CONFESSIONS II - Madonna ~ my thoughts and takeaway from the album itself

So this new album by Madonna came out about a month ago but I only recently started listening to it. Overall I AM OBSESSED WITH THIS ALBUM.

Madonna was always the queen of pop and much like how pop music has changed over the decades, she always kept up with how it ebbs and flows. This album shows that.

At a deeper level this is obviously a house/dance album. House music in of itself was rooted deep in black-American, LGBTQ+ history and she knows that, she doesn't challenge it but fully embraces it with her story telling and sharing her own take on love, what her life has been, struggles, grief and even sex.

Since it is a house/dance album a lot of these songs transition into each other so listening to each track in order of how the album has them spelled out helps a lot, but if these songs came up randomly in your shuffle they sound wonderful enough without the transition, but the transition does add a lot to its flavor.

I could go over each song but it is a sixteen song album with each song averaging around the four minute mark, but I will highlight some songs (or group of songs) I really enjoy.

The opening songs (1) I Feel So Free into  (2) Good For The Soul are a great way to sell as to what to expect from this album, good vibes, love and life. 

The following three songs:

(3) One Step Away into (4) Bring Your Love and (5) Danceteria 

It's starts off sensual in a way into surprise Sabrina Carpenter, great way to invite a modern pop singer to collaborate with the queen of pop herself. Bring Your Love amps up the sensual feel that One Step Away with campy and powerful lyrics with of course a head bopping beat backing it up. Danceteria ends that trio but of course it lends itself to what Danceteria is the nightclub where Madonna got her start in the 80's. This song kept up its house beat with a kind of Disco sound to it so it feels nostalgic to the ear even though I have never heard this song before this album. Her (Madonna) chanting/story telling in a house beat is a welcome change of pace and preludes a lot more of this album in just the first five tracks. This song makes me want to literally get up and dance to choreography I don't even know. Shout out to the guy named Fred. 

(6) Read My Lips into (7) Everything 

HOLY SHIT THIS SONG IS SO FUCKING COOL! More Madonna singing in Spanish please!! And thank you to Feid for bringing so much latino pride to this track. 

First the transition into the guitar, as a latino this song made me want to keep dancing and sway my hips with a dance partner (as I dance alone in my bedroom). The song is very upbeat until to the next song transition into Everything. This track keeps up with intensity of the previous track but with certain scrutiny towards her (Madonna's) subject with a high techno beat. Towards the ending of this track things feel like they slow down (which it doesn't) yet she keeps her lyrics the same instead to a more trance/chill sound. 

The next three tracks continue the vibe of Love and dancing to the beat of the music itself as well using your body movements as a language for the dance floor. Bop along to music its great. 

skipping ahead

(10) Bizarre into (11) School

This leads to the next vibe of the album itself sex and life itself yet with that 

Firstly haven't heard Martin Garrix in a long time (shoutout to a fellow '96 baby millennial) its nice hearing his beats and Madonna's lyrics about Love itself costing so much and how "Bizarre" it is, true shit about love people take this as her nod to her former marriage with Sean Penn with the lyric "Shelby Cobra wasn't meant to last" which according to my minimal research was a type of luxury vintage car she gifted him? Idk I didn't give it much more research and that seems to be the takeaway form this song but I think this song is her comment to what she thought (at the time) love was and her reflecting on if it was actually love or trying to appeal to the scrutiny of the public eye. Anyways the song this transitions to, School. 

HOLY FUCKING SHIT THIS SONG IS SO FUCKING HOTTT. Firstly the beat changes to what I think a sex jam sounds like a slow buildup. This song alone got me in THAT mood, I'm so serious. There's a male sounding voice in throughout the track chanting in a whispering ASMR sound "trust like this, sex romance, true ambition" "I'd rather be your lover" and oh my godddd it gets me going. The song itself follows that sex theme and Madonna really wanting to learn something new, class is in session. This song reminds me so much about how much  I wanted to fuck my high school health teacher in my senior year (he wasn't even cute)  I enjoyed "learning". This song is a hookup song, this is the song you move your hips to rhythm too when your... you know 😉. Like teach me something PLEASE!

okay I think we should move on

The next few songs she comments on life, the inevitable end but it never truly "ends" only if we let it because energy never dies. The song (12) Fragile seems to be directing her attention towards her now deceased brother Christopher Ciconne who passed away about two years ago now. You could interpret these lyrics in a more deep way but they are a tribute to him. RIP. thank you Madonna for sharing these words with us. My takeaway from this song is don't fear sharing your struggles with your loved ones. Whoever they may be. 

(13) My Sins Are My Savior

This is probably my least favorite track on this album but the message is obvious but this is a take of your "fuckups" are lessons you can grow from just let the light shine through. 

The last three songs are pretty somber but I want to comment on the last song (16) L.E.S. Girl

Lower eastside girl. This song feels very somber but a nice way to end an album I wonder who the boy she was commenting on in this song is. Thoughts? My takeaway from this track is... you'll always have regrets and sometimes that's okay just learn to keep pushing through because if you don't have regrets then you're not really growing as a person. 

So this album has been on repeat for about a week now and I probably won't stop listening to it for awhile so thanks to whoever read this. What do you think about the album? I didn't want to make this super long but.. this feels like a good enough length to stop it here. 

thank you!

~Matt