johnny2000 said:

Thats why you should have LISTENED to the album to make up your own mind before you read the reviews.

johnny2000 said:

Thats why you should have LISTENED to the album to make up your own mind before you read the reviews.

Does anyone of 35 years+ who've been a listener since the early eighties really think it's good?!?!?

Oh dear!!! Being from the UK I haven't had the chance to listen yet, but from the first 6 pages of this thread I was actually starting to get excited. Sure there was the odd bad response but not many. The last 6 pages sadly have put me right off...lots of bad reviews coming out now.

Sure, I've got to make my own mind up, but from the first 6 pages it looked a stone cold winner.

Does anyone of 35 years+ who've been a listener since the early eighties really think it's good?!?!?

TNBALM - What twisted, vindictive Necromancer thought it was a good idea to ressurect the NPGMC-era sound? No redeeming features whatsoever - Run for the hills, pray for respite from this evilness, bind it with a spell of silence, put a hex on it, call an exorcist and kill it with fire.

Chocolate Box - Prince continues to try and play catch-up with last seasons trends in chart-impacting pop/R&B with his take on 'My Humps', etc. I think there's a level of Hell in Dante's Inferno where some poor souls are forced to listen to this for all eternity. No doubt I'm heading there myself if I don't eat my greens.

Dance 4 Me - Urgh, is this really only track 3? I've already had more than enough.... would slot on NPS in between the title track and Freaks On This Side.

U're Gonna See Me - Syrupy but mildly enjoyable. There's nothing here Prince hasn't done before, it's a ballad and sprinkled with those chord progressions Prince uses post-Emancipation to make them sound sentimental, maudlin, but at least different to your average syrupy ballad. Nice, but neither strong nor individual.

Here - Oh no, not another one. 'U're Gonna See Me' has a slightly uglier twin. They'll never find a date sitting together all glum, sagging down the middle of this already depressing album.

Valentina - What's worse than a Prince track that tries to sound like an R&B/pop dance hit? That's right, a Prince track that tries to sound like a mid-tempo R&B/pop hit. At least this one comes in under 4 minutes, 'Chocolate Box' was an excrutiating 6 minutes 14 seconds :-/

Better With Time - Starts out and I thought it sounded like 'Still Would Stand All Time' if it was recorded for Emancipation. The vocal is extraordinarily weak (a criticism I have with many of Prince's recent albums that I think is more a product of age than effort). The track is sedate, enjoyably so - and that's a first for MPLSound, so that's something.

Ol' Skool Company - Sped-up vocal takes the edge of another drippy hip-hop influenced R&B drawl. Reminded me of 'When Will We Be Paid' (which is a much better track).

No More Candy 4 U - Silly and throwaway. Like John Waters and Little Richard orchestrating a chorus of circus clowns in a rendition of 'Choas & Disorder' - best track on the LP and quite special.



Overall: Prince has been very considerate with his latest release, he's put all the crap on a single disc. Now, I don't know about diamonds in the rough, but dig through MPLSound and you might find the occasional QVC diamonique ring like 'Better With Time'. It's amazing how few twists and turns there are on this album, basically once you've heard the first 20 seconds of a track, you've heard everything they have to offer. MPLSound is to Prince as Hard Candy is to Madonna.


[Edited 3/25/09 11:15am]

Nikeze said:

Do you like the NPGMC-era material and American R&B/teeny pop music from the past few couple of years? If so, you might like MPLSound.

Just don't expect to hear the actual Minneapolis Sound because it's nowhere to be found on here. Although 'No More Candy 4 U' is fun.

Nikeze said:

Speaking as a 35+ person … Maybe 3 tunes out of 30 are ok to my ears.

NouveauDance said:

it's really weird...it's like prince trying to sound like these new cats who are trying to sound like prince. it's like the weirdest musical ouroboros (sp?)...

Does anyone of 35 years+ who've been a listener since the early eighties really think it's good?!?!?

oohh loving this side of the album too

Very danceable

Better With Time..
anyone know who this song is about? I thought perhaps Joni Mitchell..?

Oh dear!!! Being from the UK I haven't had the chance to listen yet, but from the first 6 pages of this thread I was actually starting to get excited. Sure there was the odd bad response but not many. The last 6 pages sadly have put me right off...lots of bad reviews coming out now.

Sure, I've got to make my own mind up, but from the first 6 pages it looked a stone cold winner.

Does anyone of 35 years+ who've been a listener since the early eighties really think it's good?!?!?

Nikeze said:

Do you like the NPGMC-era material and American R&B/teeny pop music from the past few couple of years? If so, you might like MPLSound.

Just don't expect to hear the actual Minneapolis Sound because it's nowhere to be found on here. Although 'No More Candy 4 U' is fun.

NouveauDance said:

No, and no, especially from a 50 year old! What a shame, I quite liked that disco jellyfish instrumental. Could you possibly relent and say it just might be a grower....hmmmm?!?!?!

Ahh well, at least LF still seems to be well received.

BSK3478 said:

Exactly. It's like he saw/heard Timberlake's "Until The End Of Time" and a couple of other examples of recent artists using Linn samples that people these days like and thought, "If they like the Linn drums so much, I can do that. I'm the one who started using 'em. So, I'll just put 'em in every song again and ppl will go NUTS for it!!" Nigga please!!!!! He experimented with them drums before. They had bottom with different sounds, on top of the synths and bass that were all over it. They were dripping with energy, grooves, and funk!

He just sounds like an almost 51 year old man thinking he found the magic key back into mainstream culture, which he thought was the Linn drums. Since Timbaland, The Neptunes, and others have that somewhat Prince-type sound, folks were supposed to drool over this. Sorry, buddy. It ain't that simple. It takes hunger again, not complacency.

johnny2000 said:

Ouch!
Sh1t mate, don't.

Nikeze said:

uuh, yep

and guess what, if i wanted something like dirty mind i'd go and listen to dirty mind because i have that already

isnt life great

Nikeze said:

don't listen to him.... hear it for yourself. He doesn't like Dance 4 Me which is probably the best dance record from Prince since the 80s. Easily

Form your own opinion

NouveauDance said:

camille is not minneapolis sound?

the lin drum is not minneapolis sound?

dance 4 me... is not minneapolis sound especially toward the middle and end.
(with a little bit of Zapp/Roger Troutman feel)

Old school company is not minneapolis sound.... if thats not minneapolis I don't know what it is. You don't think that rythm guitar is minneapolis sound?

dude your entitled to your opinion but really... you sound nuts.

I'm also curious what song sound tiny bopper to you.... Chocolate Box? I don't here anyone layering their vocals like that? That is so uniquely Prince its not even funny. I also certainly don't hear a beat like that ....ANYWHERE. That drum programing is very unique

Alexandernvrmind said:

Give it a rest, I've already said what I like, don't like and why - can't you just accept people have different opinions.

NouveauDance said:

camille is not minneapolis sound?

the lin drum is not minneapolis sound?

dance 4 me... is not minneapolis sound especially toward the middle and end.
(with a little bit of Zapp/Roger Troutman feel)

Old school company is not minneapolis sound.... if thats not minneapolis I don't know what it is. You don't think that rythm guitar is minneapolis sound?

dude your entitled to your opinion but really... you sound nuts.

I'm also curious what song sound tiny bopper to you.... Chocolate Box? I don't here anyone layering their vocals like that? That is so uniquely Prince its not even funny. I also certainly don't hear a beat like that ....ANYWHERE. That drum programing is very unique
[Edited 3/26/09 9:57am]

Alexandernvrmind said:

Give it a rest, I've already said what I like, don't like and why - can't you just accept people have different opinions.

Anyone else in love with Ol' Skool Company? This jam is just brilliant.