After a four-year break from the music business, the queen of pop has once again reinvented herself with her brand new album MDNA.
Even though her previous album Hard Candy was a worldwide hit, it had a lukewarm reception among her hardcore fans who were not feeling the hip hop sound and production of the record.
With MDNA, Madonna brings back her signature style combining elements of her career that have made her the star she is today.
Let´s analize the album with a track by track overview:
Girl Gone Wild - The opening track produced by Benny Benassi is a club banger and showcases Madonna dance roots in all her glory. Once you listen to the album in full it makes perfect sense why this one had to be the second single. 8.5/10
Gang Bang - One of the strongest and most interesting songs on the album. The lyrics are violent and the atmosphere is strange and mysterious. Madonna wants to seek revenge on a lover and "shoot him in the head". MDNA could have used more of this (risky) direction. 9.5/10
I´m Addicted - Techno dance beats fill this over-produced song. It definitely makes you dance but it is hardly memorable. 4/10
Turn Up The Radio - The perfect summer anthem. Madonna sings about how pumping up the volume on the radio makes her feel. Could be single material, and it definitely puts a smile on your face. 7/10
Give Me All Your Luvin - The first single of the record doesn´t exactly represents what the rest of the music contained in this collection of songs sound like. It was perfect for the Superbowl and for a live performance but it won´t be relevant ten years from now. 5/10
Some Girls - A song that would perfectly suit Britney Spears or Kesha but the extremely over-produced beats and vocals makes Madonna almost unrecognizable which isn´t exactly a good sign. 4/10
Superstar - This positive and romantic song sounds like a modernized version of True Blue. She sings about her lover and compares him with celebrities she deeply admires. Daughter Lourdes sings background vocals as well. 6/10
I Don´t Give A - A dance-rap song with 80´s beats and Nicky Minaj. Perhaps one of her most personal tracks on MDNA, she sings about her daily routine and her failed marriage as well, but making no apoligies for who she is and what she does. The orchestal ending section will blow your speakers up. 9/10
I´m A Sinner - William Orbit´s updated signature beats and guitar make an appearance. A nice bouncy pop song complete with religious references where she sings “I’m a sinner, and I like it that way”. 6/10
Masterpiece - The Golden Globe winning song from her film "W.E." is the perfect soothing ballad we all know and love from Madonna. 9/10
Love Spent - Clearly aimed at her ex-husband, the mid-tempo track uses the craving for money as a metaphor to a failed relationship. This song demonstrates why the combination Madonna + William Orbit works so well as she addresses the end of love but also the need to be hold in that person´s arms once more. Should definitely be a single. 9.5/10
Falling Free - This is hands down the most authentic song on the record. Her voice sounds vulnerable and the production is exquisite complete with strings and beautiful lyrics. It makes you wonder why she does not make this type of songs more often. 9.5/10
