Madonna - Rebel Heart (So far...)

"We go hard or we go home, We gon' do this all night long, We get freaky if you want, Bitch I'm Madonna" states Madonna on the chorus of 'Bitch I'm Madonna', a cut from her 2015 album Rebel Heart which features rap stylings from sensitive, good living, emotive performer Nicki Minaj. It's the kind of lyric you'd expect on a Rihanna album, one of the cheaper tracks that lack imagination and originality. Rihanna's most recent album Unapologetic was her least appealing to date, harnessing a rougher sound that sounded rushed and lacked any heart bar a handful of very well written ballads. The reason I compare in this instance is that if Rebel Heart follows a similar path, a path Madonna has riskily teetered on past albums, it could end up being another disappointment a la Hard Candy.

The album isn't due out until March 2015 but due to the wonders of the internet and the cruel nature of humanity, some twat leaked demo versions and of course many fans run with the idea that these are complete and thus have a poor indication of the incoming body of work. So, Madonna went and did a "Beyoncé" and surprise released five of the album's finished tracks to console her loyal fanbase until the official release and of course, itunes was close to implosion shortly after.

If you're curious about Madonna's new material I urge you not to listen to the hyperactive babble of 'Bitch I'm Madonna' or the reggae infused beats of 'Unapologetic Bitch' which has a line I enjoyed, "You never really know how much your selfish bullshit costs me" and a squeezed siren I despise. These are examples of tracks Madonna shouldn't be releasing at all right now because anyone else could be releasing them. Madonna was a pioneer for the young white females of today's pop landscape in the same way Janet Jackson is for young black females in the business (of course racial background is not exclusive yada yada yada). Now, when she sings about getting down and drinking from bottles you can't afford I can't help but feel it's all very much a reflection of the genericism of some modern pop music, which I hate.


Thankfully, the day is saved by the other three tracks on offer and if they are an indication of Rebel Heart's overall quality then skipping two tracks won't be an issue. 'Devil Pray' is a triumph, with echoes of VV Brown's opus Samson & Delilah, an album I felt was exactly the type of sound Madonna needed to make with her next collection. It's one of the best Madonna tracks I've heard in years and makes her last album MDMA seem like a distant nightmare. It's a haunting Avicii production with an Eastern flavoured (almost) lyricaless chorus and tackles the idea of spiritual elevation and turning your back on a hedonistic lifestyle to spite the Devil. Similarly, thumping ballad 'Ghost Town' is a stroke of brilliance and the Billboard production and vocal tinkering come together wonderfully, and roaring hip hop inspired track 'Illuminati' features a classic spoken section harking back to the Madonna of Ol' although is in danger of slipping back into "Rihanna" territory.

I'm sure that Rebel Heart will be a success, what Madonna album doesn't sell? I just hope it maintains focus and sticks to the VV Brown side of the path and that the messy moments mentioned above are just a couple of skip button pushes and not an entire album. I have hope.