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Thread started 01/23/06 4:34pm

superspaceboy

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Madonna's Art direction for Music and American Life

What was she thinking? When I saw Music for the first time, I was like eh? Madonna Cowboy hat, guitar, pile of hay? Even her in a pose that harkened Erotica. I found it to be very strange esp after Ray of light. There was also the lack of Lyrics as well. I dunno I thought it was kind of shoddy until...

American Life. Talk about awful, and uninspired artwork. Have you seen the Hollywood single cover? ACK! ill I think one of the reasons I didn't pick up the spec ed. was 1) No description really of the contents inside 2) When discovered what the contents were, I was happy I didn't plunk down the moolah for it. And what was all that fold out crap that spells Madonna. Again No lyric printed. I think the only single that pulled her out of this artistic (visually) rut was Love Profusion.

Even the videos that were from these albums are pretty uninspired too (WIFLFAG, DAD, AL and Hollywood each were "controversial" videos). I think the only videos that looked good were Music and Love Profusion (funny they endcap both albums).


DOes anyone know why she went in these directions and how her fans reacted. I ask...becasue the artwork for COAFD is stunning and she looks really really good...even got the ruby shoes from Music...which look more in place here than they did with Music.

Christian Zombie Vampires

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Reply #1 posted 01/23/06 4:43pm

weepingwall

madonna at her age is now boring..but putting it simply she wants to reinvent herself again..in which i think people are now bored of..
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Reply #2 posted 01/23/06 4:45pm

MickG

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I'm going to disagree here. My wife bought the new albume, and I wasn't going to like it. However there are some good songs on it. Madonna changes alot, and Prince changes very little. So fucking wat?
News: Prince pulls his head out his ass in the last moment.
Bad News: Prince wasted too much quality time doing so.
You have those internalized issues because you want to, you like to, stop.
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Reply #3 posted 01/23/06 4:47pm

weepingwall

MickG said:

I'm going to disagree here. My wife bought the new albume, and I wasn't going to like it. However there are some good songs on it. Madonna changes alot, and Prince changes very little. So fucking wat?



so fucking what indeed..you should know by now that im a person who never speaks or types seriously..
[Edited 1/23/06 16:47pm]
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Reply #4 posted 01/23/06 4:47pm

superspaceboy

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weepingwall said:

madonna at her age is now boring..but putting it simply she wants to reinvent herself again..in which i think people are now bored of..


If that were true, she wouldn't be experiencing this renaisance in her music/career. Many non-fans I know are enjoying the sounds off the record. I'd say that some are not wanting her to reinvent herself as someone of importance beyond music.

Christian Zombie Vampires

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Reply #5 posted 01/23/06 4:50pm

weepingwall

superspaceboy said:

weepingwall said:

madonna at her age is now boring..but putting it simply she wants to reinvent herself again..in which i think people are now bored of..


If that were true, she wouldn't be experiencing this renaisance in her music/career. Many non-fans I know are enjoying the sounds off the record. I'd say that some are not wanting her to reinvent herself as someone of importance beyond music.



so fucking what indeed..you should know by now that im a person who never speaks or types seriously
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Reply #6 posted 01/23/06 4:53pm

MickG

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Madonna has a really cool spiritual track on her new album.
News: Prince pulls his head out his ass in the last moment.
Bad News: Prince wasted too much quality time doing so.
You have those internalized issues because you want to, you like to, stop.
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Reply #7 posted 01/23/06 5:02pm

superspaceboy

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MickG said:

Madonna has a really cool spiritual track on her new album.


And what would that be? Isaac? That's sort of a very generic quasi-spiritual track...that was touted as "controversial". I am finding these days "contoversy" is a word Madonna uses to sell her stuff.

Christian Zombie Vampires

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Reply #8 posted 01/23/06 5:33pm

sosgemini

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superspaceboy said:

weepingwall said:

madonna at her age is now boring..but putting it simply she wants to reinvent herself again..in which i think people are now bored of..


If that were true, she wouldn't be experiencing this renaisance in her music/career. Many non-fans I know are enjoying the sounds off the record. I'd say that some are not wanting her to reinvent herself as someone of importance beyond music.



really? cause i havent heard anyone talk about this album at all...well, except for here....

but mary js new album? everyone seems to be talking about...
Space for sale...
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Reply #9 posted 01/23/06 5:53pm

badujunkie

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sosgemini said:

superspaceboy said:



If that were true, she wouldn't be experiencing this renaisance in her music/career. Many non-fans I know are enjoying the sounds off the record. I'd say that some are not wanting her to reinvent herself as someone of importance beyond music.



really? cause i havent heard anyone talk about this album at all...well, except for here....

but mary js new album? everyone seems to be talking about...


that's just cuz you don't like her.
I'll leave it alone babe...just be me
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Reply #10 posted 01/23/06 6:09pm

gargamelgibson

neutral
[Edited 1/28/06 10:55am]
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Reply #11 posted 01/23/06 6:10pm

superspaceboy

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Anyone care to discuss the actual topic? rolleyes

Christian Zombie Vampires

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Reply #12 posted 01/23/06 7:01pm

Axchi696

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sosgemini said:

superspaceboy said:



If that were true, she wouldn't be experiencing this renaisance in her music/career. Many non-fans I know are enjoying the sounds off the record. I'd say that some are not wanting her to reinvent herself as someone of importance beyond music.



really? cause i havent heard anyone talk about this album at all...well, except for here....

but mary js new album? everyone seems to be talking about...



rolleyes That's just absurd. Just cause you haven't heard anybody talk about this album then it must be a failure. You always find a way to sneak in some sort of disparaging comment about Madonna. It's like she kicked your dog or something, man.
I'm the first mammal to wear pants.
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Reply #13 posted 01/23/06 7:49pm

superspaceboy

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Axchi696 said:

sosgemini said:




really? cause i havent heard anyone talk about this album at all...well, except for here....

but mary js new album? everyone seems to be talking about...



rolleyes That's just absurd. Just cause you haven't heard anybody talk about this album then it must be a failure. You always find a way to sneak in some sort of disparaging comment about Madonna. It's like she kicked your dog or something, man.


With SOS it's ok to agree to disagree biggrin And he's half kidding when it comes to Esther.

Christian Zombie Vampires

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Reply #14 posted 01/23/06 7:58pm

badujunkie

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superspaceboy said:

Anyone care to discuss the actual topic? rolleyes


Yes.

I actually thought the "Music" artwork was representative of the whole album in that everything except for the video for the title song seemed to be kind of thrown together at the eleventh hour. I mean, the album cover and the promo shot of her sipping a drink and fumbling with the guitar...there were only 10 songs...many of the lyrics seemed half written...the inclusion of paradise which was already released months before the album...it seemed too that the cowboy look was already kind of passe at that point as well. i remember hearing rumors that she was depressed at the time of that album. she also put the record out not a month after she gave an early emergency birth to rocco and didn't do ANY promotion until the album had been out for about two months. so the artwork, while vibrant and colorful, was a little dull and half assed.

AL--I thought it seemed cheap. I see what she was going for and it was a cool concept, the whole Patty Hearst/Che Guevara look, black white and red...but it just wasn't FUN. not fun, not sexy. I know for a fact she was FURIOUS with the photographer Craig McDean for how it turned out as well and I think it has a lot to do with the album's failure, the cover doesn't really look like a Madonna album.

But the artwork for Confessions is ON POINT.
I'll leave it alone babe...just be me
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Reply #15 posted 01/23/06 8:04pm

CuntOMatic

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badujunkie said:

superspaceboy said:

Anyone care to discuss the actual topic? rolleyes


Yes.

I actually thought the "Music" artwork was representative of the whole album in that everything except for the video for the title song seemed to be kind of thrown together at the eleventh hour. I mean, the album cover and the promo shot of her sipping a drink and fumbling with the guitar...there were only 10 songs...many of the lyrics seemed half written...the inclusion of paradise which was already released months before the album...it seemed too that the cowboy look was already kind of passe at that point as well. i remember hearing rumors that she was depressed at the time of that album. she also put the record out not a month after she gave an early emergency birth to rocco and didn't do ANY promotion until the album had been out for about two months. so the artwork, while vibrant and colorful, was a little dull and half assed.

AL--I thought it seemed cheap. I see what she was going for and it was a cool concept, the whole Patty Hearst/Che Guevara look, black white and red...but it just wasn't FUN. not fun, not sexy. I know for a fact she was FURIOUS with the photographer Craig McDean for how it turned out as well and I think it has a lot to do with the album's failure, the cover doesn't really look like a Madonna album.

But the artwork for Confessions is ON POINT.


Um, how do you know she hated the photos for AL? I've never read that.

[Flame bait snip - luv4u]
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Reply #16 posted 01/23/06 8:38pm

superspaceboy

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badujunkie said:

superspaceboy said:

Anyone care to discuss the actual topic? rolleyes


Yes.

I actually thought the "Music" artwork was representative of the whole album in that everything except for the video for the title song seemed to be kind of thrown together at the eleventh hour. I mean, the album cover and the promo shot of her sipping a drink and fumbling with the guitar...there were only 10 songs...many of the lyrics seemed half written...the inclusion of paradise which was already released months before the album...it seemed too that the cowboy look was already kind of passe at that point as well. i remember hearing rumors that she was depressed at the time of that album. she also put the record out not a month after she gave an early emergency birth to rocco and didn't do ANY promotion until the album had been out for about two months. so the artwork, while vibrant and colorful, was a little dull and half assed.

AL--I thought it seemed cheap. I see what she was going for and it was a cool concept, the whole Patty Hearst/Che Guevara look, black white and red...but it just wasn't FUN. not fun, not sexy. I know for a fact she was FURIOUS with the photographer Craig McDean for how it turned out as well and I think it has a lot to do with the album's failure, the cover doesn't really look like a Madonna album.

But the artwork for Confessions is ON POINT.


THANK YOU!

Really all that is interesting. Yeah...like Bedtime Stories (at least to me) there seemed little promotion for Music. It was just suddenly out, as I recall. You're right the artwork at least matched what was sorta happening on the album. But I expected more accoustics on it as the cover suggested. I thought the logo was horrible.

I wonder how she could be mad at the artwork for AL...doesn't she approve it? And it's so not a Madonna cover nor does it sound like an album she'd normally put out. Your points on the artwork i.e not fun not sexy, I think are spot on.

Christian Zombie Vampires

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Reply #17 posted 01/23/06 8:46pm

Tom

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badujunkie said:

superspaceboy said:

Anyone care to discuss the actual topic? rolleyes


Yes.

I actually thought the "Music" artwork was representative of the whole album in that everything except for the video for the title song seemed to be kind of thrown together at the eleventh hour. I mean, the album cover and the promo shot of her sipping a drink and fumbling with the guitar...there were only 10 songs...many of the lyrics seemed half written...the inclusion of paradise which was already released months before the album...it seemed too that the cowboy look was already kind of passe at that point as well. i remember hearing rumors that she was depressed at the time of that album. she also put the record out not a month after she gave an early emergency birth to rocco and didn't do ANY promotion until the album had been out for about two months. so the artwork, while vibrant and colorful, was a little dull and half assed.

AL--I thought it seemed cheap. I see what she was going for and it was a cool concept, the whole Patty Hearst/Che Guevara look, black white and red...but it just wasn't FUN. not fun, not sexy. I know for a fact she was FURIOUS with the photographer Craig McDean for how it turned out as well and I think it has a lot to do with the album's failure, the cover doesn't really look like a Madonna album.

But the artwork for Confessions is ON POINT.


I think people were put off by how self-absorbed Madonna's lyrics were at a time when we're at war. The album cover suggested that she maybe had something to say, then you hear those songs are are like WTF?!
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Reply #18 posted 01/23/06 8:48pm

GangstaFam

Interesting...thinking about this one.
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Reply #19 posted 01/23/06 8:48pm

Axchi696

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Tom said:

badujunkie said:



Yes.

I actually thought the "Music" artwork was representative of the whole album in that everything except for the video for the title song seemed to be kind of thrown together at the eleventh hour. I mean, the album cover and the promo shot of her sipping a drink and fumbling with the guitar...there were only 10 songs...many of the lyrics seemed half written...the inclusion of paradise which was already released months before the album...it seemed too that the cowboy look was already kind of passe at that point as well. i remember hearing rumors that she was depressed at the time of that album. she also put the record out not a month after she gave an early emergency birth to rocco and didn't do ANY promotion until the album had been out for about two months. so the artwork, while vibrant and colorful, was a little dull and half assed.

AL--I thought it seemed cheap. I see what she was going for and it was a cool concept, the whole Patty Hearst/Che Guevara look, black white and red...but it just wasn't FUN. not fun, not sexy. I know for a fact she was FURIOUS with the photographer Craig McDean for how it turned out as well and I think it has a lot to do with the album's failure, the cover doesn't really look like a Madonna album.

But the artwork for Confessions is ON POINT.


I think people were put off by how self-absorbed Madonna's lyrics were at a time when we're at war. The album cover suggested that she maybe had something to say, then you hear those songs are are like WTF?!


nod Really was a cheap ploy on her part to drum up a little attention for the album.
I'm the first mammal to wear pants.
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Reply #20 posted 01/23/06 8:52pm

sosgemini

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superspaceboy said:

Axchi696 said:




rolleyes That's just absurd. Just cause you haven't heard anybody talk about this album then it must be a failure. You always find a way to sneak in some sort of disparaging comment about Madonna. It's like she kicked your dog or something, man.


With SOS it's ok to agree to disagree biggrin And he's half kidding when it comes to Esther.



okay!! did i claim that nobody was talking about the album? i qualified my statement by saying "I" havent heard anyone talk about it....

and no, madge didnt kick my dog...i just expect better from her then this album....just like i expect better of prince then Musicology. when it happens, im all about loving madge..but im not gonna gush over something that i personally think is a weak effort.
Space for sale...
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Reply #21 posted 01/23/06 8:53pm

CuntOMatic

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Totally. The songs are ME ME ME ME ME ME. Hey look! IMMMMM SO STUPID. I USED TO THINK FAME AND FORTUNE WAS EVERYTHING BUT, gosh, pooor me, I have all this money and yet I'm still unfulfilled.

Whine whine.

Sacks of fire, spurt it out, buttery smooth.
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Reply #22 posted 01/23/06 8:53pm

GangstaFam

sosgemini said:

superspaceboy said:



With SOS it's ok to agree to disagree biggrin And he's half kidding when it comes to Esther.



okay!! did i claim that nobody was talking about the album? i qualified my statement by saying "I" havent heard anyone talk about it....

and no, madge didnt kick my dog...i just expect better from her then this album....just like i expect better of prince then Musicology. when it happens, im all about loving madge..but im not gonna gush over something that i personally think is a weak effort.

Me either and I'm a total Madge fag.
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Reply #23 posted 01/23/06 8:54pm

sosgemini

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and i call it like i see it..hence me being dissapointed in Medulla by Bjork....IMHO thats a subpar album....and i've said it here time and time again...but i dont see bjork fans thinking its something personal....we just agree to disagree*...

too bad madge fans cant do the same... rolleyes


razz



(*cha like that superspaceboy? giggle )
Space for sale...
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Reply #24 posted 01/23/06 8:59pm

GangstaFam

sosgemini said:

and i call it like i see it..hence me being dissapointed in Medulla by Bjork....IMHO thats a subpar album....and i've said it here time and time again...but i dont see bjork fans thinking its something personal....we just agree to disagree*...

too bad madge fans cant do the same... rolleyes


razz



(*cha like that superspaceboy? giggle )

You stupid bitch! Medulla's the best! Turncoat!

just kidding. giggle
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Reply #25 posted 01/23/06 9:04pm

sosgemini

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GangstaFam said:

sosgemini said:

and i call it like i see it..hence me being dissapointed in Medulla by Bjork....IMHO thats a subpar album....and i've said it here time and time again...but i dont see bjork fans thinking its something personal....we just agree to disagree*...

too bad madge fans cant do the same... rolleyes


razz



(*cha like that superspaceboy? giggle )

You stupid bitch! Medulla's the best! Turncoat!

just kidding. giggle


hey, i thought we both were dissappointed with Medulla..no? for a while there our musical tastes were in sync..then tori amos' new one came out and all was lost..

lurking
Space for sale...
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Reply #26 posted 01/23/06 10:39pm

badujunkie

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sosgemini said:

GangstaFam said:


You stupid bitch! Medulla's the best! Turncoat!

just kidding. giggle


hey, i thought we both were dissappointed with Medulla..no? for a while there our musical tastes were in sync..then tori amos' new one came out and all was lost..

lurking



edit. haters think what you want.
[Edited 1/23/06 22:41pm]
I'll leave it alone babe...just be me
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Reply #27 posted 01/23/06 11:12pm

GangstaFam

sosgemini said:

hey, i thought we both were dissappointed with Medulla..no? for a while there our musical tastes were in sync..then tori amos' new one came out and all was lost..

lurking

I was just trying to be a militant Bjork fan. lol Not very convincing, huh?

But no, I loved Medulla on first listen and still do. It's her new one that I can't grasp.
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Reply #28 posted 01/24/06 2:25am

DavidEye

sosgemini said:

superspaceboy said:



If that were true, she wouldn't be experiencing this renaisance in her music/career. Many non-fans I know are enjoying the sounds off the record. I'd say that some are not wanting her to reinvent herself as someone of importance beyond music.



really? cause i havent heard anyone talk about this album at all...well, except for here....

but mary js new album? everyone seems to be talking about...



Nobody ever talks about Wendy and Lisa's albums,and you seem okay with that lol
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Reply #29 posted 01/24/06 2:28am

DavidEye

sosgemini said:

superspaceboy said:



With SOS it's ok to agree to disagree biggrin And he's half kidding when it comes to Esther.



okay!! did i claim that nobody was talking about the album? i qualified my statement by saying "I" havent heard anyone talk about it....

and no, madge didnt kick my dog...i just expect better from her then this album....just like i expect better of prince then Musicology. when it happens, im all about loving madge..but im not gonna gush over something that i personally think is a weak effort.


Let's see....you hate the 'American Life' CD,you hate 'COADF',you hated her last two tours.Maybe you're just not into Madonna anymore? hmmm Might be time to move on? It's unlikely that she will ever make the type of album YOU want.
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