Tempus Fugit

Eastern Standard Time – Tempus Fugit (Jump Up! Records)
Reviewed by Sadie O., 12/29/05
Very upbeat, somctimes jazzy ska from Washington DC. Very bouncy, happy sound with lots of horn section and solos. Most are instrumentals – the songs with male vocals range from trite but not bad to pretty damn greasy. Instrumentals are better, as is the song with female vocalist (track 6) and the Dr. Ring Ding toast (track 12).
No FCC. Best tracks are 3, 6, 12, and the tragically short 10.
1. 3:29 *(Segment) uptempo bubble, turns into ska. Instrumental featuring horns, builds in speed and energy.
2. 3:53 *(It’s Alright) Bouncy ska w/ vocals. A bit of Motown-ish vibe. Long, long fade at end.
3. 5:00 **(1361) perky but understated roots bubble. Instrumental with prominent horns and tom. Sweet horn solos, esp. clarinet. VERY jazzy guitar solo halfway in.
4. 5:18 *(Agua y Cerveza) “Sal-ska” – uptempo and bright, beachy instrumental. Jazz piano solo.
5. 4:44 *(Eye of the Storm) rock steady with soulful vocals, love song with smooth harmonies.
6. 2:47 **(When Will Your Love Be Mine?) female vocals with complex harmonies and soulful delivery (Deborah Bond), rock steady beat, downplayed instrumentation.
7. 3:07 (Out of Time) ska with vocals – instruments mostly downplayed except for nice horn solo midway through.
8. 3:36 (Step Ready) nice fast ska with good horn lines and scary farfisa. Vocals detract a bit, IMO. Abrupt ending.
9. 4:20 (Don’t Go) lovers rock with vocals. Nice vocals, but something just feels cheesy about them.
10. 1:58 **(The Watcher) spy movie ska, great guitar. Too bad it’s so short!
11. 5:27 (Besame) ska with samba overtones and truly sleazy vocals – in both English and Spanish! Whee! I gotta go wash the unctuousness off now…
12. 4:42 **(Can’t Keep a Good Man Down) upbeat roots rock skank with first-class guest toast by Dr. Ring Ding.
13. 0:45 (Skacapella) jazzy a capella with a bit of skat.