Pros: Simple, eccentric, and flat out fun dance music.
Cons: A lot of tracks don't stand out. Too short!
The Bottom Line: Madonna had a great idea in following up her incredible Ray Of Light with an album of fun, dancy, electronic music. Most of it is even good.
Making a terrific album sucks. Okay, okay, on one hand, you get tons of critical praise. You probably win a few awards. And you make a lot more money off of record sales. But these artists never look to the future. They never think about "How am I going to follow this up?" Unless they go Jay-Z on us, artists are in a pretty tough spot.
The artist: Madonna. The predecessor: Ray Of Light. Ray Of Light was one hell of an album, probably Madonna's best. Such a deep album from the woman behind Material Girl was a feat in itself. But trying to top it? That would just be mad. So Madonna did what Madonna does best: reinvented herself.
While a retrospective, personal album is always nice to hear, what would the world be without fun pop music? Flat out boring, I'd say, and apparently Madonna agrees, because she decided to get back to her roots. She strapped on some cowboy boots, computerized her voice, and produced Music.
The album's title track kicks off with the spoken and now famous "Hey, Mr. DJ. Put a record on. I wanna dance with my baby." Before we know it, we are in a world of bleeps, blips, and all kinds of techno effects all over a heavy dance beat. It's obviously a dance song, with lyrics that aren't exactly poignant. "Do you like to boogie woogie? Do you like my acid rock?" Overall, this is just a fun track, and it's fun to dance around to. Some of it sounds a bit over the top, but that's in true Madonna style.
But things get really weird on the next track, Impressive Instant. From the first recurring, thumping bass sounds and the grinding effect, it's a wild ride. Everything pieces together so awesomely in this song: the strange effects, the spoken almost-rapping, and especially the random computer effects over just about everything but the kitchen sink. "And the world is spinning, spinning, baby, out of control. I let the music take me, take me where my heart wants to go." It's a rapidly weird (and dancy) ride, but one I love taking again and again.
What sounds like synthesized strings or... something... in random bits kick off Runaway Lover. It's pretty obvious that the star here is the beat: it's steady and hard, and simple. But the funky effects and catchy melody don't hurt matters. Those synth whatevers keep up through the entire song amidst strange chords, whirring, and blipping. Then there's Madona's simple vocal. Her voice sounds just like her, solid delivery. "It doesn't pay to be your runaway lover. It doesn't pay to give away what you lack, you'll never get your money back." This is an awesome dance song, and I can just imagine people in clubs getting into the groove to this one.
But the groove slows down a bit on the brilliant I Deserve It. This song is just terrific. It's my favorite on this album, and probably my favorite anything post-Ray Of Light. Anyway, it has a very simple arrangement: Madonna and a beautifully strummed acoustic guitar, with some occasionally funky percussion and a random whirring sound here and there. Her voice is sincere and the melody is gorgeous. And the lyrics are fantastic. "Many miles, many roads I have travelled, falling down on the way. Many hearts, many years have unravelled, leading up to today." It's a beautifully simple song.
But Madonna just loves to boogie woogie, and she can't keep the tempo down for long. She's shaking like a Polaroid picture again on Amazing. The best way to describe this song is as a clone of Beautiful Stranger. It's got pretty much all of the same arrangement: the steady percussion (nearly identical), the structure of verses and the chorus, the melody, and even the lyrical content seem stolen straight out of it. Not that that's a bad thing, really. Beautiful Stranger is a great song, but this just sounds unoriginal. And that's a characteristic nobody really wants to see Madonna with. This one has a few more whirs and blips, and it's still dancerific, but could be a lot more unique.
An eerie arrangement starts off Nobody's Perfect, and Madonna's whispered phrases are quickly overshadowed by her vocoded voice. I usually don't like a vocoder, but it is hardly there in this one. The beat kicks in on the chorus, and it's a very simple ballad. Apart from the drums, the chords, the acoustic guitar, and a few strange effects here and there, there isn't much to the arrangement. All of that is behind a very simple effect on Madonna's steady vocal and very pretty melody. "I feel so sad, but you know I'll be true. I feel so bad, and I must say to you... sorry." The lyrics aren't going to win any awards, but it's very sincere and flows together very well to make a very nice ballad.
The acoustic guitar plays a now familiar melody on Don't Tell Me. It's got effects that kind of sound like your CD is skipping, but it's all a matter of production. The first few listens, this song is great. It's got a nice, country-ish beat to it: something I think we can all unanimously agree we never thought Madge would do. All of that is accompanied by those computer effects and lovely synthesized string chords. And the melody is unbelievably catchy melody that nearly everyone can sing along to after the first verse. "Tell me love isn't true, it's just something that we do." she coos on the chorus. This song was really overplayed, so at this point, I'm a bit tired of it, but overall, this is a great track.
A British lady gives us a little speech on something about cross dressing... right... to start off What It Feels Like For A Girl. This one has got all the computer effects we're used to (okay, not as many bleeps in this one, but you get my drift) at a midtempo pace. The melody is catchy enough, but this song is just pretty darn bland. Maddy's voice sounds great, and the lyrics try their hardest to make a point, but just seem a bit redundant and pointless. "Hurt that's not supposed to show, and tears that fall when no one knows, when you're trying hard to be your best, could you be a little less." Equality between the sexes, blah blah blah. This one is pretty much a sleeper. The remix for the video (by Paul Oakenfold) was one of Madonna's best, though, and if that would have been included here you betcha I'd be loving her acid rock.
If the SEX book wasn't enough, Madonna has further proven she's a freak over the years. Kind of like she confirms on Paradise (Not For Me). I have no idea what is going on in this song. It's got a xylophone and a tired, midtempo melody, along with whispered vocals and some effects on them that at times are just way too much. And because she liked to sing in Tibetan or something on Ray Of Light, she sings in French on this one. I really like the subdued bridge that comes in about two minutes into the song, but otherwise, it's just weird and confusing and doesn't really fit in here at all.
Strumming the acoustic guitar, Madonna brings boldy tells us "Selling out is not my thing." This brings us into Gone. This song consistantly remains very simple in the drums and the guitar (with a few effects thrown in for good measure.) The chorus is beautiful, with layers of harmonies and a simplistic melody. The great thing here is that this song never tries to go over the top. It just keeps things simple, therefore beautiful. It's a wonderful way to close the album.
Overall, Music is a decent enough album. I'd say 3 1/2 stars, but I rounded up to four because it's a lot better than Like A Virgin. Maddy definitely had the right idea to produce a fun, light-hearted dance record, and in a few ways, she succeeded. The blending of acoustic guitar and techno music is terrificly original. However, the album seems like it's over as soon as you put it in, and some of these tracks sink into the back of your mind as soon as you take it out of the CD player, but with a few more listens, it grows on you. Not only is it a mandatory Madonna album, it's a mandatory Dance album that will definitely have you boogy woogying. Even if it's got its downfalls, it's still a great album.
Madonna continues to be one of the biggest female stars in the world and Music was one of the biggest releases of 2000. Continuing the electronic danc...More at Buy.com Marketplaces
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