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
Real People
Small Black Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I crashed
Broke into our house
To rest
Untie my hands
Saw the pictures on the wall
This way, they live
Where you said you"d like to know
Real, ooh
Real people
Real, ooh
Real people
Camping out in the closet
Upstairs
Watching DVDs
Screaming it
Grab the pint from the freezer
To come back, clean it up
Hide some footprints
On the carpet
Right by the door
How, did I, get so far from home
Jump off the roof
Are you sure you'd like to know?
Real, ooh
Real people
Real (real, ooh)
Real (real)
Real (real)
Real, ooh
Real, ooh (real)
Real, ooh
Real (real)
Real, ooh
Real, ooh (real)
Real, ooh (real)
Real, ooh (real)
Real, ooh (real)
Real, ooh
Real, ooh (real)
Real, ooh
Real, ooh
The lyrics to Small Black's song "Real People" paint a vivid picture of a surreal and disorienting experience. The singer seems to be in a state of confusion and displacement, as indicated by lines like "I crossed the plain to / I crashed / Broke into our house / To rest." It suggests that the singer has wandered far away from their familiar surroundings and finds themselves inside a house that may not be their own.
As the song progresses, the singer mentions seeing pictures on the wall and reflects on the idea of how real people live. This could imply a sense of longing or curiosity about the lives of others, wondering if their experiences are more authentic or fulfilling.
The lyrics then shift to the singer hiding in a closet, watching DVDs and screaming. This adds to the disorienting and surreal atmosphere of the song. The mention of grabbing a pint from the freezer and hiding footprints on the carpet suggests an act of trespassing or trying to cover up evidence of their presence.
Towards the end of the lyrics, the singer questions how they ended up so far from home and contemplates jumping off the roof. This could symbolize a desire to escape their current state of confusion and find a way back to a place of familiarity and stability.
Overall, "Real People" explores themes of dislocation, identity, and longing for connection. It captures the sense of being lost in a strange world and yearning for something real and meaningful.
Line by Line Meaning
I crossed the plain to
I ventured across the plain to
I crashed
I collided
Broke into our house
Forced my way into our house
To rest
To find solace
Untie my hands
Free myself from constraints
Saw the pictures on the wall
Observed the photographs displayed on the wall
This way, they live
In this manner, they exist
Where you said you'd like to know
In the place where you expressed curiosity
Real, ooh
Authentic, oh
Real people
Genuine individuals
Camping out in the closet
Seeking refuge in the closet
Upstairs
On the upper level
Watching DVDs
Viewing DVDs
Screaming it
Exclaiming loudly
Grab the pint from the freezer
Seize the pint from the freezer
To come back, clean it up
In order to return and tidy the mess
Hide some footprints
Conceal traces of footsteps
On the carpet
On the floor covering
Right by the door
Directly next to the entrance
How, did I, get so far from home
In what way did I stray so distant from home
Jump off the roof
Leap from the roof
Are you sure you'd like to know?
Are you truly certain about desiring knowledge?
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
Peter Griffith
I crossed the plain to
I crashed
Broke into our house
To rest
Untie my hands
Saw the pictures on the wall
This way, they live
Where you said you"d like to know
Real, ooh
Real people
Real, ooh
Real people
Camping out in the closet
Upstairs
Watching DVDs
Screaming it
Grab the pint from the freezer
To come back, clean it up
Hide some footprints
On the carpet
Right by the door
How, did I, get so far from home
Jump off the roof
Are you sure you'd like to know?
sunbbyash
It’s 2020 and I’m still waiting for them to drop new music. Such an underrated band
junior lerma
Agreed! They should def release more music they are the best!
oldirtydawson
5 years later, and I'm still as hooked as the first day. The atmosphere of this is my world. A rare, perfect song.
Darius Gerulis
This is great. I am so proud of "Small Black" for becoming this, and having tried other things in the past as well. It's so organic, they are definitely becoming one of the electronic music acts to watch out for.
RenderTheGalaxy
That delay on that bass is tiight! 80's concept glues it all together.
Karla Miracle
Art should never have to be explained, but only admired.
Felipe Echeverría
What you're doing there is actually explaining indirectly what art should account for.
Jeff Aboudi
This band is just amazing! Can't get enough!!
DoctorChibi740
This feels really good with headphones.
YouMeWeUsHere
I hate that I'm just discovering this band... Their music is just amazing! <3