How do you really write about a new Prince album? The Artist Formerly known as Squiggle has for the second time licensed a new album for distribution in a UK tabloid. 3 Million copies of 2007’s Planet Earth was given away with a Sunday newspaper for free but shortly after that Prince sold out the 02 in London for an incredible 21 nights, generating £11 million sterling.
Like the strange person he is, he has also recently said the internet is dead.. yeah ok. Prince Rogers Nelson, you may be nutty enough to say that or not allow your music on Youtube but you’re still clever enough to play the game. So what’s the music like?
Pretty damn good actually. 20Ten kicks off with ‘Compassion’, an upbeat track sounding like it came out of 1984. We’re talking Prince circa Let’s Go Crazy. ‘Beginning Endlessly’ is so familiar, its Prince with his signature harmonies, synth sounds and funky guitar sounds. This is basically Squiggle getting down and dirty at the ripe ole age of 52.
‘Sticky Like Glue’ is a mid-tempo track with a little rap break in the middle, this guy has obviously been an influence on Justin Timberlake. It has a memorable hook and will get in your head. There’s nothing we haven’t heard from Prince on this album before and of the nine tracks and the untitled track at the end, there isn’t really a dud. ‘Act of God’ could be considered this album’s ‘Sign o the Times’, a worldly conscious tale of tax dollars, home repossessions and ‘Dirty Fat Bankers’. If had to be released when Prince was at his so called prime, ‘Lavaux’ would be a hit. It’s a mid-tempo track again the trademark funky guitar and reminds this writer of The Pointer Sisters 1983 hit, Automatic.
Some of the tracks are a little more down tempo than I would have liked but this is the guy who gave us the raunchiest song ever, the amazing ‘Cream’. I’m not sure if the album is very eighties or in the eighties Prince was ahead of everyone else. Either way this sees Prince back on top of his game. But after listening to this album, I’ve come to the conclusion, Squiggle needs his own genre. There’s soul, there’s rock, there’s funk and there’s Prince.
Get a copy and do your ears some good.