Nikkie said:

Prince going all Flying Lotus-y on this one, didn't see that coming! The chorus is very, very nice. Not so sure about the rapping. Still, a very interesting track. I always wondered what Prince would sound like in a musical setting like this. Does it suit him? I definitely like the production.

I love it (and I normally don't care for this type of P music). It will not stand the test of time as classic material, but, it's very good sugar for my ears.

As I think everyone knows already, the background music is "Blinded" by Mila J.

Marco81 said:

Except for The Breakdown I'm really hating this album so far. I'm not sure what direction he's taking but he sounds weird to me.

Oh well.....

babynoz said:

I like it. I'm beginning to think a lot of people aren't going to dig any Prince song that sounds remotely current. I know a lot of it sucks, but modern music can be done right.

It also strikes me that anything Prince releases that's in line with what he traditionally does is considered "Prince by the numbers." Admittedly, he has put out subpar music on occasion, but you can't expect every track to be groundbreaking at this point.

xpertluva said:

It's a nice enough song - not quite "filler" but also not "single" either. It's got some clever bits and standard Prince elements. It's definitely a PRINCE song and not something trying to be otherwise. .

.

Having said that, the main detractor (to me) is how digital it sounds including his voice. That might be the intention of this album though -- to be a stark contrast to the analog-recorded PlectrumElectrum.

.

Quick summary: it's a smoother version of Incense & Candles crossed with the Adam & Eve remix of TGRES sprinkled with a bit of NPGMC download.

xpertluva said:

I like it. I'm beginning to think a lot of people aren't going to dig any Prince song that sounds remotely current. I know a lot of it sucks, but modern music can be done right.

It also strikes me that anything Prince releases that's in line with what he traditionally does is considered "Prince by the numbers." Admittedly, he has put out subpar music on occasion, but you can't expect every track to be groundbreaking at this point.

There's a LOT of current music out there that sounds much better than this.

I love his voice at 2:40 and his voice sounds good when it isn't auto-tuned. Like someone said, it is reminiscent of 'It', which is one, if not my favourite Prince song (or at least one of the 5 or 6 I alternate between). However it is nowhere near as good as 'It', and as Twitter revealed, the music is ripped from Mila J's "Blinded". I'd take this over 'Clouds' simply because it is more atmospheric and sparser, which I like about Prince's music.

.

But that isn't saying a lot. Coupled with Breakfast Can Wait, the Funknroll remix, The Breakdown (should be a 3rdeyegirl song!) and Clouds, this might be one of my least favourite Prince albums. Bring on Plectrumelectrum!

Marco81 said:

As I think everyone knows already, the background music is "Blinded" by Mila J.

seems like most of the tracks on both projects are heavily influenced by women,

either through taking their music (U Know), covering their songs (Another Love),

having them guest on the songs (Rita Ora, Lianna LaHavas, Andy Allo) or being

in the band (3EG). there's even talk of a female rapper on "Boytrouble". And the

video for Breakfast Can Wait was directed by a young woman. Ledisi was on the

"Aint Gon Miss U" track, which is probably an outtake from AOA.

/

no wonder it took so long to get anything out. how many women is he talking to

and working with these days? and he's trying to make us believe he doesn't own

a cellphone

IS THAT FUCKING AUTOTUNE?

Stymie said:

Marco81 said:

As I think everyone knows already, the background music is "Blinded" by Mila J.

Waaaaaaaaaaat? OK, now I like it significantly less. He went and copped someone else's groove and rapped over it? This kind of thing belongs on a mixtape, not a Prince record.

ugh... just.... ugh. If this is the influence of Hannah's baggage ... fire the dude now please before you forever tarnish your legacy.

[Edited 9/1/14 7:23am]

Anyone who likes this is okay with Prince re-using the same lyrical concepts over and over again, not even attempting to write vocal melodies and completely ignoring everything that used to be good about his songcraft.

"Anyone can tell I love u
Anyone can tell I care"

"U know how much I love u
U know how much I care"

SchlomoThaHomo said:

Marco81 said:

As I think everyone knows already, the background music is "Blinded" by Mila J.

Waaaaaaaaaaat? OK, now I like it significantly less. He went and copped someone else's groove and rapped over it? This kind of thing belongs on a mixtape, not a Prince record.

It's only a three-note piano loop (which was originally on a mixtape itself). The melody is all Prince, and it's very good.

This is a serious head-nodder. Digging it. Strange that he's using the Mila J music, but she's cool as hell (and a friend of a friend), so I think it's cool.

Positive reaction on Facebook I'm seeing too.

KingSausage said:

all i know is, the 4 remaining tracks we haven't heard yet (i'm still convinced that

those affirmation I, II, III tracks are not songs but segues) better be picking up

the pace and have some serious beats, because so far this looks like a late night

smooching album more than anything else. variations on the same slick groove,

song after song. it's like a cross between MPLSound and Emancipation Disc 2 but

more boring.

having said that, i still enjoy it. i'm just a sucker for prince music. but it's not an

awfully inventive or banging experience this far.

SchlomoThaHomo said:

Marco81 said:

As I think everyone knows already, the background music is "Blinded" by Mila J.

Waaaaaaaaaaat? OK, now I like it significantly less. He went and copped someone else's groove and rapped over it? This kind of thing belongs on a mixtape, not a Prince record.

For Real. I like Mila J's version.

Militant said:

This is a serious head-nodder. Digging it. Strange that he's using the Mila J music, but she's cool as hell (and a friend of a friend), so I think it's cool.

Positive reaction on Facebook I'm seeing too.

I saw a negative reaction on Housequake.com's facebook page.

Genesia said:

xpertluva said:

I like it. I'm beginning to think a lot of people aren't going to dig any Prince song that sounds remotely current. I know a lot of it sucks, but modern music can be done right.

It also strikes me that anything Prince releases that's in line with what he traditionally does is considered "Prince by the numbers." Admittedly, he has put out subpar music on occasion, but you can't expect every track to be groundbreaking at this point.

Why not? He hasn't released an album in the US in years. Surely he's had time to write something better than this mess.

I agree that its reasonable to expect strong material and it's certainly within someone's right to say that this falls short. However, I get the feeling that a lot of people expect wall-to-wall innovation. And those expectations may be a bit lofty.

I do have to take away points for it not having original music though. There's no excuse for that. So maybe I'm a hypocrite.

Huh? He made a piece using someone else's track? I'm now listening to the original and it seems to be the case. It's the first time for Prince.

I sometimes dig that type of an approach, blatant sampling / borrowing and then mangling it up, but I'm really surprised Prince actually did this.

Are people really going to defend him using someone else's instrumental?
That is unprecedented. There's sampling and there's this...

IstenSzek said:

all i know is, the 4 remaining tracks we haven't heard yet (i'm still convinced that

those affirmation I, II, III tracks are not songs but segues) better be picking up

the pace and have some serious beats, because so far this looks like a late night

smooching album more than anything else. variations on the same slick groove,

song after song. it's like a cross between MPLSound and Emancipation Disc 2 but

more boring.

having said that, i still enjoy it. i'm just a sucker for prince music. but it's not an

awfully inventive or banging experience this far.

Ugh, you think the Affirmation pieces are segues? I've been hoping they're long suites ala A Love Supreme. I know, my head must be in the clouds.

[Edited 9/1/14 7:39am]