MADONNA AND WARNER MUSIC GROUP ANNOUNCE MILESTONE, CAREER-SPANNING PARTNERSHIP!!

[wtg1987 10,238]

Sorry but to quote Jellybean - " American Life" song is absolute garbage - awful rap with some of her worst lyrics and not to mention Mirwais terribly amatuerish and cheap "beep beep" production. I dont think any song on that album would have saved its poor sales (back then by comparison) The naff video and awful cover pretty much nailed the coffin on that era - why did you sound so bored on that album considering she was supposed to be at her  most happiest ( 2 beautiful kids and a hot husband who made her "think" ) i know it has its fans but for me it was the beginning of the end from that album(not including confessions tour)

[GregVsMatt 3,744]

2 hours ago, wtg1987 said:

Sorry but to quote Jellybean - " American Life" song is absolute garbage - awful rap with some of her worst lyrics and not to mention Mirwais terribly amatuerish and cheap "beep beep" production. I dont think any song on that album would have saved its poor sales (back then by comparison) The naff video and awful cover pretty much nailed the coffin on that era - why did you sound so bored on that album considering she was supposed to be at her  most happiest ( 2 beautiful kids and a hot husband who made her "think" ) i know it has its fans but for me it was the beginning of the end from that album(not including confessions tour)

I couldn't imagine being so disappointed for almost 20 years. It must be exhausting.

[theglamorous 4,103]

16 minutes ago, GregVsMatt said:

I couldn't imagine being so disappointed for almost 20 years. It must be exhausting.

Easily pleased

[Pootz333 2,711]

The American Life video with the grenade and gasp ending is not her most iconic video, but her most important one ever. It is still just as relevant today. It's unlike anything she's done before or since. It's easily one of the best things she did in the last 20 years. And I'm sorry but I cringe when I see people comparing the AL album to Madame X.

Esther > Madame.

The Paul Oakenfold mix is very underrated. It's the only version they played on the radio here in NYC. 

What always gets me is Warner Bros didn't want to release "Impressive Instant" as a single. But 2 or 3 years later they heard AL, the treatment for the video, and decided it would be a great album opener while a war was starting? Like...did someone take the day off? I'm glad they did but really.

Remember when they airbrushed the gun out of her hand in the Patty Hearst shots for the album art? Them Bush years....

[Prayer 14,698]

3 hours ago, Pootz333 said:

The American Life video with the grenade and gasp ending is not her most iconic video, but her most important one ever. It is still just as relevant today. It's unlike anything she's done before or since. It's easily one of the best things she did in the last 20 years. And I'm sorry but I cringe when I see people comparing the AL album to Madame X.

Esther > Madame.

The Paul Oakenfold mix is very underrated. It's the only version they played on the radio here in NYC. 

What always gets me is Warner Bros didn't want to release "Impressive Instant" as a single. But 2 or 3 years later they heard AL, the treatment for the video, and decided it would be a great album opener while a war was starting? Like...did someone take the day off? I'm glad they did but really.

Remember when they airbrushed the gun out of her hand in the Patty Hearst shots for the album art? Them Bush years....

It's truly a piece of pop history and probably her last "old Madonna" moment in the sense of total shock and controversy. I remember all the chaos about it. Looking back it's amazing how she got away with all that till the end (being the end the withdrawal of the original video?). Post 11/9 mainstream music (and movies) were becoming safer and safer, and yet she was back with her most political song and video ever. I guess the fact that a super electronic song, "Die Another Day", with a super violent video, went Top 10 only months before helped Warner to think "it's all OK" and go with it. Of course we know what happened.

I hope she talks deep about that era some day... the way she talks about "Erotica" and how it opened the doors for everything that came after. "American Life" certainly didn't open any doors (in any case it shut them!) and she doesn't regret it cause she performed live in the "Madame X Tour", but I'd like to know how she feels about that whole fiasco now. To me it's one of my fave and most intriguing Madonna eras. I also love the album, of course.

 

[Roland Barthes 5,924]

I love American Life, i just wish they had put a vocoder on the rap to make it sound scary and menacing like this :

https://we.tl/t-9qgc8TOVo7

[Ziploc 2,568]

1 hour ago, Roland Barthes said:

I love American Life, i just wish they had put a vocoder on the rap to make it sound scary and menacing like this :

https://we.tl/t-9qgc8TOVo7

Well I just shit my pants

[Lucky90210 741]

Keep streaming! I removed my artwork and won't share it on this forum anymore. It still appears in the threads that people quoted me. Hopefully those will go away. Apparently some members had a problem with it. I understand that. I'll share it my friends only. 

[Starchild 3,129]

On 7/28/2022 at 12:41 AM, Lucky90210 said:

Keep streaming!

What's with you pushing this unofficial artwork in various threads?

[Lucky90210 741]

On 7/28/2022 at 9:45 PM, Vasili said:

What's with you pushing this unofficial artwork in various threads?

Why not? Its fun. Just  fan hype for an important artist that I admire. And I'm an artist so for me it's just fun. 

[Starchild 3,129]

On 7/30/2022 at 1:13 PM, Lucky90210 said:

Why not? Its fun. Just  fan hype for an important artist that I admire. And I'm an artist so for me it's just fun. 

That's fair enough. It's just really big and in multiple threads.

[Blue Jean 15,656]

On 7/27/2022 at 3:40 AM, wtg1987 said:

Sorry but to quote Jellybean - " American Life" song is absolute garbage - awful rap with some of her worst lyrics and not to mention Mirwais terribly amatuerish and cheap "beep beep" production. I dont think any song on that album would have saved its poor sales (back then by comparison) The naff video and awful cover pretty much nailed the coffin on that era - why did you sound so bored on that album considering she was supposed to be at her  most happiest ( 2 beautiful kids and a hot husband who made her "think" ) i know it has its fans but for me it was the beginning of the end from that album(not including confessions tour)

I love it!

Only album I do not love is MDNA and even that has 5-6 brilliant tracks on it!

[Blue Jean 15,656]

On 7/28/2022 at 12:41 AM, Lucky90210 said:

Keep streaming! I removed my artwork and won't share it on this forum anymore. It still appears in the threads that people quoted me. Hopefully those will go away. Apparently some members had a problem with it. I understand that. I'll share it my friends only. 

Can you post it again? I didn’t get to see it

[Roy 7,625]

On 7/27/2022 at 10:41 PM, Lucky90210 said:

Keep streaming! I removed my artwork and won't share it on this forum anymore. It still appears in the threads that people quoted me. Hopefully those will go away. Apparently some members had a problem with it. I understand that. I'll share it my friends only. 

Hey there. Please don't be discouraged and don't feel down. They look amazing and beautiful and I always appreciate them popping up here. 

[Shoful 8,566]

38 minutes ago, Blue Jean said:

I love it!

Only album I do not love is MDNA and even that has 5-6 brilliant tracks on it!

You speaking my language 

[New_Boy 7,887]

Not to be a negative Nancy, the artwork wasn't bad by any means. It was lovely, in fact! It was just weird including a random image with every post, in multiple consecutive posts. A bit non sequitur, if you understand me. Keep sharing!

[Blue Jean 15,656]

8 minutes ago, New_Boy said:

Not to be a negative Nancy, the artwork wasn't bad by any means. It was lovely, in fact! It was just weird including a random image with every post, in multiple consecutive posts. A bit non sequitur, if you understand me. Keep sharing!

Probably best to put on your sig @Lucky90210 That way people who complain can just turn sigs off

[steady75 9,637]

On 7/26/2022 at 6:40 PM, wtg1987 said:

Sorry but to quote Jellybean - " American Life" song is absolute garbage - awful rap with some of her worst lyrics and not to mention Mirwais terribly amatuerish and cheap "beep beep" production. I dont think any song on that album would have saved its poor sales (back then by comparison) The naff video and awful cover pretty much nailed the coffin on that era - why did you sound so bored on that album considering she was supposed to be at her  most happiest ( 2 beautiful kids and a hot husband who made her "think" ) i know it has its fans but for me it was the beginning of the end from that album(not including confessions tour)

The things you’ve listed are exactly the point though. She’s literally saying that. She achieved the American dream and has it all but “do you think she’s satisfied”

It’s actually probably  her most self aware moment up to that point in her career.  She’s basically saying “I’m sort of an ungrateful bitch.” 
it’s a midlife crisis on record. 
I think there’s merit in that honesty at least even if it comes across as a bit tone deaf when so many people are so in need. I think it’s part of her quest to tell people to click with what they’ve got. It’s also the time she started to become more charity focused with Malawi specifically and for those less fortunate in the world outside of her previous Aids related charity work.

To me American Life is the anti Madonna album. The volume juts out. It doesn’t feel like it sits right chronologically In her catalogue. It’s spiky and cold and even though Mirwais is the through line between Music and Confessions it sits different. 
 

I’ve really come to appreciate it over time and I have to say a bit like Bedtime Stories the album works best as a whole listening experience. 
 

I think Mirwais work on Music was a lot richer and fuller and lush and fun. There’s an emptiness in the production on American Life which I suppose is intentional and fits the theme. The edges haven’t been rounded and made accessible. 
The two warm moments are Intervention and Nothing Fails which are about her kids and her love at the time and that feels right, but the rest is cold or very matter of fact. Like to do lists or bullet point journals from therapy sessions. Streams of

consciousness and even depression. The album being bookended by denouncing the American Dream song and ending with Easy Ride reinforcing how hard she’s worked and she doesn’t want an easy ride is classic contradictory Madonna. The rub of polar extreme feelings that make her tick and create. 
I think the melodies and warmth fall short on this record for the first time on a Madonna record. But that was probably intentional. It has a protect hip hop feel about it in parts even in the more traditional sounding songs. She wants to be heard. From the other demos we’ve heard I actually wouldn’t change the track list at all. 
It’s kinda perfect in its malformation. 
Nobody Knows Me, Mother & Father and Nothing Fails are classic singles that really got away. 
It could all have been so different. 

[subversive 1,107]

where is the FEL thread?

[Roy 7,625]

2 minutes ago, subversive said:

where is the FEL thread?

 

[subversive 1,107]

OH, ok, TU!

[RyanUK 187]

Not long now until M’s birthday! Do we think we will get an announcement of the reissues on her birthday? 

[Alm47 915]

7 minutes ago, RyanUK said:

Not long now until M’s birthday! Do we think we will get an announcement of the reissues on her birthday? 

Hopefully! And maybe an update on her certifications too, since she was very clear last night with Jimmy about her current 400 million (!!!) records sold.

Btw, didn't we had a thread for that appereance?

[Roy 7,625]

5 minutes ago, alvaroliam said:

Hopefully! And maybe an update on her certifications too, since she was very clear last night with Jimmy about her current 400 million (!!!) records sold.

Btw, didn't we had a thread for that appereance?

Warner must be updating them secretly... or I am just reaching but she was really convinced with 400M records sold. 

[Alm47 915]

2 minutes ago, Roy said:

Warner must be updating them secretly... or I am just reaching but she was really convinced with 400M records sold. 

Yeah! Like… her comment came out of nowhere and she was very sure about it! Hope we get the update in a few days. 🤞🏻