Never really got into her before, but this is really good. Loving the afrobeat vibe running throughout. Really fun album.
ArchAndroid and Electric Lady have some of her best songs, no question, but they're both way too long and both second halves drag in multiple areas
I have to disagree. The last few songs of both those albums are insanely good. Wondaland, Say You’ll Go, BaBopByeYa, Dorothy Dandridge Eyes, What an Experience??? All unbelievably good songs
I think ArchAndroid does drag and dip a little in the back half but I still like that stuff more than what she's doing here except for that one song with the of Montreal guy.
her first two albums are bloated, but in a way that works in their favor IMO. they're cinematic and immersive, and even the weaker tracks (which are still good) serve a purpose to the encompassing story / emotional space
Ok but... Sally Ride, Victory, It's Code, Neon Valley, Bus, the number one... There's plenty of fat that could be cut
Victory is an awesome song and so is Neon Valley Street, especially the latter. The number one is basically an (extremely luxurious) interlude. Not huge on the others but I can see others making an argument for them, besides Make the Bus which is just bad lol
To be honest, I barely remember most of those and I've heard them a million times. I love both albums, I really do, but I'm just trying to get at how bloated they are. I know it's the point because each one is essentially two albums, but still
i've heard many praises for her first two albums, but have never gotten around to listening to them. maybe it's because i was waiting for her to finish the Metropolis Saga in full before listening, but clearly that's not happening any time soon. will give them a spin here in the near future.
I tend to agree with Steve here. There's nothing I'd call bad, but I can't really engage in discussions about the back halves of ArchAndroid or Electric Lady. But some of that is I guess what's cool about it, since they're very much "listen start to finish" albums. I'd probably love them even more if they were around 50 minutes each though. Also I love the new album - it still has a ton of Janelle's unique style, it's just a little more condensed and neatly packaged.
I don't see how this is anything but her worst album but there are some definite highlights on it still
Went to this show Thursday. Not my favorite album of here’s, but it was sooo fun live. I actually think this tour was better than Dirty Computer even though I love that album more