Ranging from chillwave to sophisticated electro-pop, Small Black fuses long… Read Full Bio ↴Ranging from chillwave to sophisticated electro-pop, Small Black fuses longing, noise, and melody into lushly wistful songs. On their 2009 self-titled EP and 2010 debut album, New Chain, their lo-fi hybrid of shoegaze and synth pop helped put chillwave on the map and fit into the larger indie tradition of artists couching their heartbreak in homespun sounds. In the 2010s and beyond, they polished their style, and emphasized their '80s sophisti-pop influences on 2013's Limits of Desire, but as poised as their music grew, albums such as 2021's Cheap Dreams kept the emotional pull of their songwriting at the forefront.

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

Weird Machines
Small Black Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Lit up all the matches
Peek inside the room
Fortune tellers in there
Sleeping with the moon
Missed the bad advice
Could be right
between you and me
If you've gone away

Who will make
Trouble for the rest of us?
Fate's a bitter lady
Beat us to a pulp
I am sure she means well
She's just a little dull
To have stayed alive
interwined
between punch & dream
If you've gone away
Who will make
Trouble for the rest of us?
Like a machine

Rumbling
Humming through your heart

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Small Black's song "Weird Machines" depict a sense of mystery and uncertainty, exploring themes of fate, introspection, and the interconnectedness of individuals. The opening lines, "Lit up all the matches, Peek inside the room," create an image of curiosity and exploration. It suggests the singer seeking answers or insight within themselves or a situation.

The mention of "Fortune tellers in there, Sleeping with the moon" further emphasizes the idea of seeking guidance or understanding from metaphysical sources. The singer acknowledges having missed "the bad advice" but suggests that it could have been the right course of action, highlighting the ambiguity of making decisions and the consequences that often arise.

The lines, "Fate's a bitter lady, Beat us to a pulp, I am sure she means well, She's just a little dull," personify fate as a flawed character. It implies that while fate may inflict hardship upon us, it does so with good intentions, even if its methods seem lacking or uninspiring. The line "To have stayed alive, intertwined between punch & dream" suggests that navigating through life involves balancing harsh reality and the limitless possibilities of dreams.

The chorus, "If you've gone away, Who will make trouble for the rest of us?" introduces a sense of dependency on the person who has left. It suggests that their absence will create a void, leaving behind a lack of excitement or unpredictability in the lives of others. The closing lines, "Like a machine, Rumbling, Humming through your heart," compare the inner workings of the heart to a machine, emphasizing its constant presence and the impact it has on one's emotions and experiences.

Overall, "Weird Machines" explores the complexities of fate, the interconnections between individuals, and the ongoing search for meaning and fulfillment.

Line by Line Meaning

Lit up all the matches
Ignited all the opportunities

Peek inside the room
Curiously explore the unknown

Fortune tellers in there
Guidance and predictions surround

Sleeping with the moon
Finding solace in the night sky

Missed the bad advice
Avoided harmful suggestions

Could be right
Possibility of being correct

between you and me
In the personal realm

If you've gone away
In your absence

Who will make
Who will cause

Trouble for the rest of us?
Disruption for everyone else?

Fate's a bitter lady
Destiny can be harsh