Prince Unveils Two Very Different New Albums, “Art Official Age” and “PlectrumElectrum”
Prince, one of the great icons in popular music over the last three decades, unleashes two new studio albums today: the pop/R&B flavored Art Official Age and the smokin’ funk/rock collection PlectrumElectrum, which features his smoldering all-female backing trio 3rdEyeGirl. The albums are Prince’s first full-length releases since 2010 when his 20ten album was distributed as an extra in various European publications (it was never released in the U.S., but was easily accessible on eBay). The new albums are a strong return – at minimum they are as solid as his two best albums of the last decade, Lotusflow3r (2009) and 3121 (2006).
Art Official Age is a slick collection of enigmatic but funky pop and soulful R&B ballads with a futuristic vibe. It opens with the upbeat, spacey “Art Official Cage,” a remarkable studio creation that starts as a an electronic dance raver before breaking down and changing tempos several times as Prince’s electronically manipulated vocals intertwine with bits and samples of effects and voices from out of nowhere. It’s a bit surreal and bewildering, but it’s remarkably creative and couldn’t be a more perfect opener.
The beautiful ballad “Breakdown,” featuring Prince in his sweetest falsetto, is the album’s emotional centerpiece and a definite high point. The funky, experimental “Gold Standard” also stands out – it’s a classic Prince groove. “This Could Be Us” is a lovely romantic ballad, and “Way Back Home” is surreally beautiful. Art Official Age also includes the endearingly quirky “Breakfast Can Wait,” which generated some buzz when it was released as a single last year. The long, sultry ballad “Time,” featuring prominent vocals by Prince protégé Andy Allo, makes up the core of the second half of the album. Add it to the list of classic Prince slow-jams. Allo also guests on the funky mid-tempo “What it Feels Like,” and British artist Lianne La Havas provides vocals on the euphoric “Clouds,” another of the album’s strongest moments – Prince’s multi-layered vocals are exquisite, and Lianne La Havas’ counter-melody is sublime.
Overall Art Official Age is crisp and pristine, modern and contemporary while maintaining Prince’s distinct sound. It’s a welcome return. Every once in a while Prince will put something out that reminds everyone just how freakishly talented he actually is, and these two albums do exactly that.
PlectrumElectrum is a full-throttle rock album, featuring some of the most incendiary guitar-work of Prince’s career. He’s backed with the stellar trio 3rdEyeGirl, made up of Donna Grantis, Ida Nielson and Hannah Welton-Ford, and they provide a rock-solid foundation for Prince to get completely wild on the guitar. It starts from the very beginning, with the bluesy-rocker “Wow.” Prince unleashes his guitar on this album like no other in recent memory, with the possible exception of Lotusflow3r. If you like your Prince with a heavy dose of searing guitar-work, PlectrumElectrum is the album for you. Other highlights include the catchy funk-rocker “Pretzelbodylogic,” the ferocious “FixUrLifeUp,” the gorgeous ballad “TicTacToe” and the fantastic “AnotherLove,” a cover of a track by the uber-talented American rock/R&B artist Alice Smith from her 2003 album She. The title-track is a bluesy guitar-heavy instrumental written by Donna Grantis, and it boasts some killer riffs.
One track appears on both albums—the hard groovin’ “FunkAndRoll.” The version on Art Official Age is more electronic whereas the PlectrumElectrum version features more heavy guitar. Both versions work, and it would be a difficult task to choose which one is better. If it had been released when Prince was still scoring hits on the pop charts, “FUNKANDROLL” surely would have been a major hit. These days radio pretty much ignores Prince, which is a shame because he still has a lot to offer musically, as his two new albums prove. Several tracks on both albums would make outstanding singles.
Several of the tracks on PlectrumElectrum (“AintTurninAround,” “Whitcaps,” and “StopThisTrain”) feature Hannah Welton-Ford on lead vocals, and she does a fine job. Overall PlectrumElectrum doesn’t have the ambition or pristine futuristic production of the more electronic Art Electric Age, but it’s a perfect counterpoint in its rawness and the sheer ferocity of its guitar-work. The two albums work beautifully together, exploring Prince’s many styles and his legendary musical virtuosity. At 56, the man’s vocals have never sounded better, and he proves that he’s still an ace songwriter.
Art Official Age and PlectrumElectrum combined offer an abundance of musical riches, and they are at least as good as anything he’s released since The Gold Experience in 1995. New Prince music is always cause for excitement, and he doesn’t disappoint with these two very different but exceptionally strong additions to his already immense catalog of music.
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