the U.K. single "Despicable Dogs" as well as a video for that song featuring Uncle Matt soon after. Following their performances at that year’s CMJ Music Marathon, Small Black signed to Jagjaguwar Records, which reissued the band’s debut EP with two bonus tracks in 2010. That year, they also released a split single with the like-minded Washed Out, with whom they also toured. New Chain, the band's first full-length, boasted a slightly more polished sound that reflected their consistent touring as well as their interest in hip-hop and arrived in October 2010. In late 2011, the band offered the Moon Killer mixtape as a free download from their website. The collection of new material was built on samples ranging from Pere Ubu to Nicki Minaj and featured multiple drop-ins from Das Racist MC Heems as well as remixes from Star Slinger and Phonetag.
After spending much of 2012 on the road, Small Black returned with May 2013's Limits of Desire, a more sophisticated-sounding set influenced by Talk Talk and the Blue Nile. They covered the latter band's classic "Downtown Lights" on the following year's Real People EP, which had a more dancefloor-oriented style and featured vocals from Frankie Rose. Small Black's passion for sophisti-pop grew on October 2015's Best Blues. Recorded by the band in their Brooklyn home studio and mixed by Nicholas Vernhes at the Rare Book Room Studio, the album included contributions from trumpeter Darby Cicci of the Antlers and vocalist Kaede Ford. Soon after Best Blues' release, Kolenik's Uncle Matt passed away, and the memory of him inspired many of the songs on Small Black's fourth album. Arriving on 100% Electronica in April 2021, the reflective Cheap Dreams found the band returning from their hiatus with an extra dose of goth to their synth pop reveries. In 2023, Small Black looked back with a pair of archival releases. They commemorated the tenth anniversary of Limits of Desire with a deluxe edition of the album, and also issued a deluxe version of their debut EP that included previously unreleased songs from their early beach house sessions.
Biography by Heather Phares for ALLMUSIC
Only A Shadow
Small Black Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I'd heard of you
from a voice at the door
I'd heard of you
and the ghost that you were
A trace of you
a fingerprint
on the glass
A trace of you
in the room
Just what was it
that you knew
She's only a shadow
She's only a shadow
I looked for you
in the gaps
of the walls
I looked for you
at some funeral
A trace of you
had me stuck
a photograph
I didn't trust
A trace of you
barely used
On the trail
but out of view
She's only a shadow!
She's only a shadow!
The lyrics in Small Black's song Only A Shadow convey a sense of mystery and elusiveness. The singer seems to be searching for someone they've heard of - someone who is only known as a ghost or shadow. Throughout the song, there are traces of this person, but they always seem just out of reach. The repetition of the line "she's only a shadow" reinforces the idea of this person being ephemeral and hard to pin down.
The first stanza suggests that the singer has heard about this person from someone else, but has never actually met them. The second stanza shows their search for this elusive figure, but they only find a "trace" - a flash or a fingerprint. The third stanza implies that the singer is becoming obsessed with finding this person, looking for them in the walls and at funerals.
It's possible that the song is about a lost love or a missed connection. The line "just what was it that you knew" suggests that the singer is wondering why this person has disappeared from their life. The photograph that they "didn't trust" could be a clue; perhaps the person in the photo is not who they seem to be, or is hiding something.
Overall, Only A Shadow captures the feeling of searching for something or someone that is intangible. The repetition of the line "she's only a shadow" reminds us that sometimes the things we seek may never be fully within our grasp.
Line by Line Meaning
I'd heard of you
I had been told about you
from a voice at the door
by someone who knocked on my door
and the ghost that you were
and the mysterious person that you seemed to be
A trace of you
Some evidence of you
just a flash
Quickly appearing and disappearing
a fingerprint
A sign that you were there
on the glass
On a glass surface
in the room
Somewhere in the room
Just what was it
I wonder what it was
that you knew
That you were aware of
She's only a shadow
Referring to a person who is elusive or hard to find
I looked for you
I searched for you
in the gaps
In the empty spaces
of the walls
Within the walls of a building
at some funeral
During a funeral ceremony
had me stuck
had me perplexed or confused
a photograph
A picture of you or related to you
I didn't trust
I suspected it was not genuine or reliable
barely used
Not frequently utilized
On the trail
Following clues or evidence
but out of view
Not in sight or easily visible
She's only a shadow!
Reemphasizing that the person is hard to find or elusive
She's only a shadow!
Repeating the same message
Lyrics © SC PUBLISHING DBA SECRETLY CANADIAN PUB.
Written by: Jeffrey Urso Curtin, Joshua Hayden Kolenik, Juan Pieczanski, Ryan Frank Heyner
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@mcbtex9917
I'd heard of you
From a voice at the door
I'd heard of you
And the ghost that you were
A trace of you
Just a flash
A fingerprint
On the glass
A trace of you
In the room
Just what was it
That you knew
She's only a shadow
She's only a shadow
I looked for you
In the gaps
Of the walls
I looked for you
At some funeral
A trace of you
Had me stuck
A photograph
I didn't trust
A trace of you
Barely used
On the trail
But out of view
She's only a shadow
She's only a shadow
She's only a shadow
She's only a shadow
She's only a shadow
@amberthompson1585
His voice is really unique I love it!
@rjnsobe1
I came across this band this week. I heard Postcard on Sirius XMU. They have such a great 80s sound. Love it!
@ecb612s
Great band! I hear Postcard and Duplex all the time on XMU. They have so many great songs. Seeing them live tonight, cannot wait!!
@Saifeddineoso
The most underrated band ever!!!❤️❤️
@DingoXBX
goes hard asf even live thats how you know they're the GREATEST OF ALL TIME 🐐🐐
@pathogensmusick
Dude, this live version is almost as good as the studio version.
@belowilbor
I would say the same
@FUCKCOMMERCIALS
Sounds much much better
@mytcpjournal
I love his voice, I love their sounds
@mcbtex9917
I'd heard of you
From a voice at the door
I'd heard of you
And the ghost that you were
A trace of you
Just a flash
A fingerprint
On the glass
A trace of you
In the room
Just what was it
That you knew
She's only a shadow
She's only a shadow
I looked for you
In the gaps
Of the walls
I looked for you
At some funeral
A trace of you
Had me stuck
A photograph
I didn't trust
A trace of you
Barely used
On the trail
But out of view
She's only a shadow
She's only a shadow
She's only a shadow
She's only a shadow
She's only a shadow