Prince
,
Erykah Badu
Esperanza Spalding
Solange
, and
Miguel
contribute to the fourth and fifth Metropolis suites, but it's not as if
Janelle Monae
and their
Wondaland
associates were short on creative energy. Equally as detailed and as entertaining as
The ArchAndroid
The Electric Lady
is likewise a product of overactive imaginations and detailed concept engineering, and it also plays out like a sci-fi opera-slash-variety program with style and era-hopping galore. Suite four is the album's busier and more ostentatious half, more star-studded and less focused, highlighted by the bopping "Dance Apocalyptic" and the strutting
Badu
duet "Q.U.E.E.N." Suite five is considerably stronger with a handful of firmly R&B-rooted gems. The inspiration for its overture is noted in the liners as "
Stevie Wonder
listening to
Os Mutantes
on vinyl (circa 1973)," but shades of
Stevie
's '70s work are heard later in more obvious ways. "Ghetto Woman" is impeccably layered soul-funk, fluid and robust at once, with chunky percussion and synthesizer lines bounding about as
Monae
delivers a performance as proud and as powerful as
's "Black Man." It contains an autobiographical 30-second verse that is probably swift and dense enough to make early supporter
Big Boi
beam with pride. The enraptured liquid glide of "Dorothy Dandridge Eyes," featuring
Spalding
, recalls "I Can't Help It," co-written by
for
Michael Jackson
's
Off the Wall
. Earlier, on "It's Code,"
channels the yearning
Jackson 5
-era
MJ
. "Can't Live Without Your Love," presumably a paean to human love interest
Anthony Greendown
has
-- or Cindi Mayweather, aka Electric Lady Number One -- yearning like never before. The album is sure to astound
's sci-fi/theater-geek following. Its second half cannot be denied by those who simply value creative R&B that owes to the past and sounds fresh. Anyone can appreciate the phenomenal interludes, which are close to
3 Feet High and Rising
level. Power-up to the Droid Rebel Alliance and the Get-Free Crew indeed. ~ Andy Kellman