Time. 1975 England

Time were formed by ex-Spontaneous Combustion members, and is considerably more complex than their former group. Flash, that wonderful post-Yes band that Peter Banks formed, is the most obvious influence. Especially in the vocal department. And the guitars have that certain raw chord sound with runny clean solos that Banks seemed to favor. But in reality Time is even more complex than that. On the instrumental sections (which are plentiful), they are like a distilled Yes circa Relayer without all the hoity-toity bits (and yea, I admit to liking all that extra Yes fluff too). But if you're in a hurry, and don't have time for a sit down meal, then Time is some really good fast food. Non-chain, healthy, and thoughtful - but quick counter service with no waiting. While not quite as off-the-rails-nutty, the closest comparison to Time I can make is Yezda Urfa's Boris, another 1975 wonder. Which tells me some musicians were sitting around the world, after digesting Tales From Topographic Oceans and Relayer, saying "I like Twinkies, but more the cream filling than the sponge part".

Perhaps a bit useless to have my star system in place here. I pretty much love every track on the album. Side 1 is definitely stronger, perhaps because the sound is fresher to my ears, and I've grown accustomed by Side 2. 'Shady Lady' and 'Turn Around' pretty much sums up all you need to know if you're really in a drive-through hurry. Counterpoint is one of Time's favorite tools to utilize and you will hear it often. I happen to love counterpoint, so that may explain why I score Time higher than others. I also like a good woody bass sound and Time also plants that wherever they can. Plenty of keyboards and tuned percussion also in the mix. And vocals are also played off of each other, ala Gentle Giant (another obvious influence at play here). Highly recommended.

LP: 1975 Buk (UK). Single sleeve. Recent online acquisition (2010).

Reissued on CD in 2019 from Belle Antique in Japan.

10/15/10 (new entry); 7/2/18