Janelle Monáe's full-length debut, The ArchAndroid, was one of the standout releases of its year and The Electric Lady is a worthy sequel. The lead single ("Dance Apocalyptic") was a take on Andre 3000-inspired brand of pop music that missed the mark. Thankfully, the rest of the album does not sound like this, as Monáe continues to play with a wide range of styles. She delves into Jackson 5-like soul with powerful vocals on the wonderful "It's Code" and sounds equally at home in the cinematic, sultry string-driven atmosphere of "Look Into My Eyes". "Givin' Em' What They Love" has more great Monáe singing and a stellar feature from Prince, who provides a strong guitar solo. The Electric Lady really hits its stride in Suite V, with the blatantly "I Can't Help It" (Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder) influenced "Dorothy Dandridge Eyes" and the infectious "Can't Live Without Your Love" being two of Monáe's best songs. The former has gorgeous scatting from bassist Esperanza Spalding and it is a crime of the highest order that the latter was not pushed as a single. The smooth instrumentation and catchy, succinct hook of "Can't Live Without Your Love" had the potential to do wonders for Monáe on R&B-centered radio stations. The existence of duller tracks like "Primetime" or "We Were Rock & Roll" means that The Electric Lady is ultimately not on the level of The ArchAndroid, but it's still a very good album.
