I don’t mean to sound so blase about Madonna. I mean, I like the woman’s music.
However, I can also say that Madonna hasn’t made an all-out great album since 1994. Euro-dance is generally not my thing, so the whole Ray of Light/Music/American Life/Confessions run, to me, added up to maybe 12 great songs and a bunch of crap. Hard Candy was alternately OK (Justin/Timbaland) and awful (Pharrell), and the two new songs on the Celebration compilation sounded like exactly what they were…contractually obligated filler.
So, my expectations are fairly low for new Madonna music, which should probably be par for the course at this point. I mean, how many 53 year old pop stars (as opposed to soul singers, rockers or singer/songwriters, who cater a little less to commercial viability) are still making relevant music? Is there even a precedent?
As anyone who hasn’t been living under a rock for the past several months know, Madonna will be the halftime entertainment at the Super Bowl on Sunday, and she has a new album coming out at the end of March, called MDNA. The album’s first single, “Give Me All Your Luvin'” features Nicki Minaj and M.I.A., and the video premiered earlier today.
She went with a football theme, so the synergy with Sunday’s performance is there. The song and video both leave me kinda…I don’t know. They’re okay, but not groundbreaking or even controversial–I think the weirdest thing, especially considering how unique Madonna generally is, is that everything seems so bloody generic, from the title to the lyrics. Nicki’s cameo is pretty good, M.I.A.’s is OK. Madonna looks good in the video, but makeup can only cover up the ravages of age for so long.
Who knows? Maybe the song will grow on me. However, it’s a little disappointing to see an icon of my youth turning into such a bore. Hopefully, Spotify has MDNA streaming at the same time the album comes out in stores, because this is one album I’ll definitely have to give a test listen to before putting cash down for it.