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3121
Generally favorable reviews
Based on 31 critic reviews
How did we calculate this?
Based on 59 votes
Read user comments
Rate this album >
Album Info
Label: Universal
Release Date: 21 March 2006
Discs: 1 disc
Genre(s): Pop, Rock, R&B
Summary
This is the purple one's second straight set of mainstream music, following 2004's 'Musicology,' which itself followed a string of more esoteric releases.
Also By This Artist: LotusFlow3r MPLSound Musicology Planet Earth The Rainbow Children
Also On The Web: Official Artist Site
What The Critics Said
All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...
Village Voice (Consumer Guide)
It could be argued that music this masterful waives all claim to the sound of surprise--until you pay attention.
Read Full Review >Dot Music
But while "3121" might suggest that, at 47, Prince isn't looking to change the face of music anymore, he's clearly still more than capable of delivering classic Prince albums.
Read Full Review >Rolling Stone
As on Musicology, the beats get pretty wicked here... But while 3121 is no funkier than Musicology, it does emphasize speedier tempos and, two nods to Zapp aside, more conventional sonics. [6 Apr 2006, p.60]
Drowned In Sound
Like many of his records, it's more of a collection of songs than a 'play from beginning to end' affair.
Read Full Review >All Music Guide
Maybe he's no longer breaking new ground, but his eccentricities are now an attribute, not a curse, which goes a long way in making his trademark blend of funk, pop, soul, and rock sound nearly as dazzling as it did at his popular and creative peak in the '80s.
Read Full Review >Uncut
A deeply enjoyable pop-funk record. [May 2006, p.114]
Sputnikmusic
Ultimately, this is the best album The Artist Formerly Known As Squiggle could possibly have hoped to make in 2006.
Read Full Review >The New York Times
A friendly, happy, concise album. [20 Mar 2006]
Blender
The minimalist tracks rate among his best. [May 2006, p.109]
Village Voice
The best thing about 3121 is the opportunity it affords its maverick creator to school the children by recontextualizing historically resonant pop riffs and icons.
Read Full Review >The Onion (A.V. Club)
Oh well, a third of a terrific Prince album is better than no terrific Prince album at all.
Read Full Review >Q Magazine
There are songs here that are terrific.... But 3121 wouldn't be a Prince album if it wasn't also full of filler. [May 2006, p.119]
Mojo
It's difficult to judge on one listen. [May 2006, p.104]
The Guardian
But there's more to 3121 than the prickle of nostalgia: amid the title track's murky, unsettling groove and the grinding techno noise of Love, Prince sounds thrillingly alive, a veteran throwing down a cocky, confident challenge to any young pretenders.
Read Full Review >Pitchfork
3121 does a bit better than [Musicology], coming up with a handful of infectious songs-- it's his best since the symbol record, although certainly there remains a massive chasm between it and his masterpieces.
Read Full Review >musicOMH.com
Prince is at his best when his music is unmistakably his. Half of the tracks on 3121 could not have been made by anyone else, but the slushy R&B ballads are not amongst them.
Read Full Review >Prefix Magazine
Even at its best, and it gets pretty damn good, such as on the stark "Black Sweat" and the rock single, "Fury," the record still sounds like it's stuck somewhere in the past.
Read Full Review >Slant Magazine
While the hooks don't reach out and grab you the way you long for them to, and though the lyrics aren't as smart as we've come to expect from a composer who once claimed to literally write songs in his sleep, 3121 is a wholly listenable and consistent(ly funky) addition to the catalog of one of music's pop pioneers.
Read Full Review >cokemachineglow
Instead of wrenching free of every single confinement that’s ever been placed around his tiny waist, like he’s pretty much always done, Prince is settling into 3121, accepting the decades of his career as what he should be content in emulating.
Read Full Review >Entertainment Weekly
A messier, more elf-indulgent affair than its predecessor. [24 Mar 2006, p.68]
Drawer B
3121 may be funkier, edgier, and dancier than Musicology, but it still doesn’t push the envelope on a level that would constitute a true return to form.
Read Full Review >E! Online
Despite a few promising creative bursts ("Love," "Black Sweat"), it's another case of dashed expectations, as the disc dissolves into a bloodless puddle of smooth-jazz grooves and lyrics that wither at the hands of the singer's recent religious ideals.
Read Full Review >PopMatters
By the time the disc ends with the James Brown-inspired tight funk workout “Get on the Boat”, complete with guest saxophone solo by Maceo Parker, you’d be excused for having so muddled a perspective as to not remember the few truly standout tracks.
Read Full Review >New Musical Express
[It] doesn't really sound like Prince at all. [25 Mar 2006, p.35]
What Our Users Said
The average user rating for this album is 8.9 (out of 10) based on 59 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.
Mike L gave it a7:
It took awhile to grow on me, but this is arguably Prince's best album since "The Truth" (released in 1996 with "Crystal Ball" and unfortunately OOP). Pretty solid stuff, 8 of 12 tracks are keepers. 4 just plain suck, and they're mainly the slow ones. Of the ballads, only "Satisfied" is worth returning to - it's classic, slow-burning Prince.
MCJC gave it an8:
great album. no touching 'Black Sweat'.
derrick J gave it a9:
He is getting back to form. The ballads are the bomb! This is a close to killer cd. The purple King still has it but there is always a bridge we must cross. If he gives the devoted fans all we want(Lovesexy) he will lose the world. He is in an aweful fix becasue even when he dumbs down for his audience, they want him dumber!! Prince, find total satisfaction in God and let the wanna bee fans drown in your brillance.
code delphi gave it a7:
Having been a Prince fan (obsessive!) for nigh on 20 years, I have everything this genius has ever been involved in (Madhouse anyone?). I also know that the quality control on many Prince projects is often caught napping. So it was with great trepidation that I purchased 3121 and, yes, Prince has managed to not let me down again. This is a good album with some outstanding tracks which threaten but never quite manage to demonstrate a full return to form. It is the album of a prodigy (a term used too often when describing Prince I'm afraid) who has his gear sitting on cruise control - it manages to get to its destination effectively enough but doesn't provide a thrilling drive. Unfortunately if I continued this terrible metaphor I could describe Prince as a Ferrari of the funk/pop music world but too often recently he has felt more like a family hatchback. I don't wish to continue this metaphor however...
Vanessa gave it a10:
Prince combines old and new styles in this album. It is full of energy and as usual the songs are very different. This album is worth having (as are most of his albums)!
Hein gave it a9:
Great eclectic Prince record in Topform. Another proof that Pitchfork doesn't have music in their guts.
Seth B gave it a9:
Gary T, said it all! That's SO true, except I LOVED Graffitti Bridge. I'm still giving 3121 spins though, had it about a month. "The Word" is looking like my fav.
