Leave the talk of neo-soul and headwraps at the door, and disregard your pre-conceived expectations for an Erykah Badu album right now. Every release since 1997's Baduizm has moved further and further from what first made the singer famous, and aside from her ability to influence rappers' fashion (we're looking at you, Common, and you, too, Andre3000!), the only thing that's ever been certain about Badu is her eccentricity. There's no use trying to define her—Badu's quirkiness is as beautiful as it is bizarre—and her latest, New Amerykah Part One (4th World War), leaves the lines that surround her pleasantly blurred.

Moods range from souped-up Soul Train line ("Amerykahn Promise," "The Cell") to slow motion and smooth like molasses ("That Hump," "Telephone"). The heft of the album, however, is creeping, ambient, and captivating, with standouts like "Twinkle," "The Healer," and "My People." The album's lead single, "Honey," is catchy and radio-bound, but it's actually a standard-sounding bonus track that feels out of place. Sit back and wait for the best of the track's future remixes—they can't be far behind.

With much of the album foregoing conventional song structure in favor of a loose, ambling feel, New Amerykah is surprisingly challenging. It stutters frequently—songs stop suddenly, and drums drop entirely out of tracks—and the effect leaves Badu's voice to fend for itself. Thankfully. Removed of the standard-issue framework, Erykah's fourth album is fresh and invigorating. If New Amerykah actually signaled an updated country, listeners would be all the better for it. Instead, it seems we've simply found an early spring soundtrack with which to distract ourselves. Good enough.