Frank Kogan

What you say about The-Dream is so true. Except I would say he's probably more Prince than Michael Jackson, since Michael is a bad ass dude but never as overtly sexual as Prince, and there is tons of sex on The-Dream albums. I think The-Dream's frosty voice works really well against the icy keyboards, which makes him totally strange in a way: He makes snowy summer music.

Love Vs. Money worked better for me as a piece, but Love King is more varied and impressive musically, so I think I actually like it a little better. Pretty much every song on Love King is spectacular minus "Love King," which I think is basically an intro, with "Make Up Bag" acting as a transition into "F.I.L.A.," which is where the album really takes off. The Ariel Pink album is more or less structured the same way, which is why I was a little miffed that Will only picked "Bright Lit Blue Skies" to review, since it more or less serves the same purpose that "Love King" does on its album. Those songs are best listened to within the confines of the album's arc.

(Also, I think that Love Hate is probably the best synthesis of towering pop monoliths with restrained tracks that serve the purpose of being pieces in a complete work, so that's probably still my favorite The-Dream album.)