Publication: Edmonton Sun [Can]
Date: November 20, 1996
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Page Number(s):
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Title: "The Artist's Emancipation Self-indulgent"
Reviewed By: Mike Ross

EMANCIPATION: The Artist Formerly Known As Prince (EMI) -- He's a prolific songwriter, a powerful singer, a fine musician and a seasoned producer all rolled into one.

All that's missing is a good editor - some internal voice that could say, "Hey, myself formerly known as me, do I really have enough great ideas to fill three entire CDs?"

Close, but not quite. Sit through this whole thing - his White Album, his Tubular Bells (parts 1 and 2), his HIStory, his Yessongs - and you, too, may want to change your name into an unpronounceable symbol (now, apparently, he's just "the Artist").

Overwrought, self-indulgent and occasionally brilliant (all descriptions the Artist must be familiar with by now), Emancipation is a highly crafted cross-section of rhythm and blues forms from past to present. You could even call it a greatest hits collection - of all new material.

In several tunes, the Artist kicks the sentimental quotient into high gear, making Corey Hart look like Andrew Dice Clay.

He explores disco, toys with rap, tackles funk and even pulls off some techno-dance grooves - all with equal expertise and eccentricity.

In one of four covers, he also does a rather more intense treatment of Joan Osborne's big hit, One of Us.

With his internal you-know-what-detector out of commission, the Artist works over almost every arrangement like a punching bag, using any and every sound or effect at his disposal (some songs sound like they were created entirely on one of those new-fangled MIDI workstations). He manages a few minimalist moments, but "more is more" seems to be the rule.

Although sex and love play a huge role in the Artist's music, Emancipation is more than just a bunch of makeout tunes - and it's certainly not the case for Disc 3, containing some of the Artist's deepest, most spiritual work.

Many of these songs are quite personal. Aside from obvious tracks like Slave (he wrote the word on his face as a comment on his long servitude to Warner Brothers) and Emancipation, he often alludes to his wife Mayte and their new "chyld." Sex in the Summer even features an ultrasound heartbeat of the fetus in the womb, used as a rhythm track. The fluffy ballad Friend, Lover, Sister, Mother/Wife is billed as "written in Tokyo while she slept. Recorded in secrecy and showcased at the reception ..." Aww.

Cyber-Prince rears his head in Emale and the excellent My Computer, a moving song about lonely nights spent surfing the Internet. And even one of the most explicitly sexual songs, the funky and humorous Joint 2 Joint, contains a message about safe sex.

Emancipation is a study in extremes. Too long and too clever by half, there's stuff here that will make you gag and stuff that will make your jaw drop with awe.

In the Artist's case, you probably wouldn't be able to have one reaction without the other. (4)