Madonna
MDNA

Finally, the latest album by the one who has been dubbed the queen of Pop: Madonna has been released.

Madonna has always been at the top of her game, between quality music and very commercial music.

After a two-year break (if we consider the Celebration album which included two new tracks), she returned with a new album: MDNA, an album that has been talked about a lot despite having no promotion.

Her last album of new material, Hard Candy, dates back to 2008 and although it achieved moderate success, it was not much appreciated by fans nor critics.

Indeed, with Hard Candy, Madonna had conformed to today's musical fashions without being herself anymore.

From her return, everyone expected a lot from an artist of her caliber, and I must say that in this new "era," she has done a good job, although unfortunately, this time she did not try to anticipate future trends in pop and rock as she always had until 2005.

With MDNA, in my opinion, Madonna managed to do much better than Hard Candy because she retained her style in almost all the songs on the album, offering new sounds in terms of dance tracks, and presenting "the old Madonna" in traditional pop tracks and ballads. I didn't appreciate much the fact that in many songs Madonna's voice was altered to better fit the "dancefloor" genre.

At first listen, the album didn't appeal to me at all, and I found only a few songs catchy, but after listening to it multiple times, it grew on me because this album grows on you with each listen.

The pop star's intent in this record seems to be to assert that no one can match or beat her, and she does so by offering diverse songs, yet linked by a common thread.

In MDNA, we find carefree pop songs, very radio-friendly dance hits, non-trivial electronic tracks, and extraordinary traditional ballads with quality orchestral arrangements, and all the tracks represent a genre already tackled by the pop star.

Now let's talk about the individual songs on the album:

1) Girl Gone Wild

It starts slowly with a prayer reminiscent of the act of contrition, then continues with a pure dance track in the style of "Confessions On A Dance Floor" characterized by strong synths and a powerful beat.

Rating: 7.5

 

2) Gang Bang

The theme of this song is Madonna's revenge against a man referred to as "bitch." Characterized by an electronic base and a very original, ever-evolving melody. An almost perfect track if it weren't so long. Rating: 8.5

 

3) I'm Addicted

Electronic song made up of varied and very interesting sounds. I did not appreciate the ending of the song much, in my opinion too self-congratulatory (the word MDNA, the album title, is repeated). As a single, it would be bold but in my opinion, a sure success for any singer. Rating: 8 -

 

4) Turn Up The Radio
Definitely a very radio-friendly and catchy '90s style soft dance track. A simple but not trivial text. In my opinion, it could become a successful summer single.
Pleasant, but not original at all.
Rating: 7

 

5) Give Me All Your Luvin'
We know it very well because it’s the single that anticipated the album. Made for the SuperBowl performance, even though it’s very radio-friendly, it’s banal and silly.
Rating: 4.5

 

6) Some Girls

Here Madonna's voice is altered by the vocoder and the track is banal and of poor quality. The production is awful and the melody is boring and flat. Rating: 4

7) Superstar
A catchy and very radio-friendly song, but a bit repetitive. With an "Uh la la" that ruins everything and trivializes it. Rating: 6 +

8) I Don't Give A

This is a pop/rap track in the style of "American Life." Sarcastic piece with a simple arrangement. The presence of Nicki Minaj is amusing.

Rating: 7

 

9) I'm A Sinner
A cheerful song without pretensions. Pleasant and intentionally repetitive.
Rating: 6.5

 

10) Love Spent
A track that stands out for its originality with a nice banjo and a guitar accompanied by some electronic sounds. Produced by the genius of William Orbit, it also features a quote from Hung Up. Varied song with a beautiful bridge. In my opinion, one of the best on the album. The acoustic version is adorable.
Rating 9+

11) Masterpiece
Beautiful traditional pop ballad, already a Golden Globe winner for best original song. If released as a single, it would be very successful and win several awards. Given her past choices, it will never be a single.
Rating: 8.5

12) Falling Free

The album closes with this beautiful ballad where Madonna showcases her "sweet" voice. It features a high-level orchestral accompaniment reminiscent of Celtic music. The orchestra and the beautiful text create a very relaxing atmosphere. Rating 9+

Additional tracks from the Deluxe edition (I won't dwell on these):

1. Beautiful Killer Rating: 6--

2. I Fucked Up Rating: 6

3. B-day Song Rating: 5.5

4. Best Friend Rating: 5--

 

Anyone who expected a beautiful album up to Madonna's standards or a return to Ray Of Light was wrong, but nonetheless, leaving aside the lyrics of some songs, it is a good album. Rating for the album: 8 -