Janelle Monae

ha, what is the deal w/ jigga's discarded umlaut?

http://www.amazon.com/The-ArchAndroid/dp/B003L0V758/ref=sr_shvl_album_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1273342495&sr=301-1

sounding good if not earth shattering

some obv standouts though

mainly the slow songs

her rockers are very generic

It's out and about. Two tracks in and I'm signed up for wherever this takes me. This is better than I'd hoped.

Hoped/dreamed/take yr pick.

:D

http://www.mediabistro.com/agencyspy/original/rubot2.jpg

Not to jump the gun or anything but four and a half tracks in and I think this is going to be really good. Very psyched.

I found it mostly underwhelming on first listen. There's nothing as arresting as Sincerely, Jane. However, I do really like her personality and vision, so I will give it a few more tries.

Excellent singing as well, of course.

Mmm. Suite II >> Suite III and there's no 'Sincerely, Jane', but hopefully it'll be a grower - there's plenty here to like, but it's a lot to process at once.

Has she blown up yet? In Atlanta it's felt like she was about to blow up for about 5 or 6 years...

i don' think she's blown up yet, but i'm hoping this album will help.

it's a weird album though. not sure what to think yet!

"oh maker" is a real standout track for me ATM

Not feeling this album. :(

This is long enough that I still haven't really gotten a full of view of it as a piece, but I'm pretty sure I like portions of it. Part of "Locked Inside" reminds me of "Golden Lady." I'm not sure if that's a good thing or bad thing, but I've never heard anything else that remind me of that Stevie Wonder song. I think I like when she does the 60s soundtrack thing (e.g., "Sir Greendown")

Agree that "Oh Maker" is a stand-out, but the beginning sounds like it could be exactly like some other song, but I have no idea what song, so maybe it's just the style. (Again, not really sure if this is a good thing or bad thing, but I could see pastiche being seen as a weakness or strength, or both, on this album. And what was the song that sounded like it was co-written with David Bowie?)

(Oh, that's the Of Montreal one.)

I like "Wondaland" a lot.

at first i was convinced i only liked the first half, but after every listen i'm starting to like more and more beyond the halfway mark.

Yep, definitely feeling it more second time round. Like how II is all rocky and III is all weird. The production could be beefier, though.

Dammit, shouldn't have used ILX on Jabba Hands' computer!

album is a bit long but wow. i want to marry this woman.

I am really hearing a "Clair de Lune" quote at the end of "Say You'll Go," right? But those rising choral voices, aren't they something out of a 1940s Hollywood soundtrack?

Part of "Locked Inside" reminds me of "Golden Lady."

Yes! I was listening to this while washing the dishes in the other room, so only half paying attention, but I was like, "Is that...?"

The last two tracks are my favorites at this point.

Also, since I'm still very new to her, I find myself repeatedly struck by how good her singing is. I like this: Janelle Monae (or perhaps android alter-ego Cindi Mayweather) has received many accolades for her unique personal style and stage show, but not enough acclaim for the strength and versatility of her singing voice.http://www.allhiphop.com/stories/alternatives/archive/2010/05/18/22225030.aspx

(I'm a little surprised this thread is not busier. Maybe others are smart enough to wait until they've had more time to sort through the album.)

still need to really crack the album

Tunes that I've grown to like quite a bit:

Dance or Die
Faster
Tightrope
Oh, Maker
Come Alive
Make the Bus
Wondaland
Say You'll Go

I think it was a bit of a mistake to give the first three songs proper the same pace and make them run into each other - more of a mid-album trick. At the start it lulls you into nodding off a bit.

ha, the r&b acute is totally like the metal umlaut

<3 this post

Her choice of electric guitar sounds tends to be a bit banal, but what I'm finding is that most of the time there's enough redundancy built into the music that I can look over the parts I don't like. (Most skip-able songs for me: probably Come Alive and Take the Bus.)

Make the Bus. (Make the bus, take the bus, whatever.)

the occasional orchestral swoons and production idiosyncracies remind me somehow of st. vincent.

I don't think the album is very good at all.

I think it was a bit of a mistake to give the first three songs proper the same pace and make them run into each other - more of a mid-album trick. At the start it lulls you into nodding off a bit.

i found a problem with that too, but more as an issue of pacing. it didn't make me nod off, but it made me think that the album was going to be a lot more funky than it is.

if those three were placed in the middle like you suggested, then they'd work more like a well-needed burst of energy.

I'm voting yes so far.

that letterman performance was awesome.

Enjoy everything I've heard from this album so far. Gonna pick up the CD today.

that cramps psychobilly raveup in the middle was sorta 0_0 for me.

I like the way the similarly paced tracks flowing into one another kick off the beginning of the album. I think it works just fine.

i thought the performance was pretty great considering the lack of big boi. i was wondering how much his involvement effected my enjoyment, and its safe to say that i like it just as much without him. that rave up part was cool, and the nod to james brown (which one?!) was also great. there was lots of energy in the room, and it sounded great. i'm a bit surprised dave didn't ask her to play again, like he did with these folks:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ds3yl7YjVyM

wow i said great a lot

its been interesting listening to this alongside FanMail (due to the listening club). for all the android next level future stuff, monae's album has a kinda of retroism to it. like right now im listening to 'locked inside' and that guitar line sounds like it could have been pulled off something from 35 years ago. whereas its the tlc album that obv has that real metalic sound that youd expect to hear on album about androids or whatever

i gave up on the idea that i might like this album when i read this

Monáe describes The ArchAndroid as an "emotion picture,"

also

Its most recent antecedent is André 3000's The Love Below

only listened to it once so far but not really being moved to listen again. so busy and hyperactive, but in a kinda annoying attention-seeking way.

Here comes the flood:

http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/14271-the-archandroid/

somebody was just telling me last night that Matt loved this album; makes sense given his taste. I really need to give it a serious go.

the occasional orchestral swoons and production idiosyncracies remind me somehow of st. vincent.

― establishment man cloggin up ur spills (Hunt3r), Tuesday, May 18, 2010 11:32 PM (2 days ago)

I was just listening to this album for the first time when Sir Greendown came on it made me think of St. Vincent so much, no bad thing at all.

Yeah I am really loving this album on first listen. I was totally smitten after the Letterman performance.

ya i was curious what its pitchfork score would be...i have a few hipsterish friends who normally dont touch pop/r&b who have been all over this

which is cool of course except when they tell me that janelle monae isn't pop/r&b