''Wanderland'' is the second studio album by American singer

Kelis Kelis Rogers-Mora (; born August 21, 1979), known mononymously as Kelis, is an American singer, songwriter and a professionally trained chef. At age 14, she was admitted to New York's Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Perfor ...

. It was released on October 17, 2001, by

Virgin Records Virgin Records is a record label owned by Universal Music Group. It originally founded as a British independent record label in 1972 by entrepreneurs Richard Branson, Simon Draper, Nik Powell, and musician Tom Newman. It grew to be a worldw ...

. The album's only single, " Young, Fresh n' New", peaked at number 32 on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

. As of October 2004, ''Wanderland'' had sold 17,000 copies in the United Kingdom.

Background and release

According to Kelis, Virgin Records did not understand ''Wanderland''. She subsequently left the label around the time of the album's European release, and as a result, the album was not released in the United States. ''Wanderland'' was officially released in the US to digital retailers on May 31, 2019, and to streaming services on June 5. The song "Flash Back" (retitled "Flashback") was included on Kelis' subsequent album '' Tasty'', while a new version of "Popular Thug", which replaced

Pusha T Terrence LeVarr Thornton (born May 13, 1977), better known by his stage name Pusha T, is an American rapper, songwriter and record executive. He rose to prominence as one-half of the hip hop duo Clipse, which was mainly active from 1994 to 20 ...

of Clipse with Nas, appears on

The Neptunes The Neptunes are an American songwriting and production duo composed of Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo, formed in Virginia Beach, Virginia, in 1992. Williams often provides additional vocals on records and appears in the duo's music videos ...

' 2003 compilation album '' Clones''.

Critical reception

''Wanderland'' received generally positive reviews from music critics. ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide ...

'' critic Alexis Petridis described the music as "clever, exhilarating and original" and praised the album as The Neptunes' "most adventurous work to date". Mark Bautz of ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cult ...

'' commented that "Kelis' brash blend of

Curtis Mayfield Curtis Lee Mayfield (June 3, 1942 – December 26, 1999) was an American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer, and one of the most influential musicians behind soul and politically conscious African-American music.

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun '':wikt:soul, soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The ea ...

techno Techno is a Music genre, genre of electronic dance music (EDM) which is generally music production, produced for use in a continuous DJ set, with tempo often varying between 120 and 150 beats per minute (bpm). The central Drum beat, rhythm is typ ...

Zeppelin A Zeppelin is a type of rigid airship named after the German inventor Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin () who pioneered rigid airship development at the beginning of the 20th century. Zeppelin's notions were first formulated in 1874Eckener 1938, ...

funk, Jobim-lite

bossa nova Bossa nova () is a style of samba developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It is mainly characterized by a "different beat" that altered the harmonies with the introduction of unconventional chords and an innovativ ...

, and ultrasmooth R&B shows a more coherent artistry than many recent boundary-busting experiments." Rupert Howe of ''

Blender A blender (sometimes called a mixer or liquidiser in British English) is a kitchen and laboratory appliance used to mix, crush, purée or emulsify food and other substances. A stationary blender consists of a blender container with a rotating me ...

'' found that " e best thing about ''Wanderland'' is that

elis Elis or Ilia ( el, Ηλεία, ''Ileia'') is a historic region in the western part of the Peloponnese peninsula of Greece. It is administered as a regional unit of the modern region of Western Greece. Its capital is Pyrgos. Until 2011 it was ...

seems finally to have begun celebrating her eccentricities", adding, "Aside from the idiosyncratic lyrics ..she switchbacks from parodying '70s mack-stylin' (the

Funkadelic Funkadelic was an American funk rock band formed in Plainfield, New Jersey in 1968 and active until 1982. The band and its sister act Parliament, both led by George Clinton, pioneered the funk music culture of the 1970s.John, Bush. Funkade ...

'Daddy') to an '80s soul croon ('Scared Money')." At entertainment.ie, Andrew Lynch commended Kelis' "aggressive vocal delivery and intriguing, if sometimes confusing lyrical imagery", while calling the album itself " illiantly produced" and "strikingly original". ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its co ...

''s Barry Walters noted that, musically, ''Wanderland'' "doesn't venture far from its predecessor, ''

Kaleidoscope A kaleidoscope () is an optical instrument with two or more reflecting surfaces (or mirrors) tilted to each other at an angle, so that one or more (parts of) objects on one end of these mirrors are shown as a regular symmetrical pattern when v ...

'': The Neptunes are still matching jaunty beats to techno sonics. But her pen is busier now, and the result is smarter, more nuanced but no less confrontational." Andy Kellman of

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the dat ...

stated that "the album's first three songs—'Young, Fresh n' New,' 'Flash Back,' and 'Popular Thug'—are on an even standing with the best of the singer's

debut Debut or début (the first public appearance of a person or thing) may refer to: * Debut (society), the formal introduction of young upper-class women to society * Debut novel, an author's first published novel Film and television * ''The De ...

..After that solid beginning, the album continually loses steam and gains it back." Stephen Dalton of '' NME'' viewed the album as "a solid sophomore effort", but felt that "there is way too much filler here for a hotly hyped alterna-soul princess with her eyes on the big prize." Sal Cinquemani of ''

Slant Magazine ''Slant Magazine'' is an American online publication that features reviews of movies, music, TV, DVDs, theater, and video games, as well as interviews with actors, directors, and musicians. The site covers various film festivals like the New Yo ...

'' opined that the album is "far from rote, but the Neptunes's rehashed retro beats and synths are beginning to sound derivative of

Britney Spears Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is an American singer. Often referred to as the "Princess of Pop", she is credited with influencing the revival of teen pop during the late 1990s and early 2000s. After appearing in stage productio ...

's ' I'm a Slave 4 U.' Much of the disc's hooks are unchallenging and repetitive at best." In ''

The New Rolling Stone Album Guide ''The Rolling Stone Album Guide'', previously known as ''The Rolling Stone Record Guide'', is a book that contains professional music reviews written and edited by staff members from ''Rolling Stone'' magazine. Its first edition was published in 1 ...

'' (2004), Ernest Hardy and Arion Berger were critical of the album, writing that " e beats that brought ''Kaleidoscope'' to life are gone, and only Kelis' hippieish and overly self-aware songwriting remains."

Track listing

Notes * "Easy Come, Easy Go" contains replayed elements from " Eazy-Duz-It" by Eazy-E. * "Little Suzie" contains two hidden tracks: "Star Wars" and a cover of " I Don't Care Anymore" by

Phil Collins Philip David Charles Collins (born 30 January 1951) is an English singer, musician, songwriter, record producer and actor. He was the drummer and lead singer of the rock band Genesis and also has a career as a solo performer. Between 1982 and ...

Personnel

Credits adapted from the liner notes of ''Wanderland''.

Musicians

– vocals *

– instruments, arrangements * Tony Kanal – bass guitar * Tom Dumont – guitar * Adrian Young – drums * Fieldy – live bass * C Minus – scratches

Technical

– production, executive production * Andrew Coleman – engineering * Brian Garten – engineering * Ken "Duro" Ifill – mixing * Serban Ghenea – mixing * Rob Walker – executive production

Artwork

* Michelle Laurita – cover photography * Pauline St. Denis – inside photography

Charts

Release history

Notes

References

{{Authority control 2001 albums Albums produced by the Neptunes Kelis albums Virgin Records albums