Plectrumelectrum | ||||
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Studio album by Prince and 3rdeyegirl | ||||
Released | September 26, 2014 | |||
Recorded | 2013–14; Paisley Park | |||
Genre | Funk rock | |||
Length | 44:00 | |||
Label | ||||
Producer |
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Prince chronology | ||||
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Professional ratings | |
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Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | |
The A.V. Club | A– |
Chicago Tribune | |
The Daily Telegraph | |
Entertainment Weekly | B+ |
The Guardian | |
Los Angeles Times | |
Q | |
Pitchfork Media | 3.8/10 |
Rolling Stone |
Plectrumelectrum is the thirty-sixth studio album by American recording artist Prince, and first (and only) to feature his backing band 3rdeyegirl. It was released on September 26, 2014 by NPG Records under a renewed license to Warner Bros. Records.Plectrumelectrum received generally positive reviews from critics.
Prince also released the album Art Official Age simultaneously.
According to Randall Roberts of the Los Angeles Times, Plectrumelectrum is a rock album with lyrics and sound effects characteristic of Prince's "noble weirdness" and "sense of humor". Abigail Covington of The A.V. Club said that "it takes a no-nonsense approach to funk and for the most part plays near the shallow shores of rock 'n' roll's enormous waters."Rolling Stone reviewer Jon Dolan described the record as "a set of exploratory funk-rock jams".
Plectrumelectrum received generally positive reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 61, based on 18 reviews.Q magazine said that "the sound of [Prince] working with a lean combo is so refreshing, and a welcome first in his mammoth catalogue." Kyle Anderson of Entertainment Weekly felt its hooks and band dynamic make it a better album than Art Official Age. Neil McCormick of The Daily Telegraph wrote that "the rock format appears to have concentrated him on songwriting basics."