Published on Jun 4, 1997
I recently heard this tape on the way up to seeing Iggy Pop and
The Reverend Horton Heat. A friend of mine popped it in for the
ride up. Man, talk about a re-discovery. I played it to death when
I was 16; now, a tad more refined in my taste, I gave this another
listen. It more than stands the test of time. More importantly,
it’s a stark reminder that one of the most musically diverse and
gifted groups of the late 80s and 90s is no more.
Pay no mind that this group is no more; on
Time’s Up, Living Colour cover more ground, with more
finesse than most groups can even dream of doing with 9 or 10
albums. They make their point evident with the opening track,
“Time’s Up”, A punkish, Bad Brains vibe hits harder than anything
off of their last album,
Vivid. It also elevates the group to one higher level than
on
Vivid. While
Vivid was a great album, it tended to ground itself in hard
rock repetition. With
Time’s Up, Living Colour do jazz, rap, intense rockers and
funk. Some of the experiments fail, but their innovative courage
enables you to overlook some flaws.
If one member shines on this album, it’s guitar virtuoso Vernon
Reid. On tracks like “New Jack Theme”, Reid meshes jazzy stacatto
playing with heavy Zeppelin like riffs, producing a sound all of
his own. The solo intro to “Information Overload” is unlike
anything I have ever heard from a guitar.
Vernon Reid isn’t the only memeber that stands out though.
Drummer William Calhoun and bassist Muzz Skillings gave the best
rhythmic performance of the year. Singer Corey Glover even proves
to be quite a good rhythm guitarist in the song “Type”.
Time’s Up is packed with guest appearances, showing the
diverseness of the album. Queen Latifah gives a cool, soulful
performance in the Prince-like “Under A Cover Of Darkness”. Doug E.
Fresh gives his mike skills on “Tag Team Partners” and “Solace Of
You”. The funniest cameo comes from Little Richard, who gives a
great over the top vocal performance to “Elvis Is Dead”.
The only thing constant on
Time’s Up is the mood. From the claustrophobic paranoia of
“Time’s Up” and especially “Information Overload”, most of the
songs deal with despair. Perhaps the best song “Fight The Fight”
sums up what Living Colour accomplishes in
Time’s Up: they give a realistic view of the world around
them, but still have enough faith to move on. “My heart beats just
like yours, when I dream my mind soars, but no fantasy can pay my
bills, another dream unfufilled”, Glover sings on that track. The
lyric may be simple, but his vocal delivery makes it sound
profounding.
The only block that Living Colour stumbles on is the occasiocal
preaching. “Someone Like You”, a light revenge tale on an abusing
cop, sounds shallow to the damning boasts on the previous track,
“New Jack Theme”. And, unfortunately, “This Is The Life” ends on a
forcable sunny note. “In your real life, treat it like it’s
special, In your real life, try to be more kind”. It’s a nice
message, but Living Colour are capable of better.
Though
Time’s Up is an uneven ride, it’s an exhilarating one. Even
when they overreach to a realm that they are not good in, say rap
on “Tag Team Partners”, it’s great to see a band that has the guts
to at least try. Minor griping aside, the album hits far more
targets than it misses. Though Vernon Reid and Will Calhoun are in
their solo careers, and Corey Glover had a VJ slot on VH-1, they
left a great album that will hopefully keep reminding people how
great this band was when they were firing on all four pistons.