Review:Slant
Slant Mag review (spoiler)
Madonna
American Life
Maverick/Warner Bros., 2003
3 1/2 out of 5 Stars
Throughout the 1990s, Madonna changed her sound almost as often as she
altered her hair color. From the dark house beats of Erotica to the lush
R&B of Bedtimes Stories and the electro-pop of Ray Of Light, Madonna
switched up her style with both restlessness and ease. At the start of
her third decade in the business, Madonna took her foray into electronic
music one step further by enlisting the talents of newcomer Mirwais for
2000's Music. Having made a career out of taking us by surprise, she
curiously chose to shack up with the French producer a second time for
her tenth studio album, American Life. But would Mirwais have enough
tricks up his sleeve for a sophomore romp with the queen of reinvention?
The answer is yes - and no. Back are the oscillating filters, clunky
beats, stuttering guitars and irksome autotuned vocals, but while Music
was all over the place musically, American Life is more consistent, and
this time
M+M have perfected the experimental guitar/synth sound they christened
with 'Don't Tell Me.' Much like Music's aptly-titled 'Impressive
Instant,' 'Nobody Knows Me' is the album's most immediately gratifying
tune. The track has a patently retro quality (think Stacy Q on acid)
that bridges the synth-happy gap between 'Material Girl' and 'Music.'
While Madonna's attempt at rapping on the title track is cheeky at best
(the song also finds Mirwais regurgitating his signature beats and
grinding synth sounds), her digitally-spliced rhymes on 'Mother &
Father' are starling and inventive.
The album's best tunes, though, mostly abandon the techno-rap ether and
dive headlong into folk-rock territory. With several songs stacking
layers of sophisticated vocal harmonies on top of sparse acoustic
guitars, the influence of Joni Mitchell, an early Madonna favorite,
seems to be finally floating to the surface. If it's true that rock
stars make their worst music when they're happy, then Madonna must be
faking it. She may appear to be head-over-heels in love with someone
(her husband and/or son on 'Love Profusion' and 'Intervention,'
respectively) or something (God on the Gospel-flavored 'Nothing Fails'),
but it seems like Madonna's in the throes of a full-fledged midlife
crisis. She rejects capitalism and fame on songs like 'Hollywood,' which
has a distinctly sunny vibe a la Sheryl Crow's 'Soak Up The Sun,' while
the resplendent 'X-Static Process' finds an almost childlike Madonna
begging: 'Jesus Christ, won't you look at me/I don't know who I'm
supposed to be.'
Where she used to rage against the machine in deeds (or misdeeds),
Madonna now bites back more directly with her lyrics. Her vocals hark
back to songs like 'Burning Up' on the guitar-driven 'I'm So Stupid,' a
track with a decidedly punk-rock sensibility: 'Please don't try to tempt
me/It was just greed/And it won't protect me.' After years of
flip-flopping between sub-genres and finally finding a comfortable niche
in electronica, then teasing us with her electric guitar-wielding rock
goddess persona during 2001's Drowned World Tour, and now showing
promise as a folk-rock songstress, the only thing left for Madonna to do
is plug in and make a full-blown rock album.
Sal Cinquemani
) slant magazine, 2003.
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※ Origin: 交大機械工廠 ◆ From: 64.c210-85-83.ethome.net.tw
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