3 out of 5

Label: Southern

Produced by: John Congleton

Panda Park is an amazing album, and Too Late Or Too Dead is a stand-out amongst standout tracks; very ‘single-y’ comparatively, and a perfect showcase for the weird piano post-rock 90 Day Men had discovered, played lushly and delicately; John Congleton’s cavernous production on full display; and just enough touches of Brian Case’s off-key disaffection to flavor.

The other two tracks here are instrumentals – Harlequin’s Chassis moderately minimalist; Eyes In The Road more groovy – and are good support tracks for Too Late, but definitely wouldn’t hold much weight on their own. Ideally, these could be mixed in to Panda Park in some way, as their moderately inconsequential as EP extras. That said, the ‘support’ role shouldn’t be underestimated, and the instrumentals are good, if perhaps purposefully understated. So, even as a 90 Day Men fan and follower, I wouldn’t consider this a necessity, but it can be a nice sidestep from Park’s rather heavy vibe, easing up a bit for more ‘typical’ Chicago instrumental music.