Small Black

Small Black are a Brooklyn band known for their lax, lysergic brand of electronic pop; they describe their style as "Casioblaze," which is almost certainly a joke, but also almost certainly better than the "chillwave" tag with which they're often pegged. The quartet of Ryan Heyner, Josh Kolenik, Juan Pieczanski and Jeff Curtin got its start in 2009 with a pair of EPs for the indie labels Cass Club and Transparent; in 2010 they released their debut album, New Chain, on Jagjaguwar, along with a couple of split singles with likeminded acts Washed Out and Young Prisms. Like many acts in their corner, Small Black's sound is modest in proportion, marked by demure keyboard loops and lazily swirling vocals, with lo-fi recording techniques throwing a muted pastel haze over their stubby electro funk and head-nodding shoegaze refrains.