love "This Time." I think I voted for it in the janet poll.
― guess that bundt gettin eaten (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Wednesday, 14 January 2015 22:33 (nine years ago) link
janet. doesn't hang together nearly as well tho
― The Reverend, Wednesday, 14 January 2015 22:34 (nine years ago) link
janet.'s problem is that is outstays its welcome. the final third of the album packed with syrupy ballads make the album feel 10 hours along ("anytime anyplace" being the classic 4eva exception). the first two thirds is just relentlessly incredible however.
I'm trying to think of other pop albums since that have done this nearly as well. Even for those albums that do pull it off (e.g. Britney's In The Zone) it usually feels like a total quirk of fate, like the songs accidentally forgot to be car-crashes or limp target market pandering or whatever.
xtina's stripped is the first that comes to mind. several girls aloud/xenomania albums as well, although packing 30 ideas into their songs became too much of their focus. also rihanna's rated r totally fits! and feels very much a part of the velvet rope/erotica lineage.
― prolego, Wednesday, 14 January 2015 22:49 (nine years ago) link
Yeah I thought of Stripped too after I posted, that may be the best example (and also as an album clearly takes a lot of cues directly from The Velvet Rope).
I wouldn't include Xenomania-related work though because there the deliberate kitchen sink every genre simultaneously approach is such a strong stylistic aesthetic that the songs end up sounding of a piece anyway.
I wonder if in part it's possible for Janet because, for someone who is considered to have a "weak" voice, she had spent her entire career working out ways to project presence in other ways, and in a variety of contexts. Perhaps the really distinguishing quality of The Velvet Rope's grab-bag approach is that it always feels like it's being delivered by the same very ~present~ person.
― Tim F, Wednesday, 14 January 2015 23:09 (nine years ago) link
To be clear, I love Janet's voice.
― Tim F, Wednesday, 14 January 2015 23:24 (nine years ago) link
I do love how this album feels like a total grab-bag of stylistic tricks (sample-collage! DJ Quik disco! slow jams! Timbaland jitters! neo-soul! shiny modern pop/r&b crossover! glutinous balladry! rock guitars! gay house anthem! "miambient" epic!) but still feels like it's got this really cohesive and deliberate meta-narrative, and is the work of a single controlling mind (albeit with helpers, who she is controlling).
haha this is true of khia's last couple of albums too, which - i've just realised - are basically very cheap versions of this; it's like someone was trying to recreate it with a budget of £5 and some prittstick
― lex pretend, Wednesday, 14 January 2015 23:48 (nine years ago) link
The J Dilla joint.
― Moka, Wednesday, 14 January 2015 23:59 (nine years ago) link
How come J Dilla is not credited in Got Til It's Gone? I'm pretty sure he was involved but I can only find traces of a 'revenge' mix he made (I'm guessing it's revenge since they stole his credit?)
― Moka, Thursday, 15 January 2015 00:03 (nine years ago) link
this'll sound strange but I hear Peter Gabriel's "San Jacinto" in "Empty."
― guess that bundt gettin eaten (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Thursday, 15 January 2015 00:08 (nine years ago) link
it makes me so so so excited abt life that there are still ablums like "The Velvet Rope" for me to discover
I had it when it came out but I didn't listen to the whole thing all that much and I threw it on my phone the other day after reading abt Tim F's love of "Empty" and I listened to it like 3 times today. I am already very obsessed with this.
― Jennifer 8.-( (Stevie D(eux)), Thursday, 15 January 2015 04:23 (nine years ago) link
Your koochie gonna swell up and fall apart.
― Vulvacura (Eric H.), Thursday, 15 January 2015 04:48 (nine years ago) link
ranking this hurt but here we go
what abouti get lonelygo deepvelvet ropefree xoneyouemptymy needcan't be stoppedrope burnspecialtogether againanythingtonight's the nightevery timegot til it's gone
― lex pretend, Thursday, 15 January 2015 18:14 (nine years ago) link
You're right, that ranking does hurt.
― Vulvacura (Eric H.), Thursday, 15 January 2015 18:31 (nine years ago) link
Listening to the album sequentially for the first time in a frickin ever and I think I've been underestimating just how much of a cool drink of water it is when "Together Again" finally rolls around.
― Vulvacura (Eric H.), Friday, 16 January 2015 14:56 (nine years ago) link
Would've been amazing if they'd held it until even closer to the end instead of pulling the old backloading-ballads trick again.
― Vulvacura (Eric H.), Friday, 16 January 2015 14:57 (nine years ago) link
cool drink of water after the rope burn
― guess that bundt gettin eaten (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Friday, 16 January 2015 15:02 (nine years ago) link
Even "Every Time" sounds pretty strong in sequence, or at least less like "Again, Pt. 2."
― Vulvacura (Eric H.), Friday, 16 January 2015 15:13 (nine years ago) link
Well, the first 15 seconds of "Tonight's the Night" are pretty good, anyway.
― Vulvacura (Eric H.), Friday, 16 January 2015 15:16 (nine years ago) link
Automatic thread bump. This poll is closing tomorrow.
― System, Saturday, 17 January 2015 00:01 (nine years ago) link
Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.
― System, Sunday, 18 January 2015 00:01 (nine years ago) link
Think I actually forgot to put in a vote. Make me "You"s sole vote.
― Vulvacura (Eric H.), Sunday, 18 January 2015 00:01 (nine years ago) link
Just bought promo 12"s of "Together Again" and "Got Til It's Gone" today
― Jennifer 8.-( (Stevie D(eux)), Sunday, 18 January 2015 03:14 (nine years ago) link
Oh and "I Get Lonely" with an instrumental of the Timbaland remix!!
― Jennifer 8.-( (Stevie D(eux)), Sunday, 18 January 2015 03:15 (nine years ago) link
Voted Got Til It's Gone because I love the J Dilla thing but Empty is mindblowing in context. Hard to believe that Janet Jackson would release one of the most forward sounding tracks of the 90's.
― Moka, Tuesday, 20 January 2015 08:13 (nine years ago) link
Hard to believe that Janet Jackson would release one of the most forward sounding tracks of the 90's.
― Moka, Tuesday, January 20, 2015 3:13 AM (5 hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink
lol c'mon dude no it's not
― Jennifer 8.-( (Stevie D(eux)), Tuesday, 20 January 2015 14:06 (nine years ago) link
1997?
― Moka, Tuesday, 20 January 2015 17:28 (nine years ago) link
I mean the trajectory of Control > Rhythm Nation 1814 > janet. is so forward-thinking and innovative that the fact that she'd release something even more forward-thinking and innovative is not a shocker. I mean, few people keep up so much momentum for so long so it's not like it was EXPECTED per se but I think it's a logical thread
― Jennifer 8.-( (Stevie D(eux)), Tuesday, 20 January 2015 19:23 (nine years ago) link
Looked up "velvet rope poll" wondering if Empty did well, proud to see it's #1. That song could come out today and it would still sound amazing
― josh az (2011nostalgia), Tuesday, 10 October 2017 01:26 (six years ago) link
My Need 1
what
this is my frontrunner atm (3 or so full-album listens in)
― imago, Tuesday, 18 August 2020 19:00 (three years ago) link
Surprised to see "Go Deep" tied for 5th here given it was 6th in the overall tracks poll.
― Get the point? Good, let's dance with nunchaku. (Eric H.), Tuesday, 18 August 2020 19:16 (three years ago) link
stoned listening to velvet rope on headphones d(((((((-_-)))))))b
― flamenco drop (BradNelson), Monday, 13 June 2022 17:58 (one year ago) link
Drum tones on “my need” are blowing my mind tonight.
― ✖✖✖ (Moka), Friday, 23 June 2023 01:35 (nine months ago) link
Surprised it’s so low, it’s top 3 easily.
― ✖✖✖ (Moka), Friday, 23 June 2023 01:36 (nine months ago) link