"LotusFlow3r" then

Two posts in one day? Crikey!

As I said earlier, Prince has released a new album - a three CD set (when it appears in the shops anyway - currently only available as a download) called "LotusFlow3r". The first disk is the titular one, the second is called "MPLSound" and is full of songs recorded using his old kit so it sounds a bit retro, and the third is called "Elixer", all of the tracks sung by a woman called Bria Valente.

I've just finished listening to the "Lotusflower" set (haven't tried the other two yet)...

I've been a huge Prince fan since 1983, seeing him nine times in concert and he's simply the best performer out there. His star has waned since around 1990 for me, and since then his albums have been extremely patchy - "The Gold Experience" and "The Rainbow Children" being the only real peaks since then. His most recent albums have been disappointing, "Musicology" not the return to form it was trumpeted as, "3121" a bland mis-step into the world of R&B for the most part, and as for "Planet Earth" I actually didn't think that one was too bad, albeit a far cry from the quality of his 80s work.

"Lotusflower" is patchy in the extreme. Topped and tailed by two jazzy instrumentals it has huge, towering peaks, and seemingly bottomless troughs of quality between these bookends.

Once the introductory instrumental is out of the way, "Boom" is the first proper song, and sadly it doesn't explode as its title implies. Some fans in the community have likened its backing to "Darling Nikki" from "Purple Rain", and I can see the similarities. As a song however it plods along, not really going anywhere, and lacks a chorus - something which would have really signalled the start of the album. A disappointing beginning.

"The Morning After" (only available on the downloaded version - retail CDs will feature a track called "Crimson and Clover" in its place) is a sprightly bit of fluff which bounces along for a couple of minutes, then vanishes without leaving a trace in the memory.

"4Ever" is the first really enjoyable track for me. Ignore its naff txt-speak title and it is actually a pretty decent song, and the first time I turned to my other half and gave a thumbs-up during my initial listen.

"Colonized Mind" is good, a dark, moody piece, and one of the first truly guitar-based tracks on the album (the others are merely embellished by guitars it seems, whereas this is a bit of an anthem in its own way). As a track it starts quietly and grows into quite an epic, and is pretty powerful stuff, if not a Prince classic (the album has only one such track - more on that later).

"Feel Good, Feel Better, Feel Wonderful" (although he sings it as "Feel Better, Feel Good, Feel Wonderful") is very enjoyable, lots of horns driving it along, and in many ways it is reminiscent of the track "Musicology" from the album of the same name.

"Love Like Jazz" comes next, and is downright AWFUL. After the promising opening it turns into what sounds like the theme to an imported daytime soap opera, and from there it degenerates. It's the longest almost four minutes I've known in a long time. Terrible.

"77 Beverly Park" starts well with a moody pulsing sound, turning into a heavy guitar riff, and after the horrors of the last track you want to punch the air. Then, after precisely 47 seconds (listening to it now) it changes... and becomes an instrumental, built around acoustic guitars and keyboards, and is dedicated to Prince's house (the title is his address in LA, so it is kind of a sequel to "3121", which was a previous address of his). It carries on for three minutes, and continues the downturn started by "Love Like Jazz", together forming the album's absolute nadir.

"Wall of Berlin" is better, but you can't shake the thought that as the song features lines like "we're going down like the wall of Berlin", Prince is maybe twenty years behind the times here. Worse still, after the chugging verses it shifts tempo for an almost proggy chorus, and it sounds unbearably awkward.

"$" (money, basically) starts with little promise, a semi-rapped opening switching to a bouncy guitar track, but after maybe a minute it actually becomes rather enjoyable. An unlikely favourite, although the lyrics are pretty naff (as most of his seem to be these days).

The final proper track then is "Dreamer", and it is clear that Prince has saved his best until last. Simply put, this is the best thing he has done in years - maybe even one of the best things he has ever done. Opening with what could be a Hendrix riff it grinds along in tremendous fashion for five and a half minutes, and is simply stunning. Those who don't know just how good Prince is on the guitar will be astonished by this. Saying it would get to number one is incorrect - after all he's only had one such track in the UK before now, and that was with the frankly vapid and anodyne "The Most Beautiful Girl in the World" - but it really is the sole track on this collection which demands to be listened to.

In short it is the usual (these days) extremely mixed bag of a Prince album. "Dreamer" is the only excellent track here, but four other tracks merit a mention, the rest being either fillers or wastes of time.

For me - a fan of the guy's work - if I had to rate it out of five I'd give it three, and I doubt that score will change.