Review: Madonna offers a needy, trying-too-hard mess of an album

Now she's like that daffy aunt who shows up at the holiday party inappropriately dressed, slightly high and offering to buy beer for the teenagers.

Brilliant!!

This is literally the only negative review I have read....most have been 4 out of 5 stars....and the one you had to pick?

Ditto. The reviews I've read have been positive but not overly fulsome in their praise. Maybe the JT editor had one eye on a large section of the users here when this review was selected? Who knows...

Madonna hasn't been that relevant for over 30 years. She's mostly has been sex appeal, style but not too much substance all along as well as shock value (remember her 'Sex' book?). Can anybody really remember a song of hers since 1990? She sold over a million copies of the 'Justify My Love' video itself but her videos are more memorable than the songs themselves and now she's over 60 and more of a construct than a woman. She's set a bad example, a bad template for all those pop tarts like Britney, Xtina and Gaga who use choreography and sex/shock value to mask awful songs. And this review indicates that 'Madame X' is bringing things full circle for the Material Girl.

This is literally the only negative review I have read....most have been 4 out of 5 stars....and the one you had to pick ?

There are sequences that are some of her best sets of lyrics in years but critics hear the cliches they expect and downgrade from there. It all somehow flows perfectly in the end but takes a few for everything to start to make sense in relation to each other and in the context of the album as a whole.

LamillyJune 15 07:20 am JSTWhoa not one positive word to say. As I mentioned before, Mick Jagger who is old enough to be her father can prance around on stage in skin tight jeans, twerk and be lascivious and the media drool over him, even saying he sings well. But if a woman should do the same....

I saw the Rolling Stones 4 years ago and time is catching up even to him. He still sings well, yes but he mostly snarls his lyrics so take it from there. I don't know if he can do the falsetto anymore.

The thing is - the Rolling Stones have never stopped rolling, they still are relevant and haven't stopped putting out great music. And music has always been their #1 focus, even with Mick's image and persona. And the Stones' influence is SO tremendous, they've inspired so many genres and offshoot styles from punk to country rock to heavy metal. Madonna's influence has been mostly sex appeal, choreography, and that's it. And she has done nothing musically memorable since around 1990 but strike up controversy for her actions. Gender has nothing to do with it. Older women performers like Emmylou Harris get respect. I saw Suzzy Roche recently and she's over 60. Joan Jett may be 60+  already and she still kicks butt. I saw her play last year and the amphitheater was packed - even though Justin Tinkerbell was playing down the street.

As for the 'lascivious' and prancing around thing - that all wouldn't mean a thing if Mick Jagger couldn't sing or if the Stones weren't any good.

You can debate the album in terms of her delivery and lyrics. But on purely musical/production terms (harmony structures, chord progressions, instrumental, counterharmonies, obligatos etc.) The album is top notch brilliant. That can't be argued.

Face it. You’re 60 years old. You’re not relevant anymore. Just go gracefully.

I’m not a massive fan, but she was the soundtrack to my younger days. Shame she got into such a dead-end marriage.

As Yanks go, I’d give her an A-.