Curated and produced by James Acaster, the 40-strong international music collective known as Temps has shared the latest single and music video from their forthcoming debut album PARTY GATOR PURGATORY with the release of “partygatorresurrection.” Born out of a scrapped mockumentary that would’ve staged his segue from comedian to musician, Acaster spent the pandemic roping some of his favorite artists (whose emailed addresses he still had thanks to interviews he’d done for a book and podcast on modern music) into the mix. What emerged was Temps — a collective borne out of remote collaboration and a shared desire for experimentation, one unfettered by genre or any other categorical hangups and driven solely by freeform creation.
Their features on their latest single (along with every song on the album) reads like a roll call: Open Mike Eagle, me oh myriorama, Montaigne, Low Growl, and bb tombo all contributed in some way to the track. A scattered medley of drums fill the background scenery of “partygatorresurrection,” where a gauzy mix of vocals soar with rapt eccentricity just before dropping into a tizzy of gruffly delivered bars. Sonically the track feels stripped-down, giving focus to the arrival of every new instrumental or vocal exchange that crops up sublimely throughout.
Clocking at just over five minutes “partygatorresurrection” is just that: a constant revival of sound and melody. At around the three minute mark the whole track shifts — a baritone voice repeating the phrase “A surprise birthday party” in different variations — as the drum solo is joined by twinkling tones and a sizzling guitar that starts pumping out some delectable riffs. Like previous releases “bleedthemtoxins” (feat. Joana Gomila, NNAMDÏ, Shamir, Quelle Chris) and “no,no” (feat. Quelle Chris, Xenia Rubinos, NNAMDÏ, Shamir) the music of Temps is defined by its dedication to creating soundscapes that appear to unfold spontaneously with vibrant kineticism.
The music video for “partygatorresurrection” also features the veritable mascot and spiritual center for the collective’s debut: an oversized and neon hued alligator. Worn as a costume by Acaster (originally he’d owned an actual human-sized plush alligator he’d won at a fair when he was 7-years-old, but it was lost after he donated it to a school) the music video sees the titular party gator having a row on a lake and wandering around the docks. Before it switches to a no less bonkers scene in which a person in a purple robes and a turtle mask is dancing around a statue at the center of a picturesque garden. Be sure to follow the rest of the documented adventures of party gator via Temps’ other music videos for “no,no” and “bleedthemtoxins.”
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