Thundercat collaborator Louis Cole's new album, Time, is imperfect but refreshing

The first notes of album opener “Weird Part Of The Night’, punch you straight in the nose with their piercing, squelchy sound. A groovy ode to the twilight hours, this 8-bit cacophony is the perfect introduction to Cole’s fun-loving sound. His lyrics are humorous, direct, and uplifting. “When You’re Ugly” is an empowering anthem that boils down the shallowness of the modern world in a few simple lines:

“We all live on planet Earth and this is how it works / When you’re sexy, people want to talk to you / When you’re ugly, no one wants to talk to you.”

Delivered alongside a bouncing bass line, Cole has a two-fingered salute ready and waiting for the superficial people of the world:

“When you’re ugly, there is something you can do / Called fuck the world and be real cool.”

Cole’s music makes the most sense when the tempo is high and the energy levels are turned up. But like with all things, you don’t want to burn out too fast. What goes up, must come down. Time does have its slower moments, such as the hazy lullaby charm of “Everytime”, and the orchestral sway of “Last Time You Went Away”. These songs serve their purpose, but they seem to be used as a crutch to carry the listener to their next hi-octane injection of funk. One down-tempo track that breaks this mould is the poetically-named “After The Load Is Blown”. The name may be childish, but the song itself is a ballad that Prince would be proud of; a clever depiction of that feeling when reality hits, once the deed is done.

Time has its highs and its lows. It’s an album that doesn’t take itself too seriously. The lyrics may be tongue-in-cheek, but the craftsmanship of each song is nothing to smirk at. Sometimes we all take ourselves a little too seriously, whether we mean to or not. Time is a perfect reminder that you need to let the mask slip down every now and again, and dance like no one is watching – even if they are.