Split 7” EP/4 Tracks/Black Vinyl

Description

This four-track split EP brings together Linda Smith and The Smashing Times, two Baltimore artists with shared affinities. Each artist contributes two new songs, offering a glimpse into their unique styles and common DIY ethic. Linda Smith delivers two slightly distorted keyboard pop songs, continuing the subtly radical vein that runs through her 80s and 90s four-track recordings. Once relegated to the cult circles of cassettes and 45s, her work has since been highlighted in the Captured Tracks retrospective "Till Another Time: 1988–1996," followed by her collaboration with Nancy Andrews in 2023, "A Passing Cloud." Recent reissues of "Nothing Else Matters" and "I So Liked Spring" further solidify her place in the pantheon of lo-fi innovators. The Smashing Times, who describe themselves as "the East Coast's first experimental pop band," bring their delightfully disheveled charm to the B-side. With a sound that sits somewhere between The Kinks and Tori Kudo, their songs are light, loose, and infused with a paisley-tinged whimsy. Their previous releases on K Records, Perennial, and Meritorio have earned them a loyal following, and their recent shows in the UK for Upset The Rhythm have showcased their live energy and eccentric flair. A brief but brilliant demonstration of two singular voices in outsider pop.