Seattle rap group Clockwork put in some serious effort in the 2000s. Their first album After Midnight in 2006 included party cuts like “Ride,” and “Dubs To Blow,” set against quieter reflections like my personal fave “Fallin Hard.” In 2009 the group returned with their second album Future Pastime. Producer Sekken Thaughtz is back for the second project, and he is joined by House, DJ Pro, and some beatmaking from Lace Cadence as well.

The easygoing, toe-tapper “Westinghouse” features Seattle stalwart DJ B-Mello on the turntables, and it reminds me fondly of summertime L.A. rap radio. “Welcome” aims to get listeners on the dancefloor, with its buzzword-heavy, singalong lyrics and snappy beat. “Blowin on dro, yelling out Fresh Coast,” goes one refrain of this rewindable hit. “The Weed Guy” is so ghostly that it had snuck in and then out like a cat burglar before I even noticed it was there. It’s as if the song is made out of see-through Megalopolis fabric, successfully merging itself with its surroundings. I’m not trying to dis, I actually like the track.

Clockwork filmed a standalone video for “Hold On,” which features the group in a studio and on location in Seattle’s industrial Georgetown neighborhood. This was a departure from the After Midnight videos which were, for whatever reason, released as two songs per video. There’s an easter egg in “Concepts of Reality” referencing the 1990s Seattle group that brought us Procreations and Everything is Nice.

The CD jacket for Future Pastime shows 17 songs, but if you let the disc run out, you will find two secret bonus tracks. One of the secret cuts, “Hard Times” is a fun exercise in rap skills and steady beats, and wins my pick for the strongest song on the album. According to Discogs, Future Pastime was the group’s second and final album. Written by Novocaine132