Man, I leave this joint for a couple weeks and now I hear P is releasing 3 albums. I don't suppose anyone remembers that I was asking the question if he would come out with 2 since the descriptions of the new music has been funk and rock, which didn't make sense. Well I guess that makes me a fucking genius and a prophet.

Anyway, I'm excited about this news, since I felt those 5 tracks previewed stunk pretty bad. 3 albums, that's like 36 songs right? I just want ONE to be half-decent, I might be happy with him then.

But PRO-TOOLS??? Yeah, it is important to keep up with the times, but come on, how bout EXPERIMENTING WITH A BAND LIVE. I've been sayin' it for awhile. Make live music P!

I have some good advice P. If you're friends are reading this, maybe they will mention that you should discover the music and philosophy of Sun Ra. Then you will be truly enlightened.

Rockability said:

Real music by real musicians.

Wall said:

Nothing wrong with virtual musicians, I'm just pointing out P's style works with live music. We all know this.

Rockability said:

not to sound like a total geek or anything but ALL pro music, be it live or programmed, is either recorded on Pro Tools or Logic Pro.
Even studios with huge old school multitrack mixing consoles usually route to a software sequencer for editing and mixing purposes...
we're in the 2000's not 1944, come join us...

There's nothing wrong with Prince using Pro-Tools. It's how the music comes out on CD that we'll have to see about. No point in judging something when you don't even know what the end result is. Sadly, Prince fans love to do that and will continue to do it. Sucks for them.

oh and P isnt a stranger to Both Pro tools and Logic Pro
every studio in paisley park is implemented with both...
Every album within the last 15 years was probably recorded in one or the other...

My guess is he used pro tools on Colonized Mind. The vocal effects at times are crazy good. The good thing is that he is experimenting. wish he would just leave the 'funk' thing along for a minute. Not impressed at all with 'turn me loose' and 'never be another like me'.

EmbattledWarrior said:

From what I gathered from the article, he is using Pro-Tools more as a way to record virtually, at least on the works he was referring to. But we'll see.

EmbattledWarrior said:

Yep, Prince has used ProTools for a long long time. I remember Paisley Park was being updated with ProTools during the first Celebration.

Prince experimented with Pro Tools and "new ways of recording" - Umm sounds like two different things.

realm said:

yeah the article, probably has no validity. Prince has always kept current when it comes to digital music...
I'd say Gold experience was probably his last fully analogue album, after that it was mixture of both digital and analogue
Alot of emancipation was digital tracking
Rave was nearly all digital tracking and since the 2000's, thats all he's been using
so I don't know what this article is getting at...
But brother aint no stranger to digital recording, Its safe to say he's probably one of the first who pioneered it.

The Gold Experience his "last fully analogue album"? Aside from being tracked to tape due to the time period giving its constraints, I don't personally hear too many elements on it that I'd associate with "analog" methods of production. It's totally drenched in effects from digital processors in any case, the synths are typical romplers and so on. Some say it's the first mainstream album with digital clipping used during the mastering process on intention.

Pro-Tools has been available for ages, in fact it's considered sort of an outdated environment by many by this point. I don't know what the expression "experimenting with pro-tools" really entails - it's sort of odd to say that you experience "with a production environment" that is just centred around a sequencer program. You might experiment moreso with something like MAX/MSP, IXI stuff or something - but trying to assign some sort of novelty to just Pro-Tools sounds like a statement lifted straight from the mid-90s.

LOL people do not get it.

Protools, that's why the new songs sound so sterile.

novabrkr said:

I was being Liberal about it but thnx for clearing it up!
I'd say pro tools is very dated... But I hear an update is coming soon, so we'll see what happens...
I strictly use logic

EmbattledWarrior said:

Prince being Prince, maybe he might be one of the first to have it?

Wouldn't that be interesting?

.....
[Edited 1/4/09 1:25am]

Rockability said:

Um, what does that mean?

2freaky4church1 said:

Exact...where is the raw sound??? >this is the sound Prince needs like in the 80's , the use of the Linn Drum & guitar in the 80's had this Hard/Raw sound >this is what i want from Prince....no sterile sound like in the middle 90's & after!

rap said:

means he is probably going to make all the music while sitting at a computer and keyboard. The real issue I have aside from the sterile sound is the copy and pasting of the lyrics. I know he's transposing the line a third down or something and copying it over. I don't know, Beyonce sounds good doing it, but perhaps his voice is to low to sound appealing with that method.

Has anyone taken into account that maybe Prince was fuckin' with the reporter??

That's his sense of humor...we all know it.

.....
[Edited 1/4/09 1:25am]

Prince been useing Protools for years...BUT Mr. Nelson PLEASE DELETE AUTOTUNE! Thats Corny. Your a leader..so Lead.

What can he do with pro tools that others cant?


I think radiohead have mastered experimenting with new sounds, as well as programs like pro tools..


i think it's gonna be the same ol shit.

I understand the OP's trepidation, however...

some jazz purists reacted negatively to Miles Davis' treatment of Bitches Brew back in 1969/1970 - because a massive chunk of that record was produced in-studio, through mixing and chopping...

It's not pro-tools, sure, but it's a related philosophy : "assembling" music/sounds with lucid consideration (and reconsideration) ... I too prefer live music, but like Miles Davis - I'm sure P will fashion the music digitally and quickly learn every detail and nuance live as well. We all agree that he's a musical genius, so I have faith that he'll craft some intriguing compositions from the outset - not use pro-tools to cover up weakness or flaws, but to emphasize and enhance is base concept.

so.. I take it the (There'll Never B) Another Like Me is from this Experimenting Pro-Tools album?


He has GOT to be kidding with that. It is worse than the worst of the npgmc. I dig the crimson cover, but damn.. that Another like me is a low grade prince song.

Although some of lovesexy isn't exactly the most welcoming sound to hear over and over, Prince did create some creative sounds.. I'd rather have one of those than some npgmc sound, and by the looks of that song, it seems we aren't gonna get "experimental".. I'm hoping that one songs just a flop, but that isn't the best way to introduce it to us

I'm not sure what you're complaining about (as usual) . He's releasing two albums. I think you'll find the idea is that the Mplsound album is the 'studio/one-man-band/pro-tools' album, and Lotus Flower will be the more 'live-in-studio' album. That's what's cool about Prince - he likes to mix it up between the one-man-band thing and the live-studio thing.
[Edited 1/4/09 1:47am]

toejam said:

damn right, I am complaining about the usual he gives.


Looking for his good quality music, as usual.

funksterr said:

telling prince to leave the funk alone is like telling kim kardashian not to date black guys no more!

BringBackPluto said:

Because that's what it's all about, it's not that easy to use them pro-tools and make it still sound like "live music"!