Nothing Painted Blue is an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 indie rock

Indie rock

Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...

 band, sporadically active since the 1990s, led by songwriter Franklin Bruno

Franklin Bruno

Franklin Bruno is an American singer-songwriter, academic, writer, and blogger originally from Upland, California. He has been a member of Nothing Painted Blue since its inception in 1986....

. Bruno and drummer Kyle Brodie have been the only constant members, as the remainder of the line-up has undergone a number of changes throughout the band's existence. They formed in 1987 in Los Angeles and released their debut LP, A Baby, A Blanket, A Packet of Seeds, in 1990. Bruno and Brodie were previously in the band Born Leaders.

The band sometimes spelled their name as "N∅thing Painted Blue" (abbreviated "∅PB"), a use of notation for the empty set

Empty set

In mathematics, and more specifically set theory, the empty set is the unique set having no elements; its size or cardinality is zero. Some axiomatic set theories assure that the empty set exists by including an axiom of empty set; in other theories, its existence can be deduced...

 in mathematics

Mathematics

Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...

. References to mathematics are common in their songwriting and iconography (Bruno's undergraduate degree was in mathematics; he is currently a visiting professor in philosophy

Philosophy

Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...

 at Bard College

Bard College

Bard College, founded in 1860 as "St. Stephen's College", is a small four-year liberal arts college located in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York.-Location:...

); for example, their 1998 record was named after the Monte Carlo method

Monte Carlo method

Monte Carlo methods are a class of computational algorithms that rely on repeated random sampling to compute their results. Monte Carlo methods are often used in computer simulations of physical and mathematical systems...

.

Albums

• A Baby A Blanket A Packet Of Seeds (Jupa, 1990)

[As yet never released on CD, it remains an obscure LP-only release.]

• Logorrhea (Shrimper
  Shrimper Records
  Shrimper Records is an independent record label based in Upland, California. It was founded in 1990 by Dennis Callaci.-Bands:* Ah Bus* Amps for Christ* The Aum Rifle* The Babies* Bingo Trappers* Bugskull* Joey Burns * The Bux...
  
  , 1992)

[Cassette-only release of tracks taken from four early college radio broadcast performances.]

• Power Trips Down Lovers Lane (KokoPop, 1993)
• Placeholders (Scat, 1994)
• Emotional Discipline (Scat, 1997)

[A compilation of several 7" single and compilation tracks.]

• The Monte Carlo Method (Scat, 1998)

[The LP version included a bonus two-song 7" single.]

• Taste The Flavor (Shrimper, 2005)

7" Singles and EPs

• The Bellyspeak EP (Jupa, 1991)
• "Swivelchair" b/w "Blooming, Buzzing" (KokoPop, 1992)

[A CD single edition includes a third song, "El Niño".]

• "Few" b/w "Or Do They?" (Scat, 1992)
• "Sorely Tempted" b/w "Lab Rat Blues" and "Going to Fontana" (Jupa, 1993)
• "Another Child Bride", from a Working Holiday series split 7" with Lois (Simple Machines, 1993)
• Biographer's Ruse cassette (Car in Car Disco Products, 1994)
• The Future of Communication EP (Scat, 1995)
• "After the Housewarming" b/w "Love to the Third Power" (Anyway, 1994)
• "Anti-Nomination", from a split 7" with Refrigerator included with issue #8 of Nipple Hardness Factor zine (1995)
• "President Am I" b/w "Contraption" (Pottery, 1995)
• "Control Freak" b/w "Niacin" (Scat, 1996)
• "Growth Spurt (Neelon Mix)" b/w "Centerfold" (Scat, 1998 - included with the LP version of The Monte Carlo Method)

Compilation appearances

• "Caprice Classic", from the Winky Dog cassette (Shrimper, 1990)
• "A Lesser Charge", from the Capgun cassette (Shrimper, 1991)
• "Go to Waste", from the If I Could Hear You, I Would Hit You 7" (Baby Huey, 1991)
• "Big Pink Heart", from the Swing Set 7" (Shrimper, 1992)

[This track was also included on the Shrimper compilation Abridged Perversion.]

• "Sugarlift", from the Pawnshop Reverb cassette (Shrimper, 1992)
• "Missed the Point", from A Day in the Park (The Now Sound, 1993)
• "Another Child Bride", from the Working Holiday (July) 7" (Simple Machines, 1993), later compiled on Working Holiday!
  Working Holiday!
  Working Holiday! is a CD album released on the Simple Machines label. It is a compilation of tracks by American indie bands which were originally released on a series of 12 7" singles by Simple Machines as part of the Working Holiday monthly record club starting from December 1992. Each song was...
  
  (Simple Machines, 1994)
• "Anti-Nomination" (written by Refrigerator
  Refrigerator
  A refrigerator is a common household appliance that consists of a thermally insulated compartment and a heat pump that transfers heat from the inside of the fridge to its external environment so that the inside of the fridge is cooled to a temperature below the ambient temperature of the room...
  
  ), (1995)

[From a split 7" with Refrigerator, included with an issue of Nipple Hardness Factor zine

Zine

A zine is most commonly a small circulation publication of original or appropriated texts and images. More broadly, the term encompasses any self-published work of minority interest usually reproduced via photocopier....

.]

• "Complications", from the Scat Records 1995 Sampler promo-only cassette (Scat, 1995)

[The track was, at the time, intended to be included on Emotional Discipline. It was taken from another of the band's early college radio broadcast performances not featured on Logorrhea.]

• "My Heart and the Real World", a Minutemen cover, from Green Light Go (BottleCap, 1995)
• "Rag Content", from the The Basement Tapes vol. 1 LP (KSPC, 1995)
• "Passing Up A Kiss", from Family Album (Shy Boy, 1996)
• "Wiser Heads", from the In Release City cassette (Slowball, 1996)

[This was a full-band version of a song originally recorded by Franklin Bruno solo.]

• "Nightshirt", from Second Semi-Annual Report (Scat, 1997)

[A "rough", but ultimately not drastically different, mix of "Shameproof Flirt" from The Monte Carlo Method.]

• "Wipe Your Hands", from the I've Got It Now cassette (Shelflife, 1997)

[This was credited to 'Coco Pelli' and played by Franklin Bruno and Kyle Brodie without a bassist.]

• "Who's Landing In My Hangar?", a The Human Switchboard cover, from We Can Still Be Friends (Magic Marker, 1998)
• "Miracle Thaw", from Object Lessons: Songs About Products (Inconspicuous Records, a product of Beer Frame Magazine, 1998)