Even after more than three decades as pop music’s strangest cypher, Prince still finds new ways to surprise us. On Sunday (Feb. 2), the notoriously private legend was in the crowd at the Super Bowl, and that same night, in an even more out-of-character move, he guest-starred as himself in an episode of “New Girl” that aired after the Super Bowl, giving star Zooey Duschanel an Appolonia-esque makeover, lecturing her on the meaning of love, and duetting with her on a bouncy new EDM-inspired song.
??The reason for it all seemed to be the release of “PretzelBodyLogic,” a new single from “Plectrum Electrum” — his upcoming album with his new, all-female backing band, 3rd Eye Girl. The single hit iTunes at midnight, and to celebrate the occasion, Prince teamed up with Essence (who have already named him the headliner of their 20th anniversary festival later this year in New Orleans) to throw a listening party for the album in the middle of New York’s Super Bowl madness.??
The party — thrown at Manhattan nightclub the Darby, the former space of legendary night spot/Prince haunt Nell’s — had all the eccentric inconveniences we’ve come to accept from Prince. Doors didn’t open until 11 — perfect for Prince’s well-known nocturnal ways, but horrible for the regularly employed attendees, which included Wendy Williams and Essence editor-at-large Emil Wilbekin. Even when Prince’s actual attendance at the party was still just an unconfirmed rumor, his signature overzealous security team made its overbearing no-photos-allowed presence felt. Unfortunately, with no stage or instruments set up, it became clear that one of Prince’s legendary late-night jams wasn’t going to happen; at best, he was just going to merely show up.
The listening truly got underway at the early-for-Prince time of 12:30, when former Sports Illustrated swimsuit model Demaris Lewis, Prince’s back-up dancer on recent tours, introduced the three beaming members of 3rd Eye Girl: Ida Neilsen (bass), Donna Grantis (guitar) and Hannah Ford Welton (drums).
Nielsen, wearing a sporty hat and trench coat that recalled Carmen San Diego, told the crowd that “Plectrum Electrum” was “completely recorded live, analog, old-school. We were influenced by Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix, people that recorded analog. People aren’t recording analog anymore. It’s manufactured, overproduced music.”
“Prince is a phenomenal teacher,” Ford, a tall bleach-blond with model looks, added. “The knowledge that you gain from just two minutes with him is limitless.”
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The threesome showed off their Paisley Park education when they debuted “PretzelBodyLogic,” a rollicking funk-rock jam that features a simple guitar riff and pounding drums that recall classic AC/DC or Joan Jett. True to Nielsen’s promise of live, one-take recordings, the song features energetic drum riffs, and even a Larry Graham-inspired bass solo.
After some technical problems, they played a second song, “Funk N Roll,” a loose New Orleans gut-funk number highlighted by a pop-and-slap bass line and Prince’s signature octave-up, helium-ballon vocal effect.
Unfortunately, that’s all attendees got to hear from “Plectrum Electrum.” The band put on a video of some recent tour footage from Switzerland, followed by an old-school rap and R&B DJ set from Doug E. Fresh.
Finally, at 2:15, after numerous Fresh’s numerous promises that “Prince is in the house,” the man himself, sporting an Afro, circular bug-eye glasses, and a furry vest of some sort, appeared at the DJ booth to greet the tired, thinning crowd. Well, “greet” is an exaggeration: Prince didn’t say anything on the mic, and barely even faced the audience, who were alternately dancing to Doug E. Fresh’s set or staring slack-jawed at their idol in the flesh.
But Prince did dance along to EU’s classic “Da Butt,” a treat in itself. And he had a purple-blazered associate put on a off-kilter remix to “Funk N Roll,” one that featured trap drums and bleeps reminiscent of Martin Garrix’s “Animals.” Fortunately, the unlikely mash-up of sounds worked. Unfortunately, it was also Prince’s exit music: His hulking bouncers quickly cleared a path, and he made his way out the door, leaving a puzzled, pleased crowd of fans both scratching their heads and moving their hips to the sound of Prince warbling over 808 drums — perhaps the night’s biggest surprise of all.