''Tiny Dynamine'' is an EP by Scottish

alternative rock Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from Popular culture, mainstre ...

band

Cocteau Twins Cocteau Twins was a Scottish rock band active from 1979 to 1997. They were formed in Grangemouth by Robin Guthrie (guitars, drum machine) and Will Heggie (bass), adding Elizabeth Fraser (vocals) in 1981 and replacing Heggie with multi-instrum ...

, released on

4AD Records 4AD is a British record label owned by Beggars Group. It was founded in London under the name "Axis" (after the Hendrix album) by Ivo Watts-Russell and Peter Kent in 1980 as an imprint of Beggars Banquet Records. The name was changed to 4AD af ...

. The EP featured four non-album tracks. It was issued on 15 November 1985, two weeks prior to another EP, ''

Echoes in a Shallow Bay ''Echoes in a Shallow Bay'' is an EP by Scottish alternative rock band Cocteau Twins, released on 4AD. The EP featured four non-album tracks. It was issued on 29 November 1985, two weeks after another EP, '' Tiny Dynamine''. The two EP sets, wh ...

''. The two EP sets, which featured complementary artwork, were also released as a combined double EP in a gatefold cover and as an eight-track CD. The EP was later included in its entirety on the 1991 compilation '' The Box Set'' and the 2005 singles/EP collection ''

Lullabies to Violaine ''Lullabies to Violaine'' is a Cocteau Twins box set released in limited quantities by 4AD, 4AD Records in November 2005. Comprising four CDs, the box set collects the tracks from every Cocteau Twins EP and single from ''Lullabies (EP), Lull ...

''.

Release details

The band did not originally intend to release these songs to the general public, presumably explaining the decision to release the material on EPs, rather than as what would have been their fourth album. The tracks on ''Tiny Dynamine'' and ''Echoes in a Shallow Bay'' were initially recorded to test the production capacities of a new studio. When the band decided the material was strong enough for release, they completed the recording process and issued the finished product on two EPs. "Pink Orange Red" and "Plain Tiger" were performed live. An acoustic version of "Pink Orange Red" appeared on the 1995 EP '' Twinlights'', and a remastered version appeared on the 2000 compilation '' Stars and Topsoil''. Many of the titles on the two EPs seem to have some link with

Lepidoptera Lepidoptera ( ) is an order (biology), order of insects that includes butterfly, butterflies and moths (both are called lepidopterans). About 180,000 species of the Lepidoptera are described, in 126 Family (biology), families and 46 Taxonomic r ...

(butterflies and moths). Most are obscure, but the dynamine is a genus of nymphalid butterflies found in South America, the

plain tiger ''Danaus chrysippus'', also known as the plain tiger, African queen, or African monarch, is a medium-sized butterfly widespread in Asia, Australia and Africa. It belongs to the Danainae subfamily of the brush-footed butterfly family Nymphalidae. ...

is a common Asian butterfly and the lyrics to "Melonella" (on ''Echoes In A Shallow Bay'') are simply a recounting of various Lepidopteric

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

names such as

Hesperiidae Skippers are a family of the Lepidoptera (moths and butterflies) named the Hesperiidae. Being diurnal, they are generally called butterflies. They were previously placed in a separate superfamily, Hesperioidea; however, the most recent taxonomy ...

and

Papilionidae Swallowtail butterflies are large, colorful butterflies in the family Papilionidae, and include over 550 species. Though the majority are tropical, members of the family inhabit every continent except Antarctica. The family includes the larges ...

Track listing

All songs written by Cocteau Twins.

12": 4AD / BAD 510 (UK)

# "Pink Orange Red" – 4:41 # "Ribbed and Veined" – 4:00 # "Plain Tiger" – 4:01 # "Sultitan Itan" – 3:53

CD: 4AD / BAD 510 CD (UK)

# "Pink Orange Red" – 4:41 # "Ribbed and Veined" – 4:00 # "Plain Tiger" – 4:01 # "Sultitan Itan" – 3:53 # "Great Spangled Fritillary" – 4:02 # "Melonella" – 4:05 # "Pale Clouded White" – 4:59 # "Eggs and Their Shells" – 3:06 * Tracks 5–8 from ''

'' EP

Personnel

Elizabeth Fraser Elizabeth Davidson Fraser (born 29 August 1963), is a Scottish singer, songwriter and musician. Hailing from Grangemouth, Scotland, she is best known as the vocalist for the pioneering dream pop band Cocteau Twins who achieved international ...

– vocals *

Robin Guthrie Robin Andrew Guthrie (born 4 January 1962) is a Scottish musician, songwriter, composer, record producer and audio engineer, best known as the co-founder of the alternative rock band Cocteau Twins. During his career Guthrie has performed ...

– guitar *

Simon Raymonde Simon Philip Raymonde (born Simon Philip Pomerance; 3 April 1962, in London) is an English musician and record producer. He is the son of the late arranger and composer Ivor Raymonde. He is best known as the bass guitarist and keyboard player ...

– bass guitar

Charts

Release notes

References

{{Authority control Cocteau Twins albums 1985 EPs UK Independent Singles Chart number-one singles