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Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed albums.
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Planet Earth
by Prince
Prince returns with his 24th studio album--but not without a bit of controversy.
| LABEL: |
Sony |
| RELEASE DATE: |
24 July 2007 |
| DISCS: |
1 disc |
| GENRE(S): |
Pop, Rock |
NOTES: Released in the UK as part of the Sunday Daily Mail newspaper 15 July 2007.
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...
90
Spin
Planet Earth is a consistent, exhilarating winner from our reigning genius. [Sep 2007, p.121]
88
Los Angeles Times
A sound as sharp and renewable as anyone's in pop history.
83
Entertainment Weekly
Though we'll never get another "Purple Rain," it feels right, in a lavender drought, to settle for something at least approaching another "Parade." [27 Jul 2007, p. 64]
83
Stylus Magazine
Planet Earth marks a slight improvement on that one ["3121"], which is progress of a sort, but incremental advances like this almost guarantee that the marketing hoo-hah will get more attention anyway.
80
Billboard
While the album doesn't break new ground, there's plenty to like about its mix of pumping rock and old-school soul.
80
Amazon.com
There's an elegance to it that Prince fans, no strangers to pop music that's truly sublime, won't fail to appreciate.
80
Vibe
A resurgent Prince unleashes his strangest yet most alluring rock project since 1988's astonishing "Lovesexy." [Sep 2007, p.137]
75
The Onion (A.V. Club)
It's unquestionably a fun record, but the pleasures are modest and superficial. The lack of ambition, surprises, and plain old weirdness means Planet Earth is conspicuously un-Prince-like where it matters most.
70
Boston Globe
Somehow these songs don't beg for a repeat listen.
70
Hartford Courant
Planet Earth has its moments--he is Prince, after all--but instead of muscling their way forward, most of these songs seem content to stay where they are: firmly in the middle of the pack.
70
PopMatters
On the song 'Planet Earth,' but also throughout much of the album ('All the Midnights of the World,' 'Resolution'), he hits sincere, haunting notes, his voice fluctuating between his lower and higher registers like a small plane being batted around by turbulence.
70
Sputnikmusic
Planet Earth is one of the more varied albums Prince has done, yet all the same it's probably his most straight-forward release in a long, long while.
70
Rolling Stone
Planet Earth is one of those albums he makes when he's trying a little harder than usual, if not hard enough to alienate his core audience, which loves him for indulging himself.
70
All Music Guide
Planet Earth is the sound of a working musician working, which makes it a bit of a passing pleasure, yet there's no denying that it is indeed a pleasure having him turn out solid records like this that build upon his legacy, no matter how modestly.
65
Prefix Magazine
With only the faintest hint of retracing his past successes, Prince is still on top of his game.
60
musicOMH.com
Overall, Planet Earth is a competent collection of songs that are certainly too good to be given away free.
60
Slant Magazine
While all three albums ["Musicology," "3121," and "Planet Earth"], at their best, contain precisely the sort of seasoned professionalism you wouldn't ever cite as an actual compliment, there remains a nostalgic pull that's no less electric for being completely anesthetized and overly rehearsed.
60
Q Magazine
Across Planet Earth’s brisk and varied 10 tracks, he is once again doing it pretty well, from cocky rock strut ('Guitar') to Chic-style, pumped-up funk ('Chelsea Rodgers') and knicker-loosening R&B beats ('Future Baby Mama').
60
The Guardian
It's all right--in the dispiriting way that everything he's put out since his "Symbol" era has been all right.
60
New Musical Express
This sounds more like a new Gnarls Barkley album than an old Prince one. A genius on autopilot is still very clever indeed.
60
Mojo
Prince's 26th album will be remembered more for its method of distribution--a reactionary tabloid's covermount CD--than for being tighter and more tuneful than 2004's "Musicology" and last year's "3121." [Sep 2007, p.113]
50
Drowned In Sound
Planet Earth’ll leave you feeling decidedly short-changed.
49
cokemachineglow
What actually lies inside Prince’s twenty-somethingth album is more than disappointing; it’s thinly if grandly produced, tapped with a veneer so dumbly decades behind any sense of interesting or intriguing taste that one can’t help but sit back and swallow the benign whole, thinking all along, Who the fuck even makes music like this anymore?
48
Pitchfork
The rest of the album is stuff he's done before and better.
40
Village Voice
Anti-war, pro-environment, religious ('Chelsea Rodgers' only gives up trim if you're baptized), and funky, Planet Earth is still merely an excuse to tour.
40
Uncut
A couple of sweaty, sybaritic slowjams prove that his libido hasn't waned, but his mojo undoubtedly has. [Oct 2007, p.101]
30
Blender
If America was a self-respecting nation, there'd be a street named after him in every city. Alas, if they're based on this record, we'll find ourselves striding Vague Call to Goodness Street.
20
NOW Magazine
Sadly, this landfill isn't biodegradable.
The average user rating for this album is 7.0 (out of 10) based on 42 User Votes
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