Small Black - Limits Of Desire

The cover of Brooklyn-based Small Black’s second LP, Limits of Desire, features a striking image: a man and a woman embracing on either side of a ladder, completely naked, divided by its triangular arc. They are intimate, yet physically obstructed—close, but unable to get any closer. This moving depiction of connectivity and interaction in the 21st century serves as the "source code" for the record, exploring the invisible barriers that exist even in our most private moments.

Following their 2010 debut New Chain, Limits of Desire sees the band—Josh Kolenik, Ryan Heyner, Juan Pieczanski, and Jeff Fribourg—stepping out of the "lo-fi" bedroom haze and into a more expansive, crystalline sound. Recorded at their home studio in Brooklyn, the album is a masterclass in sophisticated synth-pop, trading murky textures for bright, interlocking melodies and propulsive rhythms. From the shimmering, optimistic pulse of "Free To Be" to the nostalgic yearning of "No This Is Not An Island," the record feels both massive and deeply personal.

Small Black captures the specific "unsteadiness" of modern romance, wrapping themes of longing and distance in a warm blanket of 80s-influenced analog synths and shimmering guitars. It is an album that feels like a sunrise over a cityscape—hopeful yet tinged with the realization of the "limits" we all carry. For fans of sophisticated indie-pop that balances emotional weight with danceable grooves, Limits of Desire remains a high-water mark of the 2010s Brooklyn scene.