"For the first time in a remarkable 20-year record-making career, Madonna pours that near-mythic knack for reinvention into a spectacularly stinky artistic black hole," Philadelphia Inquirer music critic Tom Moon wrote. "'American Life' ... is not only the most wretchedly empty thing she's ever done, it's also one of those big-budget projects that make sense only as megastar indulgence, a cloying mess of beats and noise and meaningless wounded-childhood outpourings," the review said. "Among them: 'There was a time I had a mother. It was nice."' Sweet. http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&u=/nm/20030422/en_nm/leisure_madonna_dc&e=5
Madonna should be stripped naked and beaten, then dragged through the streets to be ridiculed by her peers. She is the epitomy of the word trend and has never made a good record.
She either blew her pipes making Evita (from all the rigorous singing the role required...some even outside her normal range), popping out the first kid or both....all I know is it's been more and more computer-aided since then. Either that or she got complacent after finally winning her Grammys (Ray of Light)...she even had computer-aided stuff on that CD though.
In my book, you only buy the "The Best of" for Madonna. I bought one of her regular records and, except for the hit, I thought it stunk. Does this mean the new one doesn't have a hit in there?
WHy are you guys surprised or "wondering" why she sucks? Shes ALWAYS sucked, I mean sh!t like "Lucky Star" isnt exactly world changing music. She's the product of a gimmick and MTV, not because she has talent. Anyone who is given as much attention as she is can go out and say ************************ and make outrageous statemnts about sex. Which is all shes ever done.
I was home sick yesterday, and as I was lounging in my misery I was watching some MTV as I waited for Middlesbrough - Arsenal on Fox Bay Area. And even an inept 'Boro offense was vastly more entertaining than Ciccone's latest video -- in which she...... wait for it .... ...ACTUALLY RAPS! Oy, the pain. The horror. The sheer empathetic agony of embarrassment. (The song 'Ray of Light' does rock, though.)
I believe she's always had a weak voice, but it was never as evident in the old days when she was singing bubblegum pop like Lucky Star and True Blue. Now whenever I hear that quavering little voice of hers, it reminds me of the little old lady who used to sit in front of us in church up in Aroostook County, bravely struggling with all those dour Catholic hymns. Okay, maybe you had to be there to make that connection...
I used to like her early stuff-- Borderline. When she got all into that Papa Don't Preach phase, I tuned out.
I remember that book... Yeah, her stuff has been bad for more than a decade. Last song I can remember not hating was "Like A Prayer", and she needed choir help to make that song work. It took a while, but I think we are finally seeing the end of her 15 minutes. At the very least, she has long since past being relevant to anyone of importance.
I see a Michael Jackson, Vanilla Ice, MC Hammer, Milli (or is it only Vanilli now?) & Madonna mega-concert coming up.
Rapping today is the equivalent of the guitar solo in 1991, shortly before hair metal reached the saturation point and (tragically) dropped off the charts. Back then everyone from Cher to Amy Grant to Michael (and Janet) Jackson was incorporating a shredding guitar solo by some long-haired cock-rocker into their songs. Madonna rapping is a sign that rap is thankfully finally on its way out.
Could we be so lucky? I really doubt it though. When Rush used a treated version of Geddy Lee's voice "rapping" on "Roll the Bones," I thought rap was done for sure. However, 10 years later it's still going strong.
Taking potshots at Madonna is like taking potshots at Benny Hinn. Its too damn easy and obvious. Find a harder target to hone your critiquing powers. Plus, since when has "Tom Moon" been an arbiter of taste and popular opinion?
I do wonder about the extent to which she is being vilified in the press. In todays age of "paid for by the record company" fluff reviews and paid for shows on MTV etc. in which almost any crappy artist can be presented as a genius of rock and roll (See Lisa Marie Pressley) I wonder what Madonna did to fall out of grace in the "industry of cool." Perhaps she felt she was too big for the payola and this is the revenge of the higher up executives... Or maybe the album really sucks, i don't know.