JD Samson & Men is comprised of JD Samson and Michael O’Neill of Le Tiger and their collaborative band mates from the band Hirsute, Emily Roysdon and Ginger Brooks Takahashi. The latest EP, Time, is the second from a series of four EP releases the band are working on for this year and were produced by Alex Suarez and Ryland (CHAINS) of Cobra Starship fame.

When I first opened up the digital folder the EP came in I was worried that I’d have my work cut out for me. The EP consists of only three tracks, one of which is a remix, so before I pressed play I committed myself to blocking out the white noise of the world and really diving into the music on this EP so that I could write up the best review possible for such a short release. Fortunately my worry was unmerited as the EP features some astonishingly potent dance tunes that have messages that can either be completely specific or open to fit your own personal perspective. What follows is mine.

Track one, Time, is instantly an infectious number that has a solid bass groove at it’s core, a busy drum section, and funky guitars & synths that offer great support for the tracks vocals, which are confident and smooth. It’s not hard to crack the code on this one lyrically and no doubt will become the mantra for many a lovers in this busy world. My first go with the track and I spent the time listening to the musical layout. Second time around when I really listened to the album and followed along with the lyric sheet from the press kit the song came into focus. Like I said, not hard to crack the code on this one, and with the world being break neck speed for every day life almost anyone can relate to this track. It help that it’s also a catchy danceable tune.

Track two, Take It Away, instantly reminded me of the huge electronic music movement that popped up in the late 90’s that made household names out of Lunatic Calm, Propellerheads, and so on. It has that same big beat sound to it that you can probably find playing in most clubs. Lyrically the track talks about the unfortunate trend of the individualist movement where one person will, for the greater good, work to make sure that rules get set in place to stop people from doing what this one person may deem harmful to them without regard to the embodiment of the people they claim to be protecting. Man or woman, these kind of people exist. I couldn’t shake the nagging feeling that this song works extremely well when considering the social networking plague as well. So many voices being allowed to speak, some of them complete bullshit, but in the heat of mass hysteria even sarcasm can be carried with conviction by a formed group of internet trolls. Again, just my perspective.

The last track on the EP is Make Him Pay (AKA JK Vocal Remix). Despite the song being a remix of sorts the band wastes no words on the EP. This track has a very open message. Some may see a world leader or criminal, but the message is loud and clear, let your voices be heard, unite and confront. Probably my least favorite song on the EP simply because it doesn’t have that same adrenaline rush flow as the other two tracks but definitely not a track placed just for filler.