Post your thoughts/reviews here on the third track of NEWS.

Sdldawn said:

i'll say it first. if you didn't like north/east, you won't like west either.

i for one am enjoying what i've heard... and signed up as a member to the npgmc for the first time since it began today.

however, when i do get my cd in the mail, i will be cutting up the tracks. there's no need for them to be 14 mins each.

i think prince overestimates the patience of his listeners. (sitting through 14 minutes of experimentation)

why will i be cutting them up? because they eat my battery unnecessarily on my ipod

I had no idea the album was going to be a jazz album. I didn't expect that after a jazz-oriented Xpectation. I thought the NEWS was going to be experimental and adventurous, fresh sounding and original. West is nowhere close to that. What can I say... Drums plus Eric Leeds' soloing. Nothing special. Nice guitar work by Prince though.
[This message was edited Fri Jun 20 22:24:46 PDT 2003 by Papaj]

why will i be cutting them up? because they eat my battery unnecessarily on my ipod [/quote]



--Welcome to the Matrix---

You're a Slave 2 the machine!!!

But was Prince really intending to release Xpectation (A la Xenophobia) to the club? I thought it was an attempt to keep the complainging/bbb stuff down.. but thats just my opinion on it..

I hate to re-post the same thing, thus simply a link:

http://www.prince.org/msg...&tid=52889

agarze said:

i'm surprised nobody's yet to mention prince moaning for the first time in the studio in a while (is it pre-recorded, or is he just diggin' on eric's playing? heheh)... which starts at approximately 7:55 and lasts for about 30 seconds on the track.

anyways... i'm sure it'll have the girls talking at least

P at his best made me pause & replay an entire track over & over aggain 2 actually grasp it, - somewhere this has been lost - I wish this release the best - I guess what I liked about P is gone, Bring on the SOUTH

missed North, Hated East, quite like west

I am enjoying WEST a lot, it begins sounding a little like an instrumental version of "The Last December" from TRC... very mellow indeed

only liked north, loved east, loving west...not bad, not bad

I'm still undecided on this one. I like it, but if anything, I'm a little disapointed after the explosion of East yesterday. It all just sounds like 3-4 minute jams segued into each other and called a 14 mintute track!?. Still each segment is nice enough to keep me happy!

The verdict:
NORTH: 7/10
EAST: 9/10
WEST: 8/10

Look foward to seeing everyone elses opinion!

Sdldawn said:

I think he wanted to release Xenophobia originally and start the "new directions in music" thing. Rather the CNOTE tracks were the means of fulfilling the club's promises. Now his just following the path of "experimenting". Prince has ambitions to be the new Miles Davis clearly. I am not that much into jazz to judge how NEWS fits into experimantal jazz/rock. I am quite dissapointed with the music; the snippet we were given to taste the NEWS doesn't reflect the album in any respect. I thought the album would have similar atmosphere. Not just plain jazz/rock. Nevertheless I think I am gonna like the music. It just needs to grow up on me.
[This message was edited Sat Jun 21 1:44:05 PDT 2003 by Papaj]

Hmmm. Well, it certainly isn't as strung out as "East" but
it's still a nice enough track. I don't think it's dull or
sleep-inducing tho.

Perhaps that's because I like instrumental music a lot and
not just jazz but also semi-classical stuff like eastern &
southern European folkish music and stuff.

It's not your average everyday party music, no, but it is
still a good record this far. Plus "East" did surprise me
a lot. I hadn't expected that kind of song from Prince,
not even after TRC and Xpectation.

"West" is more like what you expect from a Prince Jazzish
record. "South" will most likely be a mixture of "East" &
"North", something that will start off quite fierce with a
relentless drive and slow down again for the finale.

All in all, I think it's gonna be a nice record that I will
enjoy playing many times over. I liked Xpectation, but this
is better imo.

The only thing I still hope/wish is that Renato will have a
more prominent spot on the last song since I want to hear
much more of his playing than I have until now.

And for those people who just don't like instrumentals at
all, just think about it this way: the longer it takes for
Prince to release another "regular" album, the higher the
chances are that he's gonna come up with a classic album
again. He's had about 2 years to stock up on the good stuff
since TRC so there's bound to be a much higher gem ratio on
the next album. It's not gonna be something he just cooked
up in a month but an effort that will contain the songs he
has liked most over this time-period.

People have been saying that he needs to take some time off
until he releases another studio album. I see these jazzy
albums as just that. He's still grooving and finding a new
outlet which we get to enjoy through the club. And meantime
it makes the wait for another song&dance studioalbum a lot
less long.

Somehow I really don't like the beginning part of WEST. I dig it from 3:30 on, though.

That quite a cool funky tune... So far East is the best for me..

the very begining I find it quite interesting listen several time how this slow tune is brought (kind of slow motion feeling...)

It's very bluesy too...

calldapplwondery83 said:

don't you mean 4:00 on?

Sorry, what was funny?
Come on, I want to laugh too!

IstenSzek said:

U read on my mind !

judging from some reviews, some of us are still
caught up in the popular prince circa '84-matrix
meaning that the listener's ear is tuned to a 3 or 4 minute pop/funk/whatever song that will bring him back 2 the masses.unfortunately, it is OVER!! took me a while to grasp that but,the chances are very slim. i look at news as a project made to challenge the "fams" musical ear the same way xpectation or trc was.this would not not have been on a major label.sheeet, his mindset wouldn't even be on making something like this (see rave'99)..instead if he was still on the plantation, we would have to suffer through songs like "jughead", "push it up", etc..imho, i would rather have NEWS or any other experimental project than those pieces of garbage!!

well, i have to say that i didn't like North, i only liked the guitar and sax parts on East but on West, it sounds as if it could actually be a song. it's a bit more accessible that the other two tracks.
see there's always light at the end of the tunnel.


hey, just be glad that NEWS didn't have 18 tracks.

West:
I dunno, something about the way the guitar has it's moment in the song does it for me. I like the guitar tone he chose this time also; classic Prince sound, IMHO. I agree with you, toejam, it sounds as if it's several songs segued into one. Oh well, it has my attention for the moment.

Rating: 8/10

This is a fantastic bit of music!!

I LOVE IT!!

Sdldawn said:

I don't know maybe he should release the "Speculation" cd 2 answer Ur Question!

Will "South" have musical roots in South American countries or will it be his tribute to the DIRTAY SOUTH feat. Ludicris? Time will tell.

At the listening party, where three paisley park moderators attended and participated,
the moderator who spoke with with most authority said it was "3 songs in one" on purpose.
I like WEST. I have high hopes for SOUTH.


.

So far we are really intrigued by North, East & West.
Each style has such a different flavor!
Right now it's hard to imagine how the transitions will flow, but we trust he thought about that ahead of time.
Each track changes in mood so much - a lot like real life -sometimes a little bumpy but well worth the ride.
I also suspect that the more we listen to it, the more we'll get out of it and parts that feel a little strange or uncomfortable now will soon feel familiar and welcome. (A lot like TRC)
A kind of musical journey (with Prince as our tour guide)...
When I get our CD, I'm just gonna sit back and let him take me places I've never been... Hey, it's nice to have someone plan a surprise trip for you! And you can't beat the $10 fare!

This sounds like Prince to me. Not good ol' days Prince just Prince.. showin off a bit. Reminds me why I keep listening.

Universaluv said:

Agreed