reviews from listening party NY with Janet , JD and LA Reid
From the NY Listening Party:
Intro track (ID) starts off with J typing into her computer (named
"Kiko") and it talked to her and asked for her to identify herself.
She does and then it asks her to select an album, she says
"Discipline", and then it counts down from 5 to the intro of FB.
FB plays, and since you all know this track I won't bother
explaining. I will say this. The girl next to me had been chatting
with me earlier and said that she didn't really like FB when she first
heard it. But when the song came on in that theater, she seemed to
enjoy it! Definitely a song that has to be played LOUD! (as you
already know)
After that, it went straight into Luv. The people seemed to like it.
At this point, I noticed JD at the door to my left. He had come down
from wherever he was. LA was there with him too, and they were really
enjoying the music. He was bumping his head around and singing
along. People seemed to like the track.
Spinnin interlude starts and it is her talking. She says something to
the effect of love "that keeps you up, and keeps you down" (sorry, it
is a little difficult to read my handwriting!!).
It then goes into Rollercoaster. I LOVE this track! It starts off
very hot, it is an "up and happy" track. The beat at some parts (as
previously reported) are kinda crazy, but overall it doesn't make you
too dizzy (don't worry). I think it is very well produced. During
some parts of the song where it has a bit of a different beat before
it goes into the chorus. LA was JAMMING to the song. Her voice
sounds great in it. You can definitely hear her SINGING in this
song. Like I said, the beat isn't too all over the place, I think it
works out very well. Once it ended, people started clapping!!!
JD left back upstairs around this point.
Bathroom Break interlude, and don't worry guys -- nothing gross!! she
is just talking with her friends and says something like "another guy
trying to holla at me" and I believe someone asks what they are going
to do now, and she says they are gonna shake their thing.
It goes into RWU. This song just hypnotises me. You all know about
the track, but again, have to say. Hearing it as loud as we did made
the song somehow even better!
It is about 7:48 at this point, and in comes 2nite. The intro beat to
it is awesome, very hard. This is THE definite dance track of the
album. She does her layered vocals thing here (which I always love
from her). There seems to be something in the background, like a
"yeah" played through the chorus, but I wasn't sure if that was it
exactly. This is another track where you can hear her vocals very
clear! There were a few bobbing heads, and the people in the
"reserved" row behind me were definitely feeling it. JD had come back
at some point during this song, and was grooving to it. He seemed to
be very happy with the song.
After 2nite, comes Can't B Good. First slow song of the album, and
you can really hear her singing again. It isn't the whispering
voice. I think someone said in one of the other reviews, but this
really reminds me of MJ's Butterflies (in a good way). Her vocals are
clear, a little high in it. For some reason, I thought of "spending
time with you" but I really don't know why because I don't think it
sounds like it AT ALL. But that was in my head, I wrote it in my
notes, and so I'm writing it here in case there was some connection
I'm not thinking of. At the end of this song, again there is clapping!
It goes into "4 words" interlude, and she says "never let you go"...
and then it goes into the song Never Letchu Go. The song really can't
be compared to anything that I can think of . She has softer vocals
on this track. When she sings "I'm never gonna lechu go" there is a
woooo ooooo she does after the "go". She has a lot of her harmonizing
stuff on this track. It has some other instrument in it that my dumb
ass couldn't figure out.. I want to say piano, but it's more high
pitch than that. When the song ends, it has a guitar playing (but not
all soft guitar). Once again, people started clapping at the end of
this song.
Greatest X. Heart beat in the intro. Then a 'dah dah dah dah..." of her singing. It has a nice, deep beat to it. Every like 3rd beat has a double beat. Lots of layering/harmonizing with herself on this. Again, very clear vocals and she is really singing it. When she is singing "the greatest x ever," it is sounds more like" the greatest xah ah ah ah" (instead of the repeated "ever"). It isn't like "ella, ella, ella eh" AT ALL. It has a back track (or layered w/ J's vocals, whatever you want to call it) of "ah ah ah" during that part as well. JD was singing along to this one too and really really seemed to like it. I was looking around to get reactions of people, and they seemed to like it as well. When it ended, there was more clapping
Interlude (Good Morning Janet) starts. Janet asks "Kiko, is that you?" 'Yes' "Come in" 'How are you feeling?' "Better" 'Do you want to talk about it?' J says something like "no" and that she is going to move on to "bigger and better things," to which Kiko replied 'You still miss him." J says something like "yes.. no... well... and some basically sounds like she doesn't know.
Then into So Much Betta. It almost sounds like the computer/robot Kiko voice is on this track. There is definitely some robotic sounding voice that starts it out. It is very upbeat song. I actually had a hard time making out everything that the robot sounding voice said. Janet comes in and starts singing in a little big of softer vocals. I can't really describe this track except that it is very different. It does have a vocal breakdown type thing in it (don't know how else to describe it) and then into a beat. Sorry, this song is really hard to describe, but I like it. It just is a bit different sounding.
After that, she talks to Kiko again and then it goes into The 1 with Missy! I was SO excited to hear this track! Right away, people seemed to like it. It sounds "very Missy" to me. Its not a super fast song, but I would say more than "midtempo" It has a hard back beat every 3rd beat. Definitely more of an urban feel to it. Missy is on the intro and then has a rap in the middle as well. As usual, Missy and J sound great together!
At this point, the music stopped but I was still trying to write things down. I can tell something is happening on stage and when I look up, I see Janet coming onto stage with LA. She looked FANTASTIC! I cannot BELIEVE how small that woman's waist is!! HAHA! seriously! wow. okay, anyway, people were standing clapping and cheering for her. LA said introduced himself and another guy on stage that was there from Blender magazine and then said something like how we all know who this is, but I couldn't really hear cuz at this point I was way too excited.
Blender did a short interview with her on stage, nothing we don't really know already. Some cute parts about how he said we have heard a song called "Rock With You" from someone before, and he asked her who. She was like "I don't know, some guy" and made some silly jokes, and then said her brother, Mike. She talked about how she really liked that song. I got two short, short videos of her talking on stage. She also said how much she likes the song Discipline and that we hadn't heard it yet but that she hopes we all like it. The guy asked her about the meaning of the album, which we all know. He said something about how her songs seem to always revolve around love and sex and asked her why, and she sounded SO cute when she said "cuz I love "love" and I love sex!" People actually got up and clapped when she said that! was really cute. She left the stage and I thought it was over. Almost everyone left and I started walking out too, but a track started playing and of course I knew it was J's voice, so I stayed. The girl who had been sitting next to me that I was chatting with here and there said bye and wanted to know the name of the website, so I wrote it down for her. I think she wanted to come check out what I wrote. She was cute and really nice!
What's Ur Name started to play. Again, you can hear her vocals on this track very well. It is upbeat and very nice. I didn't have a lot of notes on this because I had started walking and had to run to sit back down when I heard it. Sorry I don't have more on this one!
The Meaning interlude starts, and she talks a lot on it. She is talking about discipline and how she likes it. It has some music kinda playing to it (I actually thought it had moved into the song Discipline already) and had kind of a scratchy album sound in the background a bit. Towards the end, she is talking about how a whip is used in the practice of self mortification or chastisement and into something else that I couldn't tell because she sounds like she was about ready to ***, haha.
Discipline comes on and it is one of those tracks that you don't really realize is dirty unless you really listen, lol. Again, it kinda has that scratchy record sound a bit in the background. In the chorus, you can really hear her singing it, while at the same time it has a back track of her whispery voice singing some parts. It has a slow beat.. almost Rope Burn like, but not really. I want to say it is like Rope Burn and Love 2 Love in a way.
The interlude Back was a bit short, and I don't really have anything on it.
The last song, Curtains, came on. It is on the slow side of being mid-tempo, for lack of a better explanation. Definitely more on the slow side. I would say it is urban sounding as well. The girl who was now in front of me seemed to really like it a lot. At this point, there weren't many people left.
The song ended, I walked out amazed by the whole experience. I took a few more pictures and decided to leave (despite the fact that they still had free drinks!! that's how much I love you guys! lol). As I was about to leave, I see the most beautiful woman in front of me. I have been somewhat close to Janet before, but never this close. Joey was with her and some photogs took some pics but he was trying to move her along. She was basically RIGHT in front of me. I couldn't decide whether to stop her or not, but I felt a little bad (and honestly, basically froze) so I didn't stop her. I did manage to get a picture of her, though again, it was with my phone.
I walked back up the stairs in total amazement, texted mikel that I was on my way home, called my best friend to tell him that J was there, and rushed home to write this all up.
I'll work on uploading the pics and videos to you guys now!
I just got home from another exhilarating evening with JANET. I was one of the few hundred people who had the privilege of attending L.A. Reid's special listening event for Janet's upcoming DISCIPLINE album at the New World Stages off-Broadway theatre complex in New York.
What a night. I have so many thoughts and opinions swirling through my head. Where to begin? Note that my take on the album is only after hearing it once. I might totally change my mind on some points when I get to hear it again and again. What you read here also is only what my hands could scribble and my mind could recall.
DISCIPLINE is an album that combines an electronic 80s sound with the present-day computer age, all fit to rock your body on a dance floor near you. This is mostly a dance album which will be your aerobic workout soundtrack for the year. Computer-driven beats and sounds from the streets buttress Janet's light and playful voice through emotions of love lost, love found, and love sustained to the fullest. What else could you want in a Janet album?
After standing in line outside for about 40 minutes, the event began with a pre-reception in the lobby. We all received souvenir DISCIPLINE lyric booklets wrapped in a black, 4-flap envelopment, with a dark red plastic seal stamped with a "J". This was very helpful because it meant I didn't have to try to write excerpts of lyrics down, but I still had to scramble to get lyrics to the interludes down, which were not always complete.
The lobby was decorated with huge black-and-white Janet photos plastered on drapes and on the walls. We drank banana and blueberry rum smoothies and ate hors d'oeuvres until they let us inside Stage 1 for the listening event (the complex has five or more small theatres for off-Broadway productions). My second row center seat was the perfect place to see and hear everything, especially since I had received word that Janet would definitely be in the house. Later, I'll tell you about Janet's grand entrance.
L.A. Reid entered the stage just after 7:30 p.m. and said a simple hello and quickie introduction--nothing more needed to be said! The lights dimmed and the "Janet" logo on the video screen was replaced by a 5-minute or so promotional video (or possibly the official electronic press kit or E.P.K.) of past photos, music video footage and concert footage. The video was dazzling (especially for a fan) and serves to reestablish who she is and her impact on the music industry and the world. When the video was over, the room erupted in applause. On the screen we then saw "Janet" and "Discipline" logos interspersed with black-and-white photos from the past and present (yes, new ones), all treated with a vintage film effect of lines and blemishes, as we heard…
1. I.D. (Interlude)
This introductory interlude throws back to the "Online" interlude from The Velvet Rope album (released during the advent of the internet). We hear the keys tapping as Janet logs onto her computer which talks back to her. The computer says, "Select, DISCIPLINE… DISCIPLINE now loading… DISCIPLINE now playing in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1…"
2. FEEDBACK
A slightly shorter version of the leadoff single "Feedback" comes right in after the countdown of the prior interlude. This version ends on the final echo of "Feedback, Feedback, -back, -back, -back, -back" with no instrumental fade.
3. LUV
This song offers an excellent segue from the previous ending echo. This is a playful, youthful song about falling in love unexpectedly. The mid-tempo, beat-pounding track contrasts Janet's light, innocent voice that "oohs" throughout. The secondary hook says, "Got me caught in a wreck, I'm a mess / Got me caught in a wreck, I'm a mess." This song is headed for radio soon, and rightly so.
4. Spinnin (Interlude)
Janet speaks… "Love is the one thing that keeps you up… …spinning round like a rollercoaster."
5. ROLLERCOASTER
This is a hottt, bouncy urban track that's not so electronic as other songs. Her voice is still sweet but is almost overpowered by the heavy, hip-shaking beat. The rhythm of the hook is similar to "Escapade" (from the Rhythm Nation 1814 album), and it could easily be included in a medley with the song on tour. The seemingly innocent lyrics go like this: "There's a high level of luv goin on / The feelins are just way too strong / The reason that u got me gone / is baby cause u turn me on…" The song ends semi-abruptly.
6. Bathroom Break (Interlude)
Janet and her girls are in the bathroom at a club. We hear dialogue: "Every time I turn around, another guy is trying to… …where are we goin' tonight?... we gon' shake some thangs, we gon' break some thangs." One of the girls says they should hurry up because the bathroom is starting to "stank."
7. ROCK WITH U
This is the techno house music track of the new Janet era! Imagine Janet crawling across feathers, rolling around on a bed silk, all the while oblivious to a thunderous house beat shaking all the walls around her. Still, she's gazing at you and singing like everything is alright. THAT's what this song sounds like. This is an electronic 80s-style techo house song with all the "ooh's" and more "ooh's" we ever wanted from Janet. Another song reportedly headed to radio, but I think the clubs might beat them to it.
8. 2NITE
"Something in the air has got me feelin like I want it 2nite," she sings at the beginning of the song. This is the song that describes the realization you get after you meet someone and dance with them at the club, and you know you want to take them home. This is another hot, neck-snapping dance track with a driving beat that almost smothers Janet's voice, but then we're used to that from her past albums. You can dance or rollerskate to this fast-paced track. "Come on! Come on!" she chants.
9. CAN'T B GOOD
Janet slows things down for the first time, but on a dance album like this, even the mid-tempo songs feel danceable. The first verse describes the morning after reflecting on the night before. But by the second verse, she "interscinds" (new dictionary word from Janet) her feelings because she's afraid of falling in love. Nope, this can't be good, she sings. But this song is very nice. It's a song of almost melancholy with a beat similar to "Where Are You Now" (from the Janet album), old-school Janet vocals (hers and background), and instrumentation that will remind you of Michael Jackson.
10. 4 Words (Interlude)
Janet speaks softly: "Four words--love, fate, hope, destiny." The interlude goes right into the next song.
11. NEVER LETCHU GO
This is a ballad and ode to her lover about the good and bad times, but through it all she'll never let him go. "I don't wanna give up on our fate / And I don't wanna think that it's too late / So if something is broke / Let me go and fix it / And if something is lost / Let me go and get it" she sings. This is a nice album cut but not really single material. Janet gives us the "whoaaa" ad libs we crave, along with melodic keyboard lines and a too-short guitar solo at the end, but this song isn't quite ready for radio.
12. Truth or Dare (Interlude)
Janet and two friends are talking over percussion that sounds similar to the popping percussion of the "Full" interlude from The Velvet Rope album. We hear what sounds like male and female voices. The "truth" question is asked: "Describe the greatest ex you ever had?" In this question, the word "ex" sounds like "sex," likely as an intended pun. The answer to the question comes in the next song, which starts immediately after the question is asked.
13. GREATEST X
This mid-tempo-slow song has piano lines that give the song a pop feel. It definitely has radio potential, but my jury is still out. It's an ode to her ex that she let get away. And to this day, she regrets leaving him for what she thought was greener grass on the other side. The hook: "I loved u, and / U loved me / And I just couldn't see tomorrow, baby / And I cared for you / And I didn't see us through / Now I know in my heart u will always b / The greatest x ever." This song starts off good, but then starts to build to something greater toward the end with really emotional guitar lines. And then, for some reason, the song fades WAY too quickly. This is the kind of song that needs to breathe with a longer ending, but unfortunately it doesn't. Sigh…
14. Good Morning Janet (Interlude)
Janet wakes up and logs onto her computer, which greets her. She's still missing her ex from the previous song, and the computer serves as her best friend and confidant for a moment. Janet says, "It was incredible while it lasted, but I know I can do so much better." With these words, the next song begins.
15. SO MUCH BETTA
This song sounds like a song Prince could have produced for her. Very quirky-funky-soul. Janet's computer chants at the beginning. The lyrics say "Tired of being number 2 / I can do what she can't do / So much betta I'm for u / So so much betta I'm for u." The computer continues to motivate her. The bridge breaks from the song musically with melodic vocals: "I'm what you've been missin / U might need to jump on this." The song ends with the same lines and a final sounding of a gong.
16. Play Selection (Interlude)
Janet is still at the computer and decides to change the song she's listening to. We hear "Play selection," and the next song begins.
17. THE 1 (Featuring Missy Elliott)
Janet and Missy are always a good combination, but this song is going to likely grow on me with more listens. Here is another indescribable but off-the-chain track of beats and symbols. This is an empowered women's anthem that is throwing game to a man to get him in bed. Missy's rhymes are HOTTTTTT!!! In her first rap she says, "Tell me how long is it boo--7 inches? Yup that will do." Here are more Missy lines: "Let you hit the poo-poo, do what it do / The nooky got them boys going coo-koo / I'm sick like the flu too, boy I thought u knew."
*********Then, the music stopped.*********
Lights came on the stage, and L.A. Reid escorted Janet out. The room explodes in cheers and applause. Cameras are flashing. Blender magazine editor-in-chief Joe Levy comes out to join them and interviews Janet for just a few minutes. Janet didn't say anything really new or earth-shattering that we haven't already read in recent interviews. She said she left the "kids" rehearsing to be with us tonight. Joe's last question was about how a lot of her albums are about love and sex. He then asked why that was so. Janet replied, "Because I love love, and I love sex." And with that the crowd went up in laughter and high-five's, and there was nothing more to be said. They all left the stage, and the album continued. Unfortunately, several people started leaving. Those that stayed behind heard more…
18. WHAT'S UR NAME
This song was not played in its entirety--it faded up a bit into the song. This is a strong track that is more like old-school Janet. Romantic keyboard lines and a beat similar to a song we've heard from Janet's past. The hook: "What's ur name babe / Do u live around here / Cuz I ain't never seen u before / But I wanna see u some more / What's ur name babe / Put it right in my Sidekick / And I'll hit u back / Soon as I get home."
19. The Meaning (Interlude)
Ooooohhh, this interlude is fire! It asks, "What is the meaning of discipline?" The rest was sometimes hard to make out, but here it goes. We hear chords similar to the hook of "I Get Lonely" (from The Velvet Rope album) over a crackling sound. Janet is breathlessly speaking words that can be used to define discipline. "Self control… punishment." She's in a zone, sounding like she's in pain but enjoying it. She talks through her pain: "A whip used in the practice of self-mortification… or an instrument of chastisement." The song fades into the next song.
20. DISCIPLINE
I hereby proclaim this song as the tour show-stopper. She will invite a man on stage and discipline him on this one. Period. It's a ballad with a slow-n-sinister, dragged-out beat. Percussion pops like a whip while crescendos and background vocals invoke emotions of crying helplessly and writhing in pain. Janet is panting. She sings, "Babe, I need some discipline 2nite / Don't hold back / I've been very bad / Make me cry / Got to make me cry / Babe." Those are the cleaner lyrics--the rest has allusions to masturbation, role play domination and submission activity. Enough said. There's a slightly extended ending, but we never get that good beat-down breakdown you might expect from this kinda song. LOL
21. Back (Interlude)
This last interlude is Janet's final conversation with her computer. "I hope you've enjoyed your discipline," the computer says.
22. CURTAINS
This album closer is dedicated to her fans. Janet sings about what fans love most--her tour shows. I wouldn't call it a tour opener nor a tour closer; this song is just for the fans. In the spirit (not sound) of "Whoops Now" (from The Velvet Rope album), this is a playful, mid-tempo song with a little soul. The percussion is poppin' and horns are blowin'. More "ooh's" and melodic background vocals. She sings: "Time to close the curtains / I only take requests from u / Just tell me what u want me to do / I promise u / You'll be screamin encore when I'm thru."
And with that, the album ends. The album is not terribly long--we were done in about an hour, including Janet's brief appearance--largely thanks to songs which were of only average length.
cool.
She's making me happy with Luv and Rock With U.
