Album Review: Madonna's "MDNA" Is Sonic MDMA

Hi everyone!

It's been four years since Queen Madge's last album release--2008's "Hard Candy," an album I enjoyed at the time but one that hasn't aged overly well and one that certainly will never be remembered for being one of her best albums. Fast-forward to 2012. After much hype and speculation in the weeks since Madonna's epic Super Bowl performance last February, "MDNA" finally released today. Having listened to it now several times, I am very happy to report that the Queen of Pop is back. Indisputably so. Epically so. In fact, "MDNA" is easily her best album not only since 1997's "Ray of Light" but (I'm going out on a limb here) since 1989's "Like a Prayer." Yes, this is the Queen of Pop's best album in 22 years.

What made "Like a Prayer" stand out at the time of its original release was the fact that it was the first album Madonna released that could truly be called confessional. While the title song "Like a Prayer" (which will probably always be remembered as one of history's best pop songs) and other hits like "Express Yourself," "Cherish,""Oh Father," and "Keep It Together" solidified Madonna's dominance on the world's pop charts, the album's best moments were its quieter, more introspective tracks: "Til Death Do Us Part," "Promise to Try," and the slightly psychedelic Prince duet "Love Song." These songs dealt with pain: the pain of divorce (from Sean Penn) and the pain of losing her mother at such a young age. After the bubble gum pop of "Like a Virgin" and "True Blue," "Like a Prayer" gave the world a more sensitive side of Madonna that was often lost amidst her rise to superstardom, the controversy, and her turbulent short-lived marriage to Sean Penn.

In the years since 1989, Madonna has released a slew of albums--some iconic (1992's "Erotica" and 1997's "Ray of Light" leap to mind), some decent but not great (1994's "Bedtime Stories," 2000's "Music" and 2005's "Confessions on a Dance Floor) and others that could have been great but were too inconsistent to truly work (2003's "American Life" and 2008's "Hard Candy.")

"MDNA" is one of the iconic albums. Similar to "Like a Prayer," many of the tracks here again deal with the subject of divorce--this time from British director Guy Ritchie--loss, and spirituality. The album runs the gamut from revved-up dance-floor ecstasy (with tracks like "I'm Addicted," (a techno barn-burner) "Girl Gone Wild," "Some Girls" and a really f**cked up track called "Gang Bang" whose culminating moment comes when Madonna screams "Drive, Bitch, and while you're at it Die, Bitch over and over and over..." You just have to hear it ) to beautifully poignant confessional ballads ("Masterpiece," "Best Friend," "Falling Free," and "I F**ked Up") to tracks that fall somewhere between the two (the heartbreaking and wistful "Love Spent" comes immediately to mind, a song that makes me want to dance while crying my eyes out...go figure, but it works beautifully.)

Added to this already compelling but rather volatile mix is the up-tempo pop confection "Turn Up the Radio" which I've already dubbed my 2012 summer anthem, "I'm a Sinner" (which flips "Like a Prayer" on its ass while transporting us back to some LSD-laced late-1960s psychedelic magic bus ride), "I Don't Give A" which has Madonna flipping Guy Ritchie the bird while pseudo-rapping with Nicky Minaj only to end with an epic electrified choral bit that channels Queen, and "Superstar" a catchy little romp that goes nowhere but is still kind of fun. Even the more-or-less throwaway tracks "Beautiful Killer," "B-Day Song," and the album's first single "Gimme All Your Luvin'" have their appeal.

If you're already a Madonna fan, "MDNA" is the comeback album you've been waiting for. For those of you on the fence or indifferent, "MDNA" is the Madonna album you want in your collection. It's hypnotic, schizophrenic, and really quite extraordinary. I can't wait to see what she does with these tracks in her tour this summer.

Download: "Gang Bang," "I'm Addicted," "Turn Up the Radio," "Love Spent," and "I'm a Sinner."

Ciao.