Prince - ‘3121′
General Description
Artist/Band: Prince
Album Title: 3121
Year: 2006
Return or rerun? Comeback or Classic?
How I Got Into This Music
Man, read my other Prince reviews and get the story there ;o)
Anyway, after being a very, very dedicated fan of this genius’ music for quite a frigging while, I quit listening to his stuff about ten years ago. But I always was curious for his new work and would never, ever pass on a chance to see him live..
Now his latest album 3121 is out, so..
Tracks that got my attention:
3121
One of the best opening tracks of any album! You sense a buzz of excitement with those lazy keyboards and shrill guitar work. The morphed multi-track vocals remind me a lil bit of Moloko’s “Fun For Me”, but the chorus is a great chant.
Lolita
Any Prince fan gets thrilled by the old school approach of the Purple One! Very tongue in cheek stuff on a somewhat formulaic track. Doesn’t mean I would mind to shake my booty to this track, heheh..
Te Amo Corazon
No way.. Please.. Argh! This is typical Prince: “I want to make this song and I don’t care what others think of it..”. Well that’s my guess coz I can’t imagine why else he’d make this yucky candy-sweet track
Black Sweat
A West Coast style intro and the man’s nasty falsetto voice grooving and grinding. Catchy and very electro-funky!
Here’s a Youtube link to the video.. Nice comedic and minimalist approach and who the hell’s that girl at the turntable?!?
“You’ll be screaming like a white lady when I count to three..”
Heheh..
Incense and Candles
Hmm.. There a lot of very excruciating methods of torture that wouldn’t be as painful as the use of the vocal post production effect made popular by Cher’s “Do you believe in love” (or something). Prince uses this gizmo too and.. thank God the rest of the track’s good enough to minimize the damage.. Nasty lyrics, though..
Love
Sometimes this track reminds me of Madonna’s “Music” and a bunch of other songs (Michael Jackson?) but the most incredible part is the chorus, lovely!
Satisfied
Now this is what I like about Prince’s music: nobody does a love blues track like this guy.. Man, it’s the ultimate Dim The Lights, Honey. It’s Time To Get.. Nasty⢠track! Even though he’s not singing about anything physical “coz 4play starts in the mind“..
Fury
Remember the whole drama with the Phil Collins “Sussudio” track sounding waaaay too much like Prince’s “1999″? Well, now he swipes from himself, I guess ;o)
Not a very good song..
The Word
Another track I can’t really comprehend: I like the guitar licks and the great chorus work (especially the horn!!), but it also sounds like a dozen other tracks he made before.
Beautiful, Loved and Blessed
Absolutely great, fantastic, wonderful!! Love it, love it, love it! New talent Tamar doing the vocals; almost solo, something I’ve never heard before on a Prince track - someone else doing the vocals.. This track’s a ray of sunshine that’d brighten up the rainiest of days. That bit with Tamar’s multi-vocals, lovely!
The Dance
Just shoot me..
Get On The Boat
Perfect track for a concert theme - show opening, show closing, filler - it’s funky and addictive!
Conclusion
The man’s a genius, period. But..
Dunno, I’m excited about this album coz it’s got this interesting mix of old and new. But it also got some rehashed stuff that just doesn’t cut it anymore.. Is it a comeback? Well, some’d say his comeback was with the “Musicology” release. Is it a Classic? Nah, just nice nostalgia. And this guy doesn’t do comebacks, he still does what he wants to do whatever the sales (kinda).
Is it funky? Sometimes and when it is, it takes no prisoners.
Another weird thing that happened to me with this album, was that in the space of a month I heard some of his tracks being played on a “mellow urban jazz easy listening” radio station and I heard a track being played in a typical Dutch pub (yes, there really is such a thing..) So it feels like this album’s not really something fresh and exciting, but more mainstream and.. well.. safe, I guess..
Rating: 
(nostalgia only gets you that far..)
