I am not talking directly about the quality of this new material, but somehow i don't get the people who say these new songs are a breakaway from his previous 3 albums.

Soundwise these songs continue were Planet Earth 'stopped', Prince going into some kind of adult contemporary pop / rock direction. I agree, these new songs sound more fluent then the attempts on Planet Earth, but they still are a mile away from the sonic innovations on albums like 1999, Parade and Sign of the Times.

Another observation: I see several people here saying: Prince is rocking again! But its definitely not rock in a raw Band of gypsies kind of way, or even Princes own album Chaos and Disorder.
I agree, some nice guitar-soloing one these songs, but the overal production is rather polished and calculated.

To conclude: these songs are a continuation of what Prince tried to achieve with Planet Earth, but after a few listens these new songs seem more fluent and thought out then those on his last album.
But to say they are a return to form or his best work since the Rainbow Children is stretching things too far IMO.
[Edited 12/19/08 15:36pm]

I am not talking directly about the quality of this new material, but somehow i don't get the people who say these new songs are a breakaway from his previous 3 albums.

Soundwise these songs continue were Planet Earth 'stopped', Prince going into some kind of adult contemporary pop / rock direction. I agree, these new songs sound more fluent then the attempts on Planet Earth, but they still are a mile away from the sonic innovations on albums like 1999, Parade and Sign of the Times.

Another observation: I see several people here saying: Prince is rocking again! But its definitely not rock in a raw Band of gypsies kind of way, or even Princes own album Chaos and Disorder.
I agree, some nice guitar-soloing one these songs, but the overal production is rather polished and the delivery quite constrained.

To conclude: these songs are a continuation of what Prince tried to achieve with Planet Earth, but after a few listens these new songs seem more fluent and thought out then those on his last album.
But to say they are a return to form or his best work since the Rainbow Children is stretching things too far IMO.
[Edited 12/19/08 15:36pm]
[Edited 12/19/08 15:37pm]

...but I wonder if some people who call it 'raw, guitar driven rock' ever listen to...well...raw, guitar driven rock... lol. Thats a term that makes me think of the likes of Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix, King's X or The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, to name a few.

these new songs sound more fluent then the attempts on Planet Earth, but they still are a mile away from the sonic innovations on albums like 1999, Parade and Sign of the Times.

Riverpoet31 said:

Tell me last 2 mins of "Wall Of Berlin" isn't inspired by Hendrix. I dare you.
[Edited 12/19/08 15:54pm]

To make one point clear: The Rainbow Children personally is one of my least favourite Prince albums. It just that people seem to say: these new songs are a change from the material of the last 3 albums, and therefore seem the feel the need to bring The Rainbow Children into the picture.

As i said Prince is doing some nice soloing on these new songs, but I wonder if some people who call it 'raw, guitar driven rock' ever listen to...well...raw, guitar driven rock... lol. Thats a term that makes me think of the likes of Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix, King's X or The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, to name a few.

One thing, the rest of the band is playing this music much to 'clean', in a session musician kind of way, to consider it 'rock'.
Next to that, you can obviously hear that Prince is going for a certain 'type' of sound, its too calculated, and not enough 'in your face' to call it raw rock.

Riverpoet31 said:

It may not be raw rock but its a perfect blend if guitar soloiing and well written and produced songs. I love it.

^I already own Gypsies. I'm not realy sure what we're arguing about here. I'm not talking about the 'quality' either - I was merely saying that I think he was happy with tracks like "Planet Earth" and "Guitar" and decided to go in that direction for his next project. Whether or not it's up there with Jimi is a matter of opinion.

You nailed it spot on. There is nothing going on here. He's too mixed up with the LA "in crowd" to make new music. His lyrics are confused. He's confused politically, because JWs aren't supposed to talk about that shit anyway. This is hugely relevent to Prince as he was once considered one of the top pop/rock lyricists of our time. Now its just naive platitudes and cliches.

Rockability said:

You say he's "confused" politically presumably because you either disagree with him or don't understand him. I don't see anything confused about his politics. Its been pretty consistent for a long while now. He's probably confused about his relationship with his religion, but thats another story.

One thing, the rest of the band is playing this music much to 'clean', in a session musician kind of way, to consider it 'rock'.
Next to that, you can obviously hear that Prince is going for a certain 'type' of sound, its too calculated, and not enough 'in your face' to call it raw rock.

Top lyricist?

Lol... When it comes to that view, i very much disagree with you, Rockability.

I have always considered Prince a hit or miss type when it comes to his lyrics.

Just as he seems to lack quality control when it comes to the music he releases, he seems to meander on the lyrical level.
For every If I was your girlfriend or Reflection you have a Hot with U or United States of Division.

It has become clear to me that Prince has an obsession with constantly creating and releasing new music, but that he might sometimes be better off with a manager or producer who would say to him: You cant release that! or its better if you strip that album down to 11 songs.

^Exactly. When I use the term 'raw' I'm usually refering to the instrumentation, not the style or the quality - just the fact that it's primarily bass, drums and guitar.

Some good thoughts here. As I've stated before, Prince simply doesn't know how to make a rock record. This is evidenced by the fact that he never has and at the ripe old age of 50, he never will.

I am not talking directly about the quality of this new material, but somehow i don't get the people who say these new songs are a breakaway from his previous 3 albums.

Soundwise these songs continue were Planet Earth 'stopped', Prince going into some kind of adult contemporary pop / rock direction. I agree, these new songs sound more fluent then the attempts on Planet Earth, but they still are a mile away from the sonic innovations on albums like 1999, Parade and Sign of the Times.

Another observation: I see several people here saying: Prince is rocking again! But its definitely not rock in a raw Band of gypsies kind of way, or even Princes own album Chaos and Disorder.
I agree, some nice guitar-soloing one these songs, but the overal production is rather polished and the delivery quite constrained.

To conclude: these songs are a continuation of what Prince tried to achieve with Planet Earth, but after a few listens these new songs seem more fluent and thought out then those on his last album.
But to say they are a return to form or his best work since the Rainbow Children is stretching things too far IMO.
[Edited 12/19/08 15:36pm]
[Edited 12/19/08 15:37pm]