'Black Panties'

“Black Panties” is the name of R. Kelly’s new album. The cover image features Kelly holding a woman and using a bow as if she were a cello. The deluxe version of the album comes with an actual pair of black panties.

After two albums featuring love songs and a more soulful sound (2010’s “Love Letter”  and 2012’s “Write Me Back” ), Kelly returns to his explicit ways. “Black Panties” features songs like “Every Position,”  “Marry the Pussy,”  and “Cookie”  (it’s not about cookies).

R. Kelly has proven throughout his career that he knows how to write genuinely sexy hits, but at the age of 46, it might be time for him to stop talking about marrying the pussy.

“Black Panties” has its moments, but it’s mostly uncomfortable.

Opener “Legs Shakin’”  features a minimalist, nuanced production with cool synths and crisp percussion, but the lyrics, especially Ludacris’s odd, over-exposed rap verse, feel forced and sleazy.

The first half of the album lacks featured guests other than Ludacris and suffers because of it. One can only listen to Kelly sing about sex with no breaks for so long. With an ill-advised and strangely abrasive skit, the first six songs are disposable.

As “Genius”  rolls around, we glimpse the R. Kelly who made those beloved hits of the early 2000s. “Genius” is an upbeat R&B throwback with Kelly in top form on the falsetto vocals.

Well-placed guest spots from 2 Chainz  and Jeezy  spruce up the back half on “My Story”  and “Spend That.”  “My Story” is a banger that could make its way into some college basements this winter, but the real gem of “Black Panties” comes at its end. Closer “Shut Up,”  in which Kelly sticks it to his haters and critics, is his best song in years. The catchy chorus and classic R&B production make it one of the year’s top songs.

Other than “Shut Up,” “Genius,” “My Story” and a few others, “Black Panties” doesn’t have anything special to offer. It’s probably too late in his career for R. Kelly to reinvent himself, but if he keeps putting out albums with titles like “Black Panties” the fans are sure to keep paying attention to him.