• Small Black - Small Black Deluxe 2xLP - 100% Electronica Official Store (Photo 1)
  • Small Black - Small Black Deluxe 2xLP - 100% Electronica Official Store (Photo 2)
  • Small Black - Small Black Deluxe 2xLP - 100% Electronica Official Store (Photo 3)
  • Small Black - Small Black Deluxe 2xLP - 100% Electronica Official Store (Photo 4)

    Small Black Deluxe 2xLP

    Regular price


    Shipping now! Chillwave pioneers Small Black present their now-legendary debut EP in greatly expanded 2xLP form with a gatefold jacket, full color inner sleeves, a beautiful multicolor vinyl, and a collectible 16-page 12"x12" booklet featuring color photos and show flyers from the era. 
For a bundle featuring a limited edition T-Shirt and Pin, click here.

    After finding a hard drive they thought destroyed, Small Black returned to their origins 13 years later and cracked the idea to turn their landmark self-titled EP into the full-length they originally intended it to be. In a joint release between 100% Electronica & Jagjaguwar, the songs that launched the band into the world are back on vinyl on March 31st, for the first time in a decade ! The two record set features the full Small Black LP on first record, while the second record features rarities, unreleased songs, remixes and a 23 minute time capsule/collage of the birth of chillwave in 2009 that's exclusive to the vinyl release. Also included is a full color photobook that chronicles the history of the band from their early LI recording days, through their Brooklyn DIY show beginning to their first tours in 2010.

    Album Tracklist:


    Side A
    Despicable Dogs
    Weird Machines
    Bad Lover
    Pleasant Experience
    Lady in The Wires

    Side B
    SK5 Banghouse
    Desert of the Heart
    Independence Day
    Watchers
    Kings Of Animals
    Midnights House

    Side C - B-SIDES and RARITIES
    Despicable Dogs (Washed Out Remix)
    Bad Lover (DJ Sabrina Remix)
    Don’t Worry Your Mind
    Weird Machines (Live at Bongozz)
    Despicable Dogs (Shredder Skate Park Edit)

    SIDE D - Field Recordings and Demos (vinyl exclusive)

     

    "it just felt right to get all the other side B tracks we had from that era, and turn the Small Black EP into the LP it was intended to be..."

    Here's a note from singer Josh Kolenik on the LP:
    

"Ryan and I would lock ourselves away on weekends in the attic of my Uncle Matt's surfboard workshop/house on Long Island in 2008/2009. There was nothing to do there except get tuned up on vodka-lemonade with Matt and run the dinky Casio through a $5 Radio Shack amp to see how crazy it sounded. We didn't really know the proper rules of recording, and the only absolute must was that there be no real drums on the album as we'd had enough of craigslist. There were no expectations for the songs, except to play some Todd P warehouse shows and then Despicable Dogs changed our lives. 



    It's been well over a decade now. Matt's gone, back surfing in the sky somewhere. There was a real spirit to being at his house, with full focus on the tunes for these 48 hour marathons that gave them an intimacy that still feels fresh to me. We originally had made a full record, but ended up sitting on some tracks as we figured out the live band and did an EP instead. Last year, I plugged in a hard drive we thought was never going to turn on again and found the lost music for Desert of the Heart. It had always felt like the missing song from this era, so we decided to spruce it up and finish the mix. In doing so, it just felt right to get all the other side B tracks we had from that era, and turn the Small Black EP into the LP it was intended to be. Most of the other tracks on the second side are things that we'd played live at the little venue we ran, Bongozz, but the recordings were never officially released. Side C has the classic remix of D-Dogs from Washed Out along with some other rarities, including a live version of Weird Machines from our 2nd ever show. 



    We found a ton of home tapes going through the archive that we collated into a 23 minute time capsule of our recording and songwriting at that time. Jamming with kids in Charlottesville after a house show. Synth sessions on the roof of Ryan's Bushwick loft. It's a document of that time, outside of the constraints of songs and choruses. 

It was a trip to go back to 2009 and made me proud of what 2 kids with a blown out Casio SK-5 and an MPC in a freezing surfshack came up with!
    It's been a hell of a run with Ryan, Juan and Jeff and we just keep on rolling!

- Josh