On her 13th album, Rebel Heart, Madonna pushes her career forward by coming up with creative ideas and songs that are based on atmosphere rather than bombast.
As a singer, Madonna’s performance here leans on melody and nuance with a strong extended range. Vocally, it’s one of her most expanded recordings. As a songwriter, she’s edgy and mature.
Rebel Heart is powered by electro-ballads and full-blown trip hop. The songs that follow traditional forms are standouts on an album that’s full of electricity.
Over the years Madonna has developed a sound and style that’s a mix of electronic dance music and atmospheric ballads. On Rebel Heart she blends these with strong results.
Devil Pray, a startling cautionary song, is one of her most emotional songs since her work on Ray of Light a decade and a half ago. The track is based on an acoustic guitar pattern which is enhanced with textures and a hooky vocal.
She mixes in new sounds like piano on Heartbreak City, Wash All Over Me and Living for Love (with Alicia Keys on piano). These tracks add a new layer to Madonna’s output that suit her vocally as do her acoustic-based songs (Rebel Heart, Joan of Arc). Madonna and her team of producers (including Diplo, Avicii and Kanye West) honed in on the mood of the songs.
Her sweet tooth for electronic is indulged and it works well within the album’s context. Illuminati and Bitch I’m Madonna boast clever lyrics and tasteful production – trippy nightclub tracks minus clichés.
It is the moodier melody based songs that capture the attention and hold it. Ghosttown and Hold Tight are sensitive and futuristic pop anthems that are driven by confessional vocals and sparse textural backdrops. She’s going for new ground on evocative songs like Messiah – an unknown quantity of sound in the Madonna songbook.
On Rebel Heart Madonna sounds like a star who has learned a lot about her craft and is enjoying the inspiration of the art.
– Vernon musician Dean Gordon-Smith reviews the latest music in the Morning Star every Friday.
