the new vh album is shit. like the new prince album 20ten or whatever it was called.

xperience319 said:

the new vh album is shit. like the new prince album 20ten or whatever it was called.

I'm glad more than me is disagreeing with you on this one. This album is to me more interresting than anything Prince released the last two decades. Been listening to it non stop for a week now. I knew I just witnessed some new great stuff the first time I heard it, but couldn't really put my finger on what made me want to listen to it again. It was a bit weird to me in the beginning, as he has a bit of a talking flow sometimes when he is singing. It's kinda like he is a singing Common or something, but with a more sexy edge to it. His hooks seems a bit forced on a couple of songs as they come a bit unnaturally to me. Especially on the song watching you go crazy. But overall I have not heard an album on this level of reinventing genres and bridging gaps like he just did. He is retro considering the mixing of each instrument and his sometimes extremly obvious borrowing from legendary idols, yet futuristic in the combination and putting old elements in a new perspective and updated social context.

No: wrong answer.

The New Van Hunt album maybe is the Prince album some people who love a certain type of R&B are waiting for.

Brendan said:

allsmutaside said:

Could Miseducation of L Boogie happen right now?

I don't think so. See Janelle Monae.

I think it could, but it wouldn't have been as big as it was.

Come to think of it, I think Lauryn's fans would have enjoyed a whole lot more music by now had it NOT been as big as it was.

Replica said:

xperience319 said:

the new vh album is shit. like the new prince album 20ten or whatever it was called.

I'm glad more than me is disagreeing with you on this one. This album is to me more interresting than anything Prince released the last two decades.

ohh lawrd......

Graycap23 said:

Replica said:

I'm glad more than me is disagreeing with you on this one. This album is to me more interresting than anything Prince released the last two decades.

ohh lawrd......

as a whole, atleast after mid 90s, I haven't heard a single Prince album that I wanted to put on repeat as much as this new Van Hunt. That's mostly because many of his good albums after this period, had equally many fillers as actual good songs. Even Emancipation which I love, has a whole bunch of fillers.

This album is atleast a b+ imo. The only thing I find questionable with this album is him leaning onto his influences a bit too much, like he is emulating them and serving it on a plate. So by this he sometimes looses song focus imo. On first listen he sounds more comfortable being everyone else than himself. Luckily even though I'm very familiar with many of his idols, after listening a couple of times, I don't mind what first thought of as very obvious influences since his personal quality in his voice is shining through as one gets to know him. So I got mixed feelings after first listen, but was wildly interested in getting to know it, now I'm sold.

One thing Prince has though, that I think Van Hunt is missing even on such a great album is appearance. Prince makes it sound like he is the only thing you should listen too as he speaks directly to the listener, while Van Hunts background friendly voice is easier to not pay attention too. This is even when Van Hunt is doing many vocal acrobatics. He just isn't demanding the listener to pay attention. It's just soothing for those who likes such music. Prince always win on the attention part because of his cockyness and edge.

Replica said:

Graycap23 said:

ohh lawrd......

as a whole, atleast after mid 90s, I haven't heard a single Prince album that I wanted to put on repeat as much as this new Van Hunt. That's mostly because many of his good albums after this period, had equally many fillers as actual good songs. Even Emancipation which I love, has a whole bunch of fillers.

This album is atleast a b+ imo. The only thing I find questionable with this album is him leaning onto his influences a bit too much, like he is emulating them and serving it on a plate. So by this he sometimes looses song focus imo. On first listen he sounds more comfortable being everyone else than himself. Luckily even though I'm very familiar with many of his idols, after listening a couple of times, I don't mind what first thought of as very obvious influences since his personal quality in his voice is shining through as one gets to know him. So I got mixed feelings after first listen, but was wildly interested in getting to know it, now I'm sold.

One thing Prince has though, that I think Van Hunt is missing even on such a great album is appearance. Prince makes it sound like he is the only thing you should listen too as he speaks directly to the listener, while Van Hunts background friendly voice is easier to not pay attention too. This is even when Van Hunt is doing many vocal acrobatics. He just isn't demanding the listener to pay attention. It's just soothing for those who likes such music. Prince always win on the attention part because of his cockyness and edge.

I never understood why people comparing Prince's recent stuff everytime Van Hunt drops a new CD. What is this his sixth or seventh CD, why not compare to Prince's first six or seven? why compare it to Prince recents release. Is that fair? Are we to assume that Van Hunt himself is going to be innovative and perfect 20 years from now without hitting his peak like most artist do? Not knocking you at all, just a thought. I have to give this CD a few more listens myself.

wonder505 said:

Replica said:

as a whole, atleast after mid 90s, I haven't heard a single Prince album that I wanted to put on repeat as much as this new Van Hunt. That's mostly because many of his good albums after this period, had equally many fillers as actual good songs. Even Emancipation which I love, has a whole bunch of fillers.

This album is atleast a b+ imo. The only thing I find questionable with this album is him leaning onto his influences a bit too much, like he is emulating them and serving it on a plate. So by this he sometimes looses song focus imo. On first listen he sounds more comfortable being everyone else than himself. Luckily even though I'm very familiar with many of his idols, after listening a couple of times, I don't mind what first thought of as very obvious influences since his personal quality in his voice is shining through as one gets to know him. So I got mixed feelings after first listen, but was wildly interested in getting to know it, now I'm sold.

One thing Prince has though, that I think Van Hunt is missing even on such a great album is appearance. Prince makes it sound like he is the only thing you should listen too as he speaks directly to the listener, while Van Hunts background friendly voice is easier to not pay attention too. This is even when Van Hunt is doing many vocal acrobatics. He just isn't demanding the listener to pay attention. It's just soothing for those who likes such music. Prince always win on the attention part because of his cockyness and edge.

I never understood why people comparing Prince's recent stuff everytime Van Hunt drops a new CD. What is this his sixth or seventh CD, why not compare to Prince's first six or seven? why compare it to Prince recents release. Is that fair? Are we to assume that Van Hunt himself is going to be innovative and perfect 20 years from now without hitting his peak like most artist do? Not knocking you at all, just a thought. I have to give this CD a few more listens myself.

Personally the reason why I compare good efforts to prince, is because I put Prince VERY HIGH, meaning that even if he is a legendary artist on so many levels and dimensions, this effort of Van Hunt is so good that I prefer it to later efforts of Prince. Prince is still Prince on a bad day, and even on his "bad" albums he has a few gems that often make it worth buying.

Prince between Dirty Mind and Sign of The Times was so damn good that most of my favourite artists can't compare. However, some of them are also very minimalistic, making albums Van Hunts last album sound more "complex" than albums like Dirty Mind. However Dirty Mind was imo more clever and ignorant and arrogant at the same time mixing excisting styles in a way that made it completely new to my ears. While Van Hunt is mixing each instrument in a "lo fi" retro way, the way his favourite instrumentalists were mixed on their albums, Prince took styles from one, and mixed it with the sound of another, making it not so obvious. Playing your guitar like a like hendrix and santana in a punk way through a gary numan "filter" makes it less noticable than when Van Hunt is mixing the bass almost excatly the same way Larry Graham was mixed on sly records, as well as playing in a similar way. Notice also the sly tendencies and curtis mayfield emulation served on a plate. Prince Dirty Mind created something new, while Van Hunt made a collage of many cool things. However his collage is tasteful enough to be considered a great piece of art imo. Collage can be art too. This is the modern sampling time, he is clearly inspired by new hip hop producers too, as well as the modern indie rock scene.

smoothcriminal12 said:

duccichucka said:

Um, yes.

Are you trying to tell me that Paul McCartney, Stevie Wonder or Marcus Miller

are not extraordinarily versatile?; that they cannot play proficiently more than two

instruments (Paul: piano, guitar, base) (Wonder: drums, keys, harmonica) (Miller: anything

you place in his hands)?; that their body of work contain songs easily placed in more

than one two or three genres and/or subgenres? That it is Prince who holds and owns

the trademark to musical diversity?

Nigguh please. Get off of Prince's nuts. To suppose that Prince is one of a kind is to

suppose that God's gift of creation is not varied but limited: I'm not going that far, homie.

Set us back 60 years why don't you.

That is a term of endearment in Black America; especially among my

friends. And the word "nigga/nigguh" has an acceptable place, if given

the correct context. Words are all about context; for example:

Define the word "red."

Good luck with that, my nigguh.

EDIT: find the George Carlin video on how we use words. Its brilliant.

[Edited 10/6/11 10:32am]

namepeace said:

Meloh9 said:

I find this album to be the next logical step from Popular. What Were You Hoping For sounds like the work of a young garage band anxious to hit the stage and blow you away, but with the expert touch of an accomplished musician and a soul man’s aesthetic.

We have to keep in mind that Van is in his early forties, and has been around behind the scenes much longer than some may realize.

I wonder if some of these tracks had been released in the mid 90’s would they fit right in with the raw and open, somewhat experimental sound of the Alternative era. Yet being released in this day and age, it is of greater value for it’s uncommonly experimental overtone.

I love the fact that the album ends on a dark note . . . the music was at times a true journey for the listener.

This is an artist that is challenging himself to establish his own style, and while I find it to be an excellent hybrid of styles that our familiar to me, I have a feeling he is just getting started, and I hope that each future released will be just as challenging, yet just as focused.

Just think if this was the standard of today’s black music scene, we wouldn’t think it to be different or challenging, yet, we appreciate it even more so for its heart and bravery in the face of today’s contemporary cookie cutter music scene.

Great insight, Meloh9.

I finally listened to the album from beginning to end, with no distractions. To answer the question, I didn't get what I'd hoped for, but I'm glad.

VH has always had a unique voice, even if the sounds surrounding it have been familiar to varying degrees.

WWYHF is literally a definitive album for Van Hunt. Out of many influences, Van Hunt has produced a record truly distinguishable from those to whom he sometimes casually and inaccurately compared.

This is no Prince album; Prince can't "do" this one because it is (also literally) personal, the product of Van's own sensibilities.

I still enjoy On The Jungle Floor more, but on first listen, I can say this is the greatest Van Hunt project to date.

That is certainly well put by Meloh.

And Namepeace's post is well put too, except for the preference for On The Jungle Floor;

I prefer Popular!...

...Goddamn that is an awesome album.

uhhhh...not really

xperience319 said:

the new vh album is shit. like the new prince album 20ten or whatever it was called.

I have to say, I'm not impressed at all. I only liked 3 songs on 20ten but I don't like any song on this VH cd.

Riverman37 said:

No: wrong answer.

The New Van Hunt album maybe is the Prince album some people who love a certain type of R&B are waiting for.

Umm, except it's NOT r&b...

[Edited 10/6/11 17:54pm]

Graycap23 said:

Replica said:

I'm glad more than me is disagreeing with you on this one. This album is to me more interresting than anything Prince released the last two decades.

ohh lawrd......

I'm sayin'...

Why anyone would even think of comparing VH to Prince is beyond me. He's nothing like Prince, never has been anything like Prince and doesn't really try to be anything like Prince...Sheesh!

Why not just make a thread about the cd and let Van Hunt be who he is? The comparison is silly.

Huh, is this album really that good? I quite enjoyed his first album but haven't heard anything else. Since it was never officially released I guess I shouldn't feel guilty about "stealing" Popular so I'll give that a listen. Is On the Jungle Floor worth a listen? I've been meaning to pick it up since it was released but never got around to it.

babynoz said:

Graycap23 said:

ohh lawrd......

I'm sayin'...

Why anyone would even think of comparing VH to Prince is beyond me. He's nothing like Prince, never has been anything like Prince and doesn't really try to be anything like Prince...Sheesh!

Why not just make a thread about the cd and let Van Hunt be who he is? The comparison is silly.

Silly 2 the 6th power.

Graycap23 said:

babynoz said:

I'm sayin'...

Why anyone would even think of comparing VH to Prince is beyond me. He's nothing like Prince, never has been anything like Prince and doesn't really try to be anything like Prince...Sheesh!

Why not just make a thread about the cd and let Van Hunt be who he is? The comparison is silly.

Silly 2 the 6th power.

I don't like to compare either, but I can see how folks would list them as the same genre both are eclectic and they share the same influences. It's not that big of a stretch.

WetDream said:

tricky99 said:

Very tiring. Why is it that folks can't let other artists "be who they be" without trying to shit on Prince? Van hunt is Van Hunt and has zero to do with Prince other than being a fan of Prince like everybody else. If you love what Van Hunt is doing great! But it has nothing to do with Prince's journey as a musician.

I never have understood liking an artist but then wondering why they aren't doing what some other artist is doing. Duh! its because they are different people lol.

Some are acting like Van Hunt is the second coming. I just don't hear that at all. He is certainly making music "outside of the box" but I don't hear classic songs or even emotionally moving songs. The brother is talented but he is not a legend in the making as some of you would have it. Really at 40-plus if he was really all that he would already be considerd one.

Its all a matter of opinion but I would take Prince's latest work over Van Hunt's any day

and every day. I just don't hear the "genius" in Van Hunt. Maybe that's my loss but what I hear is a lot of "production". With Prince I hear it in the simple and complex music he makes. I mean something like "Love like Jazz" that many find dismissable I hear the work of someone who it at home with melody and groove. Prince doesn't have to bludgeon you over the head with production even though he can and has. Not to mention that Prince really is much better singer and musicion than Van Hunt. Hey I'm biased lol.

Always appreciated your objective thinking whilst maintaining that deserved respect for Prince and mostly stating my mind too. It's unfortunate that i have to resort to lurking due to the absurdities of this place at times. So let it be known, i appreciate your posts.

babynoz said:

Riverman37 said:

No: wrong answer.

The New Van Hunt album maybe is the Prince album some people who love a certain type of R&B are waiting for.

Umm, except it's NOT r&b...

[Edited 10/6/11 17:54pm]

Which is what I said earlier on. I respect his decision to experiment musically but to ALSO experiment sonically in tandem on the same record with every song is asking for trouble.

This is not an R&B record. His audience has been primarily R&B fans. Some will give him a shot and others will be totally alienated. Also, traditionally when an artist experiments with their style, its to draw in more fans rather than to go even more niche and ecclectic. To completely abandon any semblence of what drew people to you in the first place is a big and unusual move altogether.

Musically, this is his most adventurous CD. Stylistically, its his most original.

Still...

Its not R&B, which means those people who like tight harmonies and nice melodies or driving drum beats, grooving bass lines and funky guitar riffs are going to turn it off and proceed with caution the next time he drops a new disc.

The artist in him is probably cool with that. The producer in him is going to shit in his pants and yell "WTF was I thinking?"

BlaqueKnight said:

babynoz said:

Umm, except it's NOT r&b...

[Edited 10/6/11 17:54pm]

Which is what I said earlier on. I respect his decision to experiment musically but to ALSO experiment sonically in tandem on the same record with every song is asking for trouble.

This is not an R&B record. His audience has been primarily R&B fans. Some will give him a shot and others will be totally alienated. Also, traditionally when an artist experiments with their style, its to draw in more fans rather than to go even more niche and ecclectic. To completely abandon any semblence of what drew people to you in the first place is a big and unusual move altogether.

Musically, this is his most adventurous CD. Stylistically, its his most original.

Still...

Its not R&B, which means those people who like tight harmonies and nice melodies or driving drum beats, grooving bass lines and funky guitar riffs are going to turn it off and proceed with caution the next time he drops a new disc.

The artist in him is probably cool with that. The producer in him is going to shit in his pants and yell "WTF was I thinking?"

I'm right in between. I loved the harmonies, melodies, beats, bass, riffs, etc. but I want to support the cat for going in new directions when other artists would have burned out and given up. That's why I support him and Me'Shell virtually unconditionally.

I KNEW this album would be different. And I was prepared to shelve it after one listen. But several listens in, I think it's brilliant, and unique. He even caught Rolling Stone's attention.

tricky99 said:

Some are acting like Van Hunt is the second coming. I just don't hear that at all. He is certainly making music "outside of the box" but I don't hear classic songs or even emotionally moving songs. The brother is talented but he is not a legend in the making as some of you would have it. Really at 40-plus if he was really all that he would already be considerd one.

I disagree.

The fact that you think someone would already be considered a musical legend based on his age brings to question your understanding of the business side of music. There are great artists walking around with 10-20 CDs recorded that only a handful of people know. Lack of popularity does not have a bearing on quality of work. If Stevie Wonder only recorded Talking Book, he'd still be a genius. If only 10 people bought it, it would still be a brilliant record.

As to the classic songs thing - I hear them. The quality is there even if the popularity isn't. If songs like "Down Here In Hell" got the same amount of rotation as Lil Wayne and Trey Songz get, it would EASILY become a classic, outlasting anything by Lil Wayne or Trey Songz.

Van on keys and vocals


Van on Bass and vocals


Van on guitar on vocals

Come on. Dude is the truth. He's not a "2nd coming" - he's his own artist.

Slightly off topic but I just heard Popular and have been spinning it quite a bit since yesterday. There was a promotional disc of this, right? Presumably that is the source of the versions floating around. Does anyone know if it is available as a FLAC? The version I have is 224 KBps which sounds good enough but if there is a FLAC available I will seek it out.

Meloh9 said:

And this is where the Prince comparison comes in. We can argue that Prince abandoned the R&B audience with the album Dirty Mind, he had just had a top Ten R&B hit the previous year. Dirty Mind is not an R&B album, it has funk, as we know, but especially for the time of it's release it was not an album one could market to the R&B audiences. Same with what were you hoping for, it has some funk on it, but is primarily a punk rock album with playful embellishments that flirt with other genres. I am not sure that Van held onto a primarily R&B audience, but if that is the case, it seems he is pulling a Dirty Mind, and seeking to establish his own audience that simply want to hear Van Hunt, regardless of classification.

Agreed again.

As Prince did with Dirty Mind, and countless other great artsts did with definitive works, Van Hunt made an album that is indisuputably his own.

[Edited 10/7/11 15:34pm]

I'm still digesting What Were You Hoping For? after having it about a week. I'm still not sure how I feel about it musically. Lyrically, Van is better than pretty much anyone else in his generation that I can think of. But it seems like a lot of the experimentation he's doing has some at the expense of melodicism. I noticed it quite a bit on Popular, that while there were still melodies on some of the songs, some of the others seemed to be more about chord changes or the instrumental arrangements, which is cool, it was just jarring coming off the past two albums.

I have to say, I LIKE WWYHF? but I'm not sure if I'll ever love it or not. I listen to a lot of experimental electronic music, but for whatever reason, I'm not sure about Van's experimental trip. As crazy as some of that stuff gets, there's usually SOME kind of hook in there somewhere, but this album is kind of weak in that respect.

To me, Van's greatest strength is as a songwriter, but it seems like he's pushed that part of himself to the back burner in a sense, musically anyway. I also wish he'd included the lyrics in the documentation.

Like I've said, I've had the record a week and am still digesting it. I still prefer Jungle Floor, but this one is growing on me. I also wish I had been able to see him live when he was here. Sometimes hearing the music live really seals the deal for me.

Meloh9 said:

And this is where the Prince comparison comes in. We can argue that Prince abandoned the R&B audience with the album Dirty Mind, he had just had a top Ten R&B hit the previous year. Dirty Mind is not an R&B album, it has funk, as we know, but especially for the time of it's release it was not an album one could market to the R&B audiences. Same with what were you hoping for, it has some funk on it, but is primarily a punk rock album with playful embellishments that flirt with other genres. I am not sure that Van held onto a primarily R&B audience, but if that is the case, it seems he is pulling a Dirty Mind, and seeking to establish his own audience that simply want to hear Van Hunt, regardless of classification.

I don't know how old you are but funk and R&B went hand-in-hand back then. Head was funk, which made it R&B friendly; so was Party Up Uptown was "poppy" rock/R&B. I'm sorry but Van's musical venture is completely off the grid. Plum and Eyes Like Pearls might get a pass but the rest of the record is very "alt". Prince was never that far off the course in his earlier years. He waited until he "made it" to take major chances, hence my comparison to ATWIAD rather than Dirty Mind. But even more of a departure is the MIX. The way it was mixed is very, very niche. The sonic texture alone can be a turn off to some.

[Edited 10/7/11 21:18pm]

I think it's quite interesting last weekend when I saw him live that many folks were kind of alienated by the new music. Many were expecting Seconds of Pleasure over the course of a house and a half lol...

BlaqueKnight said:

Meloh9 said:

And this is where the Prince comparison comes in. We can argue that Prince abandoned the R&B audience with the album Dirty Mind, he had just had a top Ten R&B hit the previous year. Dirty Mind is not an R&B album, it has funk, as we know, but especially for the time of it's release it was not an album one could market to the R&B audiences. Same with what were you hoping for, it has some funk on it, but is primarily a punk rock album with playful embellishments that flirt with other genres. I am not sure that Van held onto a primarily R&B audience, but if that is the case, it seems he is pulling a Dirty Mind, and seeking to establish his own audience that simply want to hear Van Hunt, regardless of classification.

I don't know how old you are but funk and R&B went hand-in-hand back then. Head was funk, which made it R&B friendly; so was Party Up Uptown was "poppy" rock/R&B. I'm sorry but Van's musical venture is completely off the grid. Plum and Eyes Like Pearls might get a pass but the rest of the record is very "alt". Prince was never that far off the course in his earlier years. He waited until he "made it" to take major chances, hence my comparison to ATWIAD rather than Dirty Mind. But even more of a departure is the MIX. The way it was mixed is very, very niche. The sonic texture alone can be a turn off to some.

[Edited 10/7/11 21:18pm]

I don't quite think that was Meloh's point; rather, that like DM, WWYHF is a departure from his earlier work that goes a long way to sharpening VH's identity as an artist. Great points nonetheless.

rialb said:

AlexdeParis said:

rialb said:

Huh, is this album really that good? I quite enjoyed his first album but haven't heard anything else. Since it was never officially released I guess I shouldn't feel guilty about "stealing" Popular so I'll give that a listen. Is On the Jungle Floor worth a listen? I've been meaning to pick it up since it was released but never got around to it.

On the Jungle Floor beats out Popular as my favorite Van Hunt album. I'm warming up to WWYHF, but it's still a distant fourth at this point.

I quite like Popular so I'll be getting On the Jungle Floor eventually.

What was this cat doing for most of the '90s? Seems like he was a bit of a late bloomer.