The ever-mercurial Prince unexpectedly debuted four new songs Thursday afternoon on the Los Angeles radio station Indie 103.
The Purple One, who has been living in Los Angeles recently, has completed a new album and contacted the station with the offer to play several of the fresh numbers. Sex Pistols guitarist Steve Jones, who hosts an afternoon show on Indie 103, aired the songs “� which included a cover of Tommy James and the Shondells’ “Crimson and Clover” and three originals “� on his noontime radio show.
A press release issued Thursday morning described the impending release as “a new, very guitar-heavy rock record” and , indeed, Prince’s six-string was splattered all over the tracks, which often brought to mind Jimi Hendrix in his mellower moments.
“Colonized Mind” featured politicized lyrics that claimed the two-party system is an “illusion of choice … you never had a voice.” Later, it bashed record labels, a favorite Prince topic. “Wall of Berlin” dabbled in jazz and funk, while the final song “4ever” included the promise “eternity is just one kiss away.”
In typical Prince fashion, no further information was released regarding a release date or the manner in which he plans to distribute the music. The station’s dj did mention the possibility of a tour but, again, had no concrete information to share.