It may not seem restrained, but trust when I say that nothing less than a dissertation or thesis will suffice for such a mind-bogglingly massive album.
One can but marvel at the impressive range, ambition (realised) and detail of this deeply polished, professional yet utterly, brilliantly bonkers album. An album destined, surely, to take its place among the classics of its age.
Suite II boasts a range of moods and musical styles that could be released on its own. Suite III, while maintaining the quality of the other Suites, wouldn’t be my choice for a standalone release—largely because it’s really strange.
Where many concept albums run a high risk of being pompous, cryptic, and self-important, Monáe keeps things playful, lively, and accessible.
She's turned out a landmark debut that contains a full LP's worth of excellent songs and almost no bad ones, and she's done it entirely on her own highly idiosyncratic terms. And where her ambition just barely gets the better of her abilities, she puts on such a relentlessly entertaining show that you can certainly understand why she thought she could pull the whole thing off.
#1 | / | PopMatters |
#1 | / | The Guardian |
#2 | / | Paste |
#3 | / | musicOMH |
#3 | / | Slant |
#3 | / | Treble |
#5 | / | NOW Magazine |
#5 | / | Rhapsody SoundBoard |
#5 | / | Under the Radar |
#5 | / | Vibe |