The debut album 'Vivid' was a shock to the metal system, and yet somehow, just somehow, Living Colour never reached the dizzy heights they promised. For me, this so-called failure was simply down to the fact the band were too clever and certainly too inaccessible for the masses. Sure, they destroy the Chilli Peppers with no effort at all, and they write great funky rock of such an unpredictable yet soulful manner, but they were part of no scene despite other black artists such as Fishbone and 24-7-Spyz demanding attention with their own brands of hip rock. 'Cult Of Personality' from the debut album really broke the band, but 'Time's Up' is such an overly cool, emotionally layered, brooding, and inconsistent record that it often bewilders yet always entrances. Corey Glover is a vocalist of such emotion, but the band of multi-talented groovers seem intent of alienating the masses here. Sure, they know how to funk it up, there's elements of Bad Brains here also, sometimes Mordred and the attitude is always out the front.
'Times Up' doesn't suck up to the commercial market, instead its colours continue to confuse despite the catchiness of 'Pride' and the mini-success of the strutting 'Love Rears Its Ugly Head' and sweeping scapes of 'Solace Of You'. Often wonderful, Living Colour embrace so many styles of music, fluttering quickly between jazz, soul and acidic rock, but they supply more of a headache than the likes of Fishbone, rarely striding into goofy work-outs, instead keeping it straight, and with Vernon Reid keeping the guitars at boiling point, you'll no doubt find yourself a little dizzy after this.
8/10
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