Madonna Rebel Heart Album Review

#MusicMondays

Oh, Madonna. The queen of pop. She is a woman with drive and a musician with more talent than you can ever understand. I will be honest though, maybe it is my age or the the type of music I grew up listening to, I have never been a huge fan of hers. Not because I don't like her music, but because I haven't been around her music. Of course I know her popular, “Like a Virgin,” but I have never owned a Madonna record. I know, shame on me. Slap me on the wrist and call me a bad music student.

After watching Madonna perform at the Grammys, I thought, “Oh my! That is one fierce woman with attitude!” She rocked the stage and she didn't care what anyone thought of her. Her song was incredible and the performance was strangely beautiful. Did that woman discover the fountain of youth or what? I digress.

Madonna's Rebel Heart Album is appropriately named. I mean, she does have a rebel heart right? After listening to the album, I can see why she named the album Rebel Heart. As with true Madonna fashion, she is very risqué in her new songs. Madonna manages to stay young and to keep up with the latest trends in music, while maintaining her pop style… in most songs. This album confuses me because it feels like they had a good theme going and then they threw in a few songs that she had lying around that did not fit the theme at all.

The album begins with the lead single, Living For Love, is a fun dance anthem. It would be best described as a 90's pop song mixed with a modern house beat. Madonna's voice is on point and the beat rides smoothly. I love everything about this song. I see why it is her lead single.

Unapologetic Bitch is another song that I think was done well. Some how it really fits in with my vision of Madonna- a woman that doesn't give a WHAT and lives a glamorous and fast life, with no apologies. This is what I like to see from Madonna.

What happened to Madonnas voice and to the production quality in Illuminati? There are moments in the middle of the song where her voice sounds as if it is fading in and out and it doesn't ride with the beat. I can see how she was trying to be daring and to be different with this beat and with her spoken verses, but it just didn't work for me. It throws me off every time I listen to it. I think it's safe to say that this will not be the next big hit.

Then the disappointment really sets in… performed with Nicki Minaj, her song Bitch I'm Madonna is a huge FAIL in my opinion. I can't help but wonder if they couldn't come up with something better than this. The lyrics are just a cop out and it sounds like something Miley Cyrus would release. It frustrates me because I feel like they just through a dance mix together (that all of the clubs will play) and threw whatever obnoxious lyrics on it that they could and released it. Don't get me wrong, the beat is HOT, but the song itself is a lazy release for Madonna. I guess they figured Madonna can get away with anything because “Bitch, she's Madonna”.

Madonna gets raw and emotional in the song Joan of Arc. It is really a lovely song and breath of fresh air. She reminds you that she is not a mystical creature, with her lyrics “I can't be a super hero right now/ Even hearts made out of steel can break down.” It's nice to hear that life isn't perfect, no matter who you are. While I appreciate the beauty, this song belongs on a different album. It does not fit with a theme at all. This seems like something that was thrown onto the album.

Is it just me or does Joan of Arc, Wash All Over Me, Messiah, and Rebel Heart sound like it belongs to another album completely? I am very confused by the Rebel Heart song. I expected it to be upbeat and fast-paced, but it sounds like an 80s-90s pop woman's empowerment song. It does not fit in with the dance grooves of the majority of the Rebel Heart album.

Overall, Rebel Heart is very confusing. There are individual songs that are genius, fun, and/or beautiful. There are songs that are failures, which is debatable. The album as a whole, however, is just a mess. The compilation of songs doesn't make sense.

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