here's my personal (and short) review of discipline:


rollercoaster: inane, boring, filler. one of her worst track ever recorded.

I thought this one was ok. Some1 kept saying it was reminicent of the old school Janet...but I dont get that at all. Its a car banger. Her adlibs are the closest thing to 'regular' Janet on this track.

rock with u: generic, yet pleasant

I didnt think 2 much on it at first, but its a good techno track and I kinda wish there were more like this.



2nite: the classic tastless song that you listen to today, and you'll forget tomorrow
Yeah..its nice though.


can't b good: nice. the harmony, the pace and her vocal delivery makes it sound like something by her brother.
Definitley a Micahel Jackson track




never letchu go: a totally forgettable cross between a bad narada michael walden composition and a track off beverly hills 90120 soundtrack




greatest x: boring, predictable track
U know what I think this is my least fav track on the album. Thinkin Bout My Ex is much better. It just sounds..overdone. Not that it is bad nothing wrong with it, it just doesnt give me that Janet.

so much betta (feat. jordy): worst. janet. track. ever. and to think it took 3 guys to write this dog crap!

I thought this track was HOOOOTT! Funky...electro 80's Linn Camille vocals. 2short but HOTTT

the 1: bah...
It keeps the same 4 bars of music the whole time. Kinda sound lieka Rich Harrison leftover. It's ok...not that bad to me.


what's ur name: another (not-so-disturbing not-so-pleasant) michael-ish track
THIS IS MA SAWWWNG!!!! 2short tho


discipline: good one, but my question now is: how many times should we get the same rope-burn-when-we-ooh-would-you-mind-etc with a different title every time around? gosh! and btw: this kind of lyrics, especially sentences like "i've been very bad, make me cry" or "i misbehaved and my punishment should fit my crime daddy" (however, how juvenile!) better fit up-tempo rhythms, not ballad' ones

It was written by a 25 year old. Its aiight. I think it would sound different if Jimmy & Terry wrote it...its lacking that depth they have in her slow jams. It could use some strings or something. where is the RAIN!!!?



curtains: yeah, curtains... down right now please!

This is a nice closer, but dont find myself wanting to get through the whispery vocals but enjoy the horns.

THE STORY OF J
Why Janet Jackson's Dungeon Master chic is as vital and revolutionary as ever
by Carol Cooper

Sure, Madonna repeatedly toyed with BDSM in her videos, but she never publicly admitted to breast and genital piercings like Miss Jackson did. So, in case you weren't tipped off from the Velvet Rope tour onwards, Janet's innocuous Dream Street ingenue had to die so a baby dominatrix could be born—one with enough foot-stomping power and petulance to bend bossy parents, nasty boys, and the pleasure principle itself to her indomitable will. Now, seven studio albums later, Discipline reiterates the premise of Control, but as its fully mature apotheosis. Back in 1986, her stylized defiance always sounded a little playful, like a Sesame Street routine. But 2008's Dungeon Master Janet delivers id-riddled pop-funk that's as serious as a heart attack and marks a truly impressive transformation. It's not every day that an NAACP Image Award winner outs herself as a genuinely kinky girl who believes that hard work and focus turn pain into pleasure.

Which is why, if Island Def Jam were anthropomorphic and properly submissive, I'd have whipped the label bloody for making critics wait long beyond its promised "6 p.m. sharp" start time for their Discipline listening party. Yes, sadly, rather than having hours to carefully audit the 22 tracks on Janet's latest opus, I attended an Ash Wednesday carnival featuring stiletto-shod whip girls, decadent finger food, and free drinks before being ushered into a movie theater for one high-volume spin of the whole album.

That said, I must admit that Discipline is the most cohesive deep-groove album from La Jackson since Control. Considering that none of her current producers (most notably Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins, Ne-Yo, and Jermaine Dupri) are particularly known for underground house anthems, the after-hours dance beats that jet-propel you through the first six full songs—from a blacked-out Britney-esque "Feedback" to the funky up-tempo ballad "Can't B Good"—come as a huge, disco-licious surprise. Still, the visual aesthetic here is Irving Klaw bondage chic filtered through Helmut Newton and vintage James Van Der Zee (!); the irresistibly priapic music is simply its sonic complement. The CD artwork and b&w video collage looped on-screen throughout the listening party was full of black PVC, Ohio Player playfulness, and pervy leather. Guest cameos by Ernie Isley on guitar ("Never Letchu Go") and Missy Elliott on vocals ("The 1") nonetheless blend better than you'd think they could under Janet's silky soprano and compulsive need to compete—and succeed—on her own terms.

Discipline's title track proves the most lyrically provocative: If you thought Prince was raw on Dirty Mind, Michael's little sister ups the ante with hypnotic meter and melody. As the show-stopping penultimate cut, "Discipline" reveals Janet "topping from the bottom" like the best little switch in the world, crooning: "Daddy I disobeyed you/Now I want you to come punish me." Those who worry that Janet's ambitious Rhythm Nation 1814 agenda somehow got lost in her own personal Story of O must remember that sex and social change are not mutually exclusive. To understand what motivates the former is to understand what motivates the latter. For Janet, this truth justifies her mapping the transgressive emotional territory that floats her boat; her masochism emerges from mysterious depths that she probes to better understand and control herself. Discipline suggests that by understanding and transcending physical and emotional pain, we can find the keys to unshackle ourselves from more destructive and abstract forces in human life—like racism. It simply takes longer to erase the color line than to overcome a pesky pain threshold.

http://www.villagevoice.c...69,22.html

This is up to 66 on MetaCritic. Much stronger reviews than Damita Jo and 20 Y.O.

DawnD said:

I'm not mad, enjoy the music.

VinnyM27 said:

I told you guys 4 or 5 months ago that Janet would just be the singer on this album, so I don't know why any of you are surprised. It was obvious. Janet is not really a songwriter. Never was, never will be. Now when an artist is successful, they can go on writing amateurish crap, and no-one will question it. However, with Janet's career at such a lowpoint, she no longer has any negotiating power, and any sensible A&R man would have to make sure she was out of the way. No surprise there. Janet is not someone who's gonna kick up a fuss and demand she write the songs, for two reasons. 1) She is passive by nature, and is more comfortable going with the tide, rather than swimming against it. 2) She's not an artist anyway, so it's not like she's having to suppress something that's essential to her nature. She is probably relieved to have other people taking care of it, just like Rene used to do.


LOL, while you're waiting to hear Janet's insights on international politics perhaps you'd also like to hear Paula Abdul's take on the hostage situation in Darfur.

midnightmover said:

Calm down. It will be alright!

I wish I could read and remember every rumour, allegation and piece of news that came as Janet was making this album but don't. I remember one person saying that Jermaine would not be a producer/writer on the album, just an executive...that didn't happen, did it?

I don't think Janet is Dylan...she is barely Jody Wately as a songwriter...but she has a way with a lyric which has shown on "Control", "All For You" and "DJ" and to a lesser extent "DJ"...Notice I did not mention RN1814, janet or TVR since Rene came up with every single note on those albums, and Janet just took the credit!

I agree she is very passive, which is a reason she would not even fight to have any songwriting say on the album. Yet we think that she was aggresive enough to take songwriting credits she was not due for all of her unquestionably strong albums (from "Control" to TVR)? Interesting.

There is something that is Janet about most of her songs and it's a bit of a girlish glee which is not as present on this album as it is on others. It's very much there on AFY and DJ, less on 20Y0. She does add to the songwriting side and I wish I knew what she had to say. I don't think she is going to write the next great potlical album, but even something like TVR was political. As far as laughing off someone having expecations of a pop artist/writer...it could be worse. I could assume that someone like Rene is going to make something of his life as an "artist" and have a hard on for him. Meanwhile, he's best case scenerio is that he is living off Janet's money which he sued her for and not homeless!

Predicted to sell 180k and debut at #1.

VoicesCarry said:

Damn only 180k ???

banks said:

That's a good number for 2008.

I wish I could read and remember every rumour, allegation and piece of news that came as Janet was making this album but don't. I remember one person saying that Jermaine would not be a producer/writer on the album, just an executive...that didn't happen, did it?

She has a way with a lyric which has shown on "Control", "All For You" and "DJ" and to a lesser extent "DJ"...Notice I did not mention RN1814, janet or TVR since Rene came up with every single note on those albums, and Janet just took the credit!

Yet we think that she was aggresive enough to take songwriting credits she was not due for all of her unquestionably strong albums (from "Control" to TVR)? Interesting.

banks said:

That's a good number for 2008.

sextonseven said:

Please, when you have people like Miley Cyrus and The High School Musical kids selling 3 times that amount, that is really not impressive. Especially for someone like Janet who usually debuts with higher numbers. Talk about hypocrites up in here. I bet if this was that "other" Jackson who had sold that much, people in here would be singing a different tune and calling him a flop and saying he was over .

Anyway,I do like the album but I'm afraid it's gonna fall off the charts fast if the second single doesn't take off.
[Edited 2/27/08 11:58am]

Though Rene has offered a lot, it just may have been some of janet's vision too, especially in the late 80's and early 90's when her competition was mj in his prime. Although she has produced good music since, since Velvet Rope I got a sense that she didn't have the vision anymore in terms of music videos and dancing anymore, even if it was good work that I enjoy, she relied more on outside producers since.

and yeah she really does look like rick james, she always did with the long, thick hair style she sported for years, especially when she did that and wore all white.

the song discipline gives me more the reason to also believe that janet allows men to control her, far from the janet we were exposed to from control and rhythm nation, where everyone said janet does what she wants, not these days.

I aint complaining though, I love the album for the most part and can't stop playing it. Well done janet!

sextonseven said:

Please, when you have people like Miley Cyrus and The High School Musical kids selling 3 times that amount, that is really not impressive. Especially for someone like Janet who usually debuts with higher numbers. Talk about hypocrites up in here. I bet if this was that "other" Jackson who had sold that much, people in here would be singing a different tune and calling him a flop and saying he was over .

Anyway,I do like the album but I'm afraid it's gonna fall off the charts fast if the second single doesn't take off.
[Edited 2/27/08 11:58am]

VinnyM27 said:

I was one of the people saying that JD was not involved because that's what he was telling the media, he said that LA was handling Janet and his focus was on Mariah, but i'm not upset with his contributions this time around

banks said:

JD lies and is not be trusted although unlike "20 YO", his contributions here are good...except I just noticed he is resposible for "So Much Betta", easily the worst Janet track ever (not to make this a Madonna thread, but for her fans to understand this, this is Janet's "Did You Do It?"). "Rock With U" and "Never Letchu Go" are two strong tracks IMHO.

VinnyM27 said:

What's this got to do with anything? I didn't predict Janet would have no creative role in this album because I heard a rumour. It was my own deduction based on the simple application of common sense. At this point, any record company investing major resources in reviving the Janet brand is taking a risk and will not waste time pretending Janet is some kind of artist. Their priority would be to buy some tunes for her. Janet herself has never had an artistic vision anyway, so she'd be happy to go along with it. Knowing these things is how I could see this was going to be an A&R man's album. I said that months ago.




I think we all know it was Rene's decision to not take his rightful credits. It had nothing to with Janet being "aggressive". It was actually another example of her being compliant. When she eventually revealed the truth in '97 it was only because Rene decided it was time to do so. Janet actually was happy to continue the lie, but Rene decreed otherwise and so she did what her man wanted.

VinnyM27 said:

So Much Betta is an awesome track to my ears. Very Prince-like and loose. I adore it. And the Daft Punk sample is well used.

midnightmover said:

Is this Rene posting?

Sometimes even the the worst albums are often better than or more complext than just their singles. And even a Rene lover like you has to give it up to "All Nite". It's one thing to be critical, but to come into a thread with an axe to grind is kind of strange. I don't argue that all the albums were a slip in quality from first four with Jimmy and Terry, but considering a little album called "Control" and the fact that Jimmy and Terry would put themselves out there to say that Rene was never a factor in the studio and songwriting based on their observations, maybe Rene was not the mastermind of her career? Maybe, gasp, a female pop singer can be a songwriter can have vision and not be the product of some man behind the scenes (for some reason, unless you carry a guitar, every female pop star that has writing credits comes under this scurtiny).

Rene apologists are SOO 2001! Seriously, it's getting to the strange point that people are givine more credit to Rene than to Jimmy and Terry (who BTW, had tracks on RN1814 that were hit singles and did not feature a Janet writing credit...was that some kind of sinister plan, too?).