Trackback: Black Tambourine

At a time when punk was the way to go and in a city where most bands were taking heavy influences from the mid-80’s hardcore scene, Washington, DC’s Black Tambourine was conceived primarily as an indie-pop group. One of the first bands to be signed to the Slumberland imprint, Black Tambourine’s sound provides a snapshot of the early American indie-pop scene in the late 80s/early 90s.

The seminal quartet of Archie Moore and Brian Nelson (later of Velocity Girl), along with vocalist Pam Berry (later of Glo-Worms, The Shapiros, and Castaway Stones) and drummer guitarist Mike Schulman (Slumberland founder) went against the grain of what was happening in their city and looked across the Atlantic to British twee and C86 groups like The Pastels, along with noisemakers Jesus and Mary Chain for inspiration. Like many shoegaze bands that followed, Black Tambourine were influenced by Phil Spector’s Wall of Sound production, predating the sounds that later caught on rather largely in the States.

Black Tambourine’s short, instrumental only “Pam’s Tan” was the band’s debut and first release on Slumberland in 1990. The group’s first official single, “Throw Aggi from the Bridge,” a track about a crush on The Pastel’s Stephen Pastel dropped in 1991. Its tracks like “Aggi” and “Can’t Explain” that really make you fall in love with Black Tambourine. Berry’s ethereal vocals wash over bouncing layers of guitar and bass lines soaked in fuzzy layers of distortion and feedback. Sweet irresistable numbers about unrequited love, crushes, and broken hearts makes for perfect rainy day listening. You’ll find yourself happily singing along “just throw her off the bridge, we both know it’s gotta be done.” Other favorites include the more downtempo/shoegaze-oriented “For Ex Lovers Only” and “Black Car,” along with the 60s pop influenced “Drown.”

After just two years together, the group called it quits in 1991. In that time span, Black Tambourine released nine singles and played only a handful of live shows. The nine released tracks along with the previously unreleased “I Was Wrong” were amassed on 1999s stellar Complete Recordings: Black Tambourine. For fans of bittersweet charming pop combined with gorgeous walls of distortion, this one’s not to be missed.

[MP3]: Black Tambourine  ”Throw Aggi Off the Bridge”
7″ Single, Audrey’s Diary; 1991

Previous “Trackback” Posts