After repeated (and I mean repeated) listens, MPLSOUND is definitely a keeper.

(There'll Never B) Another Like Me: I hated this song at first, but now I appreciate it. It's so shamelessly goofy and rife with cartoon-like synthetic touches that it becomes too fun to ignore. When you hear Prince singing about putting olive oil in his hair, it becomes clear that even he knows how goofy it is. This song, as silly as it is, sees you start bobbing your head to it after a few listens. Solid opener, but thankfully, it only gets better from here on out.

Chocolate Box: It has all the touches of silly Prince fun; including seemingly random synthetic musical cues, facetious lyrics and Prince panting. The chorus synth pulsates, and shockingly, Q-Tip actually adds to the song with his rap. The metaphor of the box of chocolates is also just vague enough to make you hope against logic that he's talking of something dirty again. It does go a bit longer than necessary though.

Dance 4 Me: The second you hear Prince slyly talk of the funky congregation in a voice resembling Camille, you know the album is ready to really take off. The main beat is incredibly sexy in a sort of deliberate way; I can actually envision a girl stripping to this. What really carries this song is Prince's reverberating sexuality throughout. It invokes the same kind of overt perverse desperation of a Feel U Up.

U're Gonna C Me: It goes without saying that the piano version is better, but I quite like this. I think the way he's translated it to a more uptempo sound works beautifully. It's nicely placed here too coming off of three straight sexualized songs. The lyrics are as good as ever in their plaintiveness, and the near whimsical sound of this version adds a quality of simple honesty that is both refreshing and manages to keep the subject matter from weighing down the fun atmosphere of the album.

Here: I adore this song. It brilliantly and concisely details the same kind of bittersweet heartache that The Dance touched on. The lyrics are sweet without being saccharine, and "I'm flying above our fears" might be one of the sweetest things he's said in a song in a while. Prince's subtly vulnerable vocals combined with the infectiously sparse chorus beat oddly encapsulates the conflict of the subject matter flawlessly.

Valentina: Much like with U're Gonna C Me, this song is perfectly placed after two ballads. The "Hey, Valentina" vocal loop is put to good use, and the beat flows along seamlessly to Prince's come-ons. This track also captures what is so fun about Prince: only he could take a song about his friend's daughter and turn it into a sly way of asserting his prowess again. That guitar solo is scorching too.

Better With Time: The closest thing to a forgettable song on the album. This is pleasant and inoffensive, but it doesn't have a hook that grabs you by the throat and attacks the senses like all the other songs do. At the very least, Prince's vocal performance is gentle and smooth as always. It still just feels like another Satisfied/On the Couch, but admittedly with a bit more life.

Ol' Skool Company: If F.U.N.K. taught us anything, it's that when Prince channels his frustration in the form of a funk number, good things result. Rather than expressing his problems in a condescending way with naive lyrics, this song hits you over the head with a thumping beat and classic Princely attitude that simultaneously happens to touch on important issues. Prince sounds so genuinely confident as he piles on solos, rhythm guitar, and put-downs that you can't help but smile as you move your head.

No More Candy 4 U: There could not be a better closer for this album. This is everything that is great about Prince: a puzzling main line about candy, beats that are all over the place and addictive, and most of all, urgency. Prince sounds more engaged singing this song than he has in countless other tracks. Not only does it make you want to dance, and not only is it arrogant to a degree that only Prince can manage without feeling overbearing, but its energy is relentless until the final seconds.


MPLSOUND is the kind of audacious aural circus that Prince used to pull off routinely. Above all, the important thing is that it's fun. Rather than succumb to Prince's sententious worldview, the album decides instead to settle for making one feel good. It refrains from taking itself too seriously while still giving you something special in the end, and that's what the "MPLSOUND" was all about in the first place.

^^^ fantastic review from a critical thinker! i like, nice read.

Thanks. I'm still so surprised that I like it so much. I expected nothing.

PurpleKnight said:

co-sign. I am enjoying Elixer too. Listening during yoga everyday.

PurpleKnight said:

I think a lot of people who like it are shocked. Hell I'm shocked that I love it. I had a feeling that I'd like it but this CD has blown me away.

purplecam said:

When I first heard Another Like Me, I shook my head and prepared for another NPS nightmare. What a pleasant surprise from the incomparable little genius. I love him all over again.

PurpleKnight said:

This is exciting. I heard 'another like me' and i thought the lp would be wack, but this gives me faith.

meow85 said:

Only Prince can get away with soliciting a two year old to set up a booty call with her mother .

Here!

I like this session. Melodic and back to his Purple reign!

HERE stood out 4 me. I can see why people brought up SOTT and LS in comparison.
[Edited 3/28/09 11:43am]

shanti0608 said:

I don't think it's bad but other than 2Nite, it's that R&B adult contemporary background. 'Home', 'Here I Come', are standouts but I doubt that I will ever have a day where I want to hear the album.

After repeatened listens this album starts to annoy me even more.

As others have said: its like Prince copying the sound and compositions of people who are Prince-influenced in the first place (producers like Timbaland, The Neptunes, and that swedish team who made Britney and the Backstreet Boys popular), but failing by doing so.

Anyone who dares to compare this album to Controversy or 1999 has no taste or understanding of great, well-composed, innovative dance-music.

Chocolate Box and Hey Valentina are cringeworthy. Prince sounding like he is trying to 'cope' with the current bubblegum-dance pop producers. Why, for god sake?

Dance 4 me is way, way overrated. An eighties b-side like Feel U up, is both funkier and better then that song.

In fact, the ballads on this album are not bad, nothing new there, but they are probably better then most of the halfbaken dance-pop jams.

Old skool Company is another turd. Going on way too long for its own good. As plastic and funk-less as most songs on New Power Soul, the Chocolate Invasion and the Slaugterhouse.

IMO Prince is making a fool of himself on this album, like he hasnt learned anything from the release and general perception of the New Power Soul album.

4/10.

PurpleKnight said:

Great to hear and good review.

purplecam said:

I thought Lotusflow3r would piss over this and it doesn't. I love them both the same.

And another thing....why in the HELL is he using that damn autotune, especially on Chocolate Box?????!!! I just saw the video on his site, and it's completely unnecessary (the autotune; but now that I think about it, the same statement could also apply to the actual video)! Again, he's into chasing trends instead of creating/leading them.

No More Candy 4 U has that Horny Toad vibe!

What about an EP with:

Broken
Horny Toad
Delirious (Unreleased Extended Version)
Gotta stop (messin' around)
No More Candy 4 U
[Edited 3/28/09 14:54pm]

An enjoyable and fun record on the overall - although it has to be stated that if he really thought it was going to "recapture the sound of the old days" it would have to be considered quite a huge failure in that regard. The drum parts are admittedly great, but for some oblivious reason he is using the same effected Linn sounds on all songs (it's the flanged When Doves Cry -bit, rather than the dry sounds from the actual unit). Where it gets somewhat cringeworthy sonically are the synth parts, for they really are not what I'd associate with the 80s sound at all. What was he really using? I am not sure has he personally even touched a real analog synth in 20 years, but these synth parts are not anything like he used to do with his Oberheims and Moogs back in the day. It sounds like he isn't even playing the keyboards on the album - sans perhaps for the synth bass - it's all sequenced and too quantized. These really are.... trance music patches, not funk sounds. Another thing: if you really want to retro-up a song, record it on tape and mix the elements in a less three-dimensional way. However, there's also some nice guitar stuff here as well, not just on Lotusflow3r.

The added effects on the synths and some of the vocal parts make the entire thing sound a bit too much like current mainstream night club material, but on the positive side the fast songs do have quite a nice "drive" to them. "Chocolate Box" and "Dance 4 Me" are quite charming on their own right, but "No More Candy 4 U" is finally the sound of the boy genius with an attitude he become known of in the early part of his career, and it's good to know he can still pull it off. Rather off-beat use of piano there too. "Ol' Skool Company" is a rather strong offering as well, although shame for the synth parts again. Prince, you can come over to my house and borrow my vintage synths and effects anytime. I wouldn't mind - hell, if Alicia Keys is seen playing a Jupiter 8 in her videos and during her live performances, you should do the same thing too. It's not that the sound of the album is "too polished", for music tends to sound too polished by definition these days when it's recorded to HD anyway. You'll need to at least add some shit afterwards. Hiss, distortion, whatever.

The ballads on their own behalf are quite pleasant, but again, nothing like he used to do in the 80s. Rather, they remind me of the material on projects like "Come 2 My House" instead (or just "Emancipation"). The new version of "U're Gonna C Me" probably works the best to my ears out of the slower ones. It's sort of ironic that he really sounds more contemporary on some of these "intentionally retroish" tracks like "Valentina" - than when he has made the effort to sound contemporary. The record is still better than the two records from the end of last decade where he was trying to utilize some of his old tricks too, namely "NPS" & "Rave Un2 The Joy Fantastic". In fact, since then he has had several tracks on most of his studio releases that have attempted to hark back at the good old days (I'd still consider "1+1+1=3" as the best of such titles). However, like stated by others, what's the best part about this record isthat it sounds like he was genuinely having fun in the studio himself. Compared to some of the more plastic offerings on the last two records, "Mr. Goodnight" and "Incense And Candles" just for example, this record actually makes better use of plastic.

I'll give it three sardin cans out of five sardin cans. Personally, I don't dislike any of the songs either despite their sonic imprint... well he does seem to say "... new Minneapolis Sound..." at the end of "Ol' Skool Company". So he is indeed aiming at a "new sound", apparently. Guess though it could have been very well executed without the Timbaland influence too. If forced to make the choice between this and, say, Chromeo - I'd take the latter I do have to say.
[Edited 3/28/09 15:17pm]

And now for the stupid and moronic review of the day by that weird guy from Portugal:

(There’ll Never B) Another Like Me

I get this Newpower Soul vibe in it. And since I must be the second person on this forum to love NPS, this is such a treat. I like the sillyness of the lyrics.

Chocolate Box

I like it. Q-Tip work really nicely. I simply love the extended guitar/synth bit.

Dance 4 Me

This one's classic. I love it. It's pure 80's.

U’re Gonna C Me

WTF! Sorry. Some songs should not be redone...

Here

I enjoy it a bit. I don't know. It's very...childish.

Valentina

It's dirty and full of the linn drum clichés we all adore and masturbate to. Prince what's to fuck Salma. It's not about the baby...

Better with Time

Another ballad...Ruins the album.

Ol’ Skool Company

The best song of the album. A classic. Prince's fucked up and delivers the goods.

No More Candy 4 U

It's perfect. I ADORE it! It's quirky and it has that horny toad/broken vibe i love it. The perfect song of the album.

Overall:The ballad ruin it. The other songs are great...
[Edited 3/28/09 15:21pm]

Dance 4 Me is ridiculously good. I hear pseud cunts saying the lyrics are too simplistic, there's no real chorus, it's too self-referential musically, too repetative, blah, etc. How Prince must chuckle.

The ballads though (honourable exception to Here).

murph said:

Murph ... you hit the nail on the head and you are saying exactly what I have been saying. It is ridiculous that his rock fans $hit all over his R&B... in fact it is downright disrespectful.

You and I love all of his music rock, jazz, r&b, funk, pop and all of it mixed together

However IMO there is a very vocal majority on this board who want Prince to be about rock only and it really gets under my skin because there is a certain under current associated (IMO). Much of which I'm not comfortable with
[Edited 3/28/09 17:40pm]

PurpleKnight said:

Whether they positive or negative, I always enjoy reading your reviews!
Well said

PurpleKnight said:

I read you frequently and know your a critical thinker when it comes to Prince. Nice review

blacksweat said:

Yep, I have to listen to them back to back - I haven't listened to one more than the other.

mikematronik said:

Amazing review, Mike.

Number23 said:


Very good.

I must disagree though. You're gonna c me is a gem amongst that collection of tracks.

IstenSzek said:

I agree on all counts.

i fear that i will never be able to see this as a full album
since the first two tracks are about the worst 'back 2 back'
opening combo in his catalogue imo.

i find myself wishing he will release a studio version of
"turn me loose" on the website so that i can stick on the
single "F.U.N.K." as opening track and place turn me loose
somewhere 2/3 down the tracklist just to break up the sort
of impenetrable wall of linn sameness.

for that matter, it wouldn't hurt to place something like
"song of the heart" (minus irritating penguin intro) on it
somewhere.

it just needs a bit more diversity. i love that he made a
'dance' record but especially the drums sound is 2 similar
on all these tracks. something needs to break that up. and
a dose of guitar/bass based funk would do that trick.

plus, honestly, anything just to be able to ditch choc box
and another like me, lol.

I have no problem with '(There'll Never Be)Another Like Me.'

Yes it sounds like other songs he's done before and I understand how irritating that vein of song/production is for some but I think here he finally gets it right.

'Feel Good, Feel Better, Feel Wonderful' is a better realization of 'It's Gonna Be a Beautiful Night' through 'Get On The Boat' type song that he seems to have finally gotten right.

SUPRMAN said:

You have got to be kidding.
[Edited 3/29/09 11:42am]