The ArchAndroid (2LP)

Janelle Monáe | Format: Vinyl

Product Details

• Vinyl (July 13, 2010)
• Number of Discs: 2
• Label: Bad Boy
• ASIN: B003KNDMXG
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (132 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #104,936 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

Disc: 1

1. Suite II Overture

2. Dance or Die (Feat. Saul Williams)

3. Faster

4. Locked Inside

5. Sir Greendown

6. Cold War

7. Tightrope (Feat. Big Boi)

8. Neon Gumbo

9. Oh, Maker

10. Come Alive (War Of The Roses)

Disc: 2

1. Mushrooms & Roses

2. Suite III Overture

3. Neon Valley Street

4. Make The Bus (Feat. Of Montreal)

5. Wondaland

6. 57821 (Feat. Deep Cotton)

7. Say You'll Go

8. BaBopByeYa

Editorial Reviews

Wondaland Arts Society/Bad Boy recording artist Janelle Monáe has announced the release of her eagerly awaited debut album.
'The ArchAndroid' is an 'EMOTION PICTURE' brought to you by Janelle Monáe and the Mad Minds of the
Wondaland Arts Society. The star-studded featured cast includes the legendary Big Boi of OutKast, renowned poet Saul Williams, psychedelic dance-punk troupe Of Montreal, punk prophets Deep Cotton, and the Wondaland Arch Orchestra.
The album was recorded at Wondaland Studios in Atlanta, but written all over the world, including but not limited to Moscow, Prague, Istanbul, Berlin, Amsterdam, New York, and the Palace of the Dogs. 'The ArchAndroid' was inspired not only by the energy of these places, but by such revolutionary musicians and artistic visionaries as Salvador Dalí, Walt Disney, OutKast, Stevie Wonder, Octavia Butler, David Bowie, Andy Warhol, and John Williams. The album was Executive
Produced by Nate Wonder, Chuck Lightning, Janelle Monáe, and Sean 'Diddy' Combs, with Co-Executive Production from Big Boi of OutKast.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

104 of 109 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A New Face in Pop Music - A Near Perfect Debut Release, May 18, 2010

By 

Daniel White (Acworth, GA, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The ArchAndroid (Audio CD)

The ArchAndroid is the long awaited debut album follow-up to singer-songwriter Janelle Monáe`s 2007 debut EP, Metropolis Suite I of IV: The Chase. And it was worth the wait. The music is more complex, the production is fuller, the theatrics even bigger. In short, it is one hell of a debut album.

Janelle Monáe has come up with a robotic alter ego named Cyndi Mayweather, and the Metropolis Suites are her story through an oppressive world in which she discovers she is a Messiah-like figure in hopes to free her people. Her EP first introduced the character with Suite I and her plight, and ArchAndroid is the more personal continuation with Suites II and III. I just hope we won't have to wait three more years for Suite IV.

To say that ArchAndroid is a good achievement as a debut album is a huge understatement as it is an amazing achievement. Written on paper, this CD shouldn't work, as it just sounds way too ambitious. From the conceptual plot to the multitude of genres (psychobilly, glam, hip-hop, jazz, funk, afro-beat, and film music to name a few) to the numerous big named guest artists, it feels like a mess and just too big for one person, but if her EP proved anything it proved one thing, she IS that ambitious and has the guts to attempt it. And she doesn't just succeed, she excels.

The album opens up with a sweeping, energetic orchestral overture then immediately moves on to the next three songs played without break. And with only the first 4 songs (and just as many genres), you know you are in for a ride like no other. The ArchAndroid just grips you and never eases up giving you time to breath, it just keeps moving forward. With songs like Come Alive, Tightrope, and Cold War, Suite II is very in your face compared to Suite III. Suite III starts with another overture then it mellows out with a quick burst of energy on Make The Bus featuring Of Montreal (arguably the weakest track on the album) and ends a couple of songs later with the 9 minute multi-sectioned song BaBopByeYa, one of the best songs on the album. And with all the sonic imagery Monáe puts into the album, it is easy to imagine just what is going on (Broadway, anyone?).

And a quick word about Janelle Monáe: she is one incredibly talented woman. Concept albums aren't new, but the breadth to which she reaches is amazing (almost 70 minutes of music), and to pull it off is mind-boggling. Also, the amount of different genres she is able to take on and make sound effortless is staggering. Her voice is definitely the highlight of the album, its almost magical in how she can manipulate it to get it to do whatever she wants. I expect great things from Monáe in the coming years, and if this album is any indication of what's to come, I can't wait.

The ArchAndroid isn't just one of the best Pop albums released in awhile, it is one of the best albums released in quite some time. With the combination of Janelle Monáe's vocal prowess and the amazing music and production, you will be hard pressed to find a better pop album debut.

52 of 56 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A star from another galaxy..., May 18, 2010

By 

Nse Ette (Lagos, Nigeria) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: The ArchAndroid (Audio CD)

Surely no human could possibly create such amazing genre-hopping music as this, it could only be an android. And so it is we find Janelle Monáe inspired by 1927 sci-fi movie "Metropolis" creates a cyber soul persona Cindy Mayweather and the result is "ArchAndroid...", a strong contender for album of the year.

The lyrics touch on love, war, and slavery, while the sounds range from Classical; the dramatic suite overtures, Indie; "Come alive (The war of the roses)", trippy Rock; the psychedelic Hendrix-channeling "Mushrooms & roses" with distorted vocodered vocals, Pop; the bouncy Motown-esque "Faster", "Cold war" (on which she sounds like Beyoncé, but without the over-reaching she is prone to), and retro Soul; "Locked inside", the Stevie Wonder-esque "Oh, Maker", the lush Lauryn Hill-esque "Neon valley street" with a lovely guitar solo, while "Neon gumbo" is the sound of a song playing backwards.

"Dance or die" features Saul Williams and a spitfire delivery from Monáe, groovy baseline, and an Afro beat feel. Lead-off single "Tightrope" is retro Funk featuring Outkast's Big Boi and "the funkiest horn section in Metropolis", sounding like something from Outkast's "Idlewild" album (on which she appeared). Punk Rock group Of Montreal feature on the quirky alt Pop "Make the bus", "Wondaland" is midtempo and incredibly catchy, while the dreamy acoustic ballad "57821" features Deep Cotton and sounds folky and hymnal, like The Fleet Foxes.

The woozy "Sir Greendown"is an enchanting ballad, the breezy ballad "Say you'll go" reminds me of Stevie Wonder's "Rocket love" in places, while closing is the lush Jazzy "BaBooByeYa" which meanders through different movements, a mini opera sounding like something Shirley Bassey would do.

Monáe is supremely talented and she has created a theatrical masterpiece here, sounding at times like a musical. As this is the second in a three part series (the first part "Metropolis: The chase suite" was nominated for a Grammy for the bouncy "Many moons"), it would be interesting to see where this leads. Highly recommended!

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars she's waking them up, May 26, 2010

By 

lamae - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The ArchAndroid (Audio CD)

This release is hot, pure and simple. It puts me in the mind of hearing Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On" album the first time when I was a freshman in college. The songs truly felt like a suite and flowed smack into each other (Erykah Badu's "Mama's Gun" and Jill Scott's live album are the few in recent memory that hit me like this). The arrangements in Archandroid are like an audible collision between Stevie Wonder, James Bond, a tinge of Earth Wind and Fire and Quincy Jones circa Michael Jackson "Off the Wall," approaching Curtis Mayfield, and some Bjork (yes, you are America's answer to the majestic Bjork, Swing Out Sister and Janet Jackson). Add in a little otherworldly that puts you in the mood of a movie soundtrack and we're about there.Yes, I danced in the mirror of my apartment to "Tightrope," - they try to take your dreams/but you can't a allow it...whether you're high or low/you got to tip on the tightrope...this ain't no acrobatics/you either follow or you lead...you gotta keep your balance or you fall into the gap - her first release and hardly got the James Brown footwork Janelle and her crew does so wonderfully in her video. My cat was entertained at my even trying.

What you want to really listen to is Suite II Overture, cut 1, and cut 4, Locked Inside (which has the drumming transition you hear at the beginning of MJ's "Rock with You". There are few things being dropped these days that surprise. Archandroid is among them. After the Overture, dig into "Dance or Die," which again puts me in the mind of the Jackson family, namely Janet, as this song sounds eerily similar to "I Bet You Think This Song is About You." Janelle's power is in her daring to take risks. When I told my husband that Sean "Piddy" Combs was an executive producer on this CD, I heard, "I'm glad to see that he's trying something adventurous". That was the hubby being nice. Now I'm not mad at Combs, but I believe he did something grand in letting Janelle do her thing as she lets us know up front in her acknowledgements: "To my Bad Boy/Atlantic Family...Thank you Sean Combs. Thank you for helping us soar & letting me be the boss; It is because of your strong belief in our ideas as The Wondaland Arts Society we are able to fly higher.")

One confession: my interest in this release goes beyond the music. Janelle's concentration on aliens and sci-fi and most especially, the 1927 Frantz Lang film "Metropolis" (as seen in her debut CD two years ago) was enough to make me take note. I also like this film. And not that African Americans can't get down with all things German and fictitiously science, but it was cool seeing someone else seeing the splendor and magic in this Lang film. Beyond that, there are some moments on this CD that didn't entirely impress me and that would be the sing-song beginning to "Oh Maker". I could almost see Janelle dropping her pompadour and tuxedo or sci-fi fetish for a straw hat, a banjo and some overalls to sing this song that spins out into the funky, true. And not too soon for me, but that's allowed. Janelle, this is your work. I love it. And I hope others do, too. And that's because Janelle, you're all over the place and yet in one very steady place, which is you.

Commencing the final note: anyone reading this with the album in hand/ear, go straight to Suite III Overture, cut 12** (all of 1:41 seconds in length) and Neon Valley Street, cut 13 (3:58 if you're keeping count). Whatever you praying to, Neon Valley Street is the soundtrack. I couldn't tell if this was a gospel tune or if she was for a minute truly being Top 40 romantic (let's pretend I'm holding your hand) or whether this was an ode to the listener (...May the song reach your heart/May the song journey on...running fast in time like Tubman...it's just a pity the song is a danger zone...don't get caught).

I told my husband that according to the notes on this album, Janelle is from the year 2719. She's from another time, I said. The hub replied, "Yeah, like Sun Ra." I said, "Yes, but she's more accessible." (Google NPR interview).

And now for the Archandroid Awards:

1) Most Appreciated Arrangements:

About 1:59 into cut 15, "Wondaland" (another nod to love)

2) Lyrics, Most Surprising:

Early in the morning he searched for her/until his feet grew bloody and tired

3) Should Get Regular Airplay for the Masses Award:

"Say You'll Go," cut 17 (one lyric: Write our name on each other's heart/Love is not a fantasy.) These lyrics and the doo-doo-do, which again, put me in the mind of Stevie and war-time radio. This tune is also for anyone thinking of the DOW, Greece, the BP spill in the Gulf, December 21, 2012, and all things scary and redundant (The world could end outside our window, she sings). The choral arrangement and piano and strings at the end are not to be forgotten.

The truly final note: Cut 18, "Babopbyeya" is it. Eight minutes and forty six seconds long. The title is an inspired scat a la Ella. The lyrics are amazing. (Where are you, my darling?/ Babopyeyah /can you hear me calling/give us the eyes to guide us the most when have no light to see through our darkest days and troubled ways...Meet me at the door by the garden...I hear echoes of your laughter in the corners of my mind...I must go.) And Miss Janelle, is that Spanish or Portuguese you poured up in here? Girl, you are damaging for the ordinary. You are waking them up.