N.E.W.S.

by

Prince

Edit

As a long time Prince afficionado, I am used to abrupt changes in direction from the artist and his stable of hyper-talented musicians who make up the ever-evolving cast of his backing band, "NPG." This direction, however, kind of caught me off guard. This seems to be the culmination of the sound that started on "The Rainbow Children," which continued to mutate through the NPG Music Club-only releases of "One Nite Alone" and "Xpectation" - a move to fairly indescribable fusion, covering the gamut of ambient to crunchy butt-rock.

Prince and company tear up four 14 minute tracks in nigh-live form (if you've been to one of his shows, you know what I mean), with a wonderful lead by the under-appreciated multi-woodwind instrumentalist Eric Leeds. This package realizes the directions hinted at as far back as the eighties "Madhouse" offshoots - it takes the pieces introduced in "Xpectation" and expands on them, and comes together with what could arguably be Prince's most "adult" album to date.

The overall album is *not* something one can just casually listen to in the car - its a "sit down in front of the stereo with some hi-fi headphones on with a cup of joe" affair, that virtually demands do nothing but sit still and listen to the music for nearly and hour. If you don't, you'll miss half of the little touches, such as the ambient bits that lead each composition into silence (in Prince's world, silence is as important a musical tool as the notes actually played). This one is definitely not for the school of folks still expecting a "Purple Rain" or a "1999" to be re-hashed - but, for those willing to go along for the ride, it is a treasure trove that demands tribute from the listener in the form of repeated plays.

You won't be humming the compositions here - they are far to complex and shifting within the confines of each track and in the package as a whole, but parts will stand out, stuck in your brain on "loop" until you sit down to listen to the thing again.

If you like your music challenging, this is the album for you. A welcome oasis in the stagnant sea of soundalike rock, rap and pop country.

'News,' the new album by 80's icon Prince is "a new direction in music" as the brief linear notes indicate. Firstly, it may be 'news' to even observant music fans that Prince is currently releasing new music. Secondly, the new direction spoken of may be somewhat fresher territory for Prince, but the creative output on his new LP isn't particularly new or original in any sense. Four langourous and meandering fully instrumental tracks sample elements of funk, jazz, soul, and lounge, similar to work done on Prince's previous album, 'The Rainbow Children,' but far less cohesive, thematically satisfying, or tuneful. The sense is that this LP was to be a dynamic improvised rush of sound and vision, a collaborative effort that yielded music with an air of spontaneity and coolness. Unfortunately, nothing on 'News' reveals much depth or inspiration. The musicians obviously enjoyed working together...joyful abandon is a noteworthy quality felt in this music. On the whole, however, while these lite jams are pleasant enough, they lack the raw energy and searing passion one might hope to find in a new Prince LP. None of the four tracks are particularly memorable. 'The Rainbow Children' hinted at something quite special indeed, a new and curious direction for Prince, but 'News,' fails to follow through.