Black Tambourine were one of the earliest Slumberland groups, consisting of members of Whorl and Velocity Girl, plus their pal Pam Berry on vocals. Conceived as an explicitly pop band at a time when pop bands were pretty rare in America, Black Tambourine wore their influences on their sleeves: The Jesus & Mary Chain, of course, but also folks like Phil Spector, Smokey Robinson, Love, The Ramones, Shop Assistants, The Pastels, 14 Iced Bears, Orange Juice and the list goes on

Though they only played a handful of gigs in their brief career, their two singles on Slumberland and Audrey's Diary wielded a large influence, and were key artifacts in the birth of US indie pop. This compilation includes all the songs from both of those singles, plus two cuts from compilations and a previously unheard demo song. Liner notes from Jennifer Silver of Swingset Records round-out this important record - check it out!


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Small Factory crystallized and articulated the effervescent brilliance of American indie rock like no other band of their era. With their primitive but indelible melodies and singular combination of innocence and abandon, the group captured the sound and spirit of their moment to perfection.

Small Factory formed in Providence, RI, in 1991, teaming singer/bassist Alex Kemp, singer/guitarist Dave Auchenbach, and singer/drummer Phoebe Summersquash. After earning a strong local following, the group made an enormous splash at the now-legendary Lotsa-Pop-Losers festival in Washington, D.C., soon after making their recorded debut, "The Giant Merry-Go-Round," alongside Honeybunch and the Scottish Bachelor Pad on a flexi-disc included with the fanzine The Milky Way. After closing out 1991 with their first proper single, the Collision Time label release "Suggestions," the following spring Small Factory moved to Slumberland to issue the follow-up, "What to Want."

A series of British dates in support of Heavenly resulted in a more extended American tour opening for Fudge and the Dambuilders. New material, the Pop Narcotic single "So What About Love," wasn't released until the summer of 1993, trailed soon after by the epic "If You Hurt Me," the indisputable highlight of the Simple Machines label's Working Holiday singles series. Another label move, this time to Spin Art, preceded the fall release of Small Factory's debut LP, I Do Not Love You; for the follow-up, 1994's sublime For If You Cannot Fly, the trio jumped to Virgin subsidiary Vernon Yard.

Small Factory disbanded in the fall of 1995, with Kemp and Summersquash reuniting in the inferior Godrays and Auchenbach resurfacing in Flora Street; the singles compilation The Industrial Evolution was issued by Pop Narcotic in 1996.

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There are at least five bands called Versus:

1) New York City indie rock favorites Versus evolved from the remnants of Flower, a band led by singer/guitarist Richard Baluyut and singer/bassist Ian James (later to form French). In the final months of Flower's existence, the group was joined by vocalist/guitarist Fontaine Toups, who remained with Baluyut in the short-lived Saturnine before the duo formed Versus (borrowing the name from an LP by Mission of Burma) with Baluyut's brother, Ed. After playing their first shows with a line-up comprising three guitars and a drum machine, Ed Baluyut relocated to the Phillipines, and Toups switched over to bass; upon Ed's return, he assumed drumming duties, and Versus issued its 1992 debut single, "Insomnia." In 1993, the trio issued the stellar EP Let's Electrify!, a taut, melodic collection spotlighting their intricate, dissonant guitar work and odd harmonies. After signing to the Teenbeat label, Versus issued their 1994 full-length debut, The Stars Are Insane (originally titled Meat, Sports and Rock,
three subjects the band ardently supported, much to the dismay of the prevaling indie-scene mentality of the moment). A collection of singles, compilation tracks and demos titled Dead Leaves appeared in 1995, followed in early 1996 by the EP Deep Red. Another Baluyut brother, James, signed on for the 1996 LP Secret Swingers; the album was also Ed's last, with new drummer Patrick Ramos enlisting for 1998's Two Cents Plus Tax. The Afterglow EP followed on Merge Records a year later, and in mid-2000 Versus returned with the EP Shangri-La and the band's fifth studio effort Hurrah.

2) are a power metal band from Mexico, currently signed to Ear Blaster.

VersuS consists of
David Arjona Vocals (lead) (2003-present)

Rach Espinosa Guitars (2003-present)

Germán Encalada Guitars (2003-present)

Roger Contreras Keyboards (2003-present)

Pablo Arjona Bass (2003-present)

Eduardo Pérez Drums (2003-present)

They have 3 recordings already

There first release came in 2004 and was a demo called Lluvia de Espadas. There first full-legth release was recorded in 2006 and is called Puerta de Mar. There most recent offering is Misión Ancestral which is a more mature effort then there previous releases. Expect great things from this band

3) VersuS is a Dutch Rap Duo, existing out of J-$tar & Dj Sam, they haven't yet released any albums but their beats are able to be heard at facebook, still looking for a Recording Studio to tape their first singles, being The Mask, Tha Club, & I'm A Wolf, they are very close to their breakthrough. Myself I am J-$tar, and i'm to damn stoned to go on writing. so any writing mistakes, not my bad;) and yes this is a biography!
Sicerely Yours VersuS, soon to recieve our first album, The State

4) Versus is progressive / alternative rock band from Riga, Latvia. Formed in year 2003 by couple of friends after the ending of bands like No Brain Pinky and Fuse.

Currently the band can be found as Band Versus Music

5) Versus is a punk band from Cologne, Germany. They call their sound "Political pogo punk with bagpipes"

www.vs-versus.de
www.myspace.com/vsversus

6) Versus was a popular christian pop-rock/ funk band from Portland Oregon in the late 1980's and early 1990's.

After releasing several independent albums, the band released Stuff That Matters on StarSong Records in 1993. The band broke up shortly after their major label debut to pursue other interests. Notable alumni from the band include: Chris Kent, a popular Nashville studio and touring bass player.

7) Versus was a Finnish pop duo that a had a somewhat big hit in the Finnish radios with the single Hymypoika.

8) VERSUS is a German electro pop/ebm duo consisting of André Steinigen and Markus Krech. Their most recent release was 2010's Different Twilight Places. They can be found online at http://www.versus-music.de

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