CARDIFF - August 23 - Press Reports/Reviews/Pics

[daizy1]

some swedish fan posted a message on perezhilton that Madonna was getting negative reviews in the swedish press..anyone seen any press clippings from sweden??

Yea I read that, she got pretty bad reviews in sweden but I guess they are just bitter that she is coming to scandinavia.Judging from the pics it looks like she is having damn good time, I havent read any songs description or seen any videos.I will wait til I see it myself

[Guest ABV]

I can't wait till we get photos of the whole stage. In that sense, perhaps not being at the very front has its advantages.

Was thinking the same thing, I haven't yet gotten the ticket for Budva so I'm thinking whether to go for the Golden ring one or the regular one and stay a bit away from the stage but I asume that if you're not close to the stage the best thing is to be in the stands...

I kind of have a feeling that this new tour is somehow a less of a show than the previous ones (in the big things happening on the stage) .

[Andra]

[micco]

some swedish fan posted a message on perezhilton that Madonna was getting negative reviews in the swedish press..anyone seen any press clippings from sweden??

In the Swedish newspaper 'Expressen' the journalist gave the show 1 star out of 5...

http://www.expressen.se/noje/musik/1.1276219/forvirrat-madonna

..stating in that the show was "confused", and that she has never been so confused in her artistry before. using words such as "uncomfortable", "embarrasing" and at some points even "painful" to watch..

[goldtooth]

Madonna's been upstaged by a rapist cop. I hate when that happens.

[FreeMySoul]

In the Swedish newspaper 'Expressen' the journalist gave the show 1 star out of 5...

http://www.expressen.se/noje/musik/1.1276219/forvirrat-madonna

..stating in that the show was "confused", and that she has never been so confused in her artistry before. using words such as "uncomfortable", "embarrasing" and at some points even "painful" to watch..

yea she has dementia

[Bitch]

Madonna reigns supreme as she kicks off world tour in Cardiff

Arriving on stage sat on a diamante throne, queen of pop Madonna began her latest world tour in style on Saturday.

Dressed in a sparkly black one-piece designed by Givenchy, the just-turned 50-year-old wowed the audience at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium with a stunning show. And with husband Guy Ritchie and children Lourdes, Rocco and David among the audience, the night was certainly a family affair.

In an energetic performance – including skipping and break-dancing as well as her usual high-powered dance routines – Madonna performed a selection of hits old and new. Songs such as Vogue, Into The Groove and opening number Candy Shop had the 40,000 strong crowd dancing and singing along.

As well as this, fans were treated to 16 dancers, a 12-piece band, eight costume changes and an incredible £1 million of jewellery. Meanwhile, large video screens allowed for appearances from US rappers Pharrell Williams and Kanye West, along with Britney Spears and Justin Timberlake. The Sexyback singer dueted with Madonna on their recent hit 4 Minutes.

The Sticky & Sweet tour continues on Tuesday, in Nice, and continues around Europe. London-based Madonna returns to the UK on September 11, to rock Wembley Stadium.

http://www.hellomagazine.com/music/2008/08...nna-world-tour/

[goldtooth]

I'm hearing all these different numbers thrown about. Some articles state the 70,000+ people while others describe it as "40 thousand strong." That's a rather large descrepancy. I guess we'll settle with "a shit load of people."

[HolidayGuy]

That one review had some sort of printed setlist (that includes the interludes), which is cool.

[Dindi]

In the Swedish newspaper 'Expressen' the journalist gave the show 1 star out of 5...

http://www.expressen.se/noje/musik/1.1276219/forvirrat-madonna

..stating in that the show was "confused", and that she has never been so confused in her artistry before. using words such as "uncomfortable", "embarrasing" and at some points even "painful" to watch..

It sounds like the journalist was the one confused.

[Glindathegood]

Equally disappointing was the lack of vintage Maddy scandal. There were no mock crucifixions, no simulated lesbian orgies, almost no gratuitous swear words. Instead, we were treated to earnest but meaningless video montages of Al Gore, Gandhi, Aung San Suu Kyi and – inevitably – Barack Obama. Woolly sentiments prevailed. No religious groups were offended in the making of this show.

Comments like this show how hyprocritical the media is and why they are determined to criticize her no matter what she does. When she did the cross thing or lesbian kisses etc., she was savaged for trying to shock people and offend religious groups. But when she avoids that, she is criticized for not doing that. She can't win with some people.

Some critics have the idea that she is soulless and unemotional so they are determined to stick to that idea even when she does show tons of feelng in Like A prayer and You Must Love Me.

To compare her to Prince and Leonard Cohen is silly. She's a different artist. The writer seems to be biased in favor of a certain kind of music.

[Guest Pud Whacker]

Comments like this show how hyprocritical the media is and why they are determined to criticize her no matter what she does. When she did the cross thing or lesbian kisses etc., she was savaged for trying to shock people and offend religious groups. But when she avoids that, she is criticized for not doing that. She can't win with some people.

Some critics have the idea that she is soulless and unemotional so they are determined to stick to that idea even when she does show tons of feelng in Like A prayer and You Must Love Me.

To compare her to Prince and Leonard Cohen is silly. She's a different artist. The writer seems to be biased in favor of a certain kind of music.

yes, it so typical.

[Guest boytoyville]

Well looks like some negative reviews came in but whatever that always happens. I mean wasn't Blonde Ambition ripped to pieces when it opened. What the fuck ever. This tour kicks ass and I can't wait to see it. The reviews are actually still overwheminly positive & I think they will only continue to get better as the tour progresses from city to city. Maddy always has the hardest critics.

[Zezwer]

Retarded music journalist of Sweden's biggest magazine Aftonbladet gives the tour just 1 star (out of 5).

Here are some of his comments:

"Drunk car-race between genres and styles"

"There's nothing wrong with her fantasy. Bad just that it all sounds so incredibly awful"

"Madonna feels cold and forced"

"Sections are empty"

"Many may mourn that Madonna is not coming to Sweden. Take it easy. Throw the disappointment in the trash-can. You're not missing anything"

And he's basically going on that she's trying to be Justin Timberlake and stuff and about You Must Love Me, he writes that even the sleeping ballads in Eurovision have been performed better.

Link to the article if you understand Swedish or use some babelfish translator

http://www.aftonbladet.se/nojesliv/musi/article3167953.ab

Also the other big magazine "Expressen" are dissing the tour and name stuff like "McCain compared with Hitler is a little too much"... with that I CAN agree though.

They also give the tour just 1/5 and write stuff similar to the other that Swedes shouldn't bother that the tour ain't coming over here because it's nothing to see.

Only DN (of the ones i've checked out) are kinda neutral to it.

[Guest Hafo]

The tour was scheduled to being at 20:30. She has 40 minutes late. And I didn't hear a single boo because she was late, it was because some eejits on the upper sections failed to make the Mexican wave. Oh, the press is SO dumb sometimes

Fantastic night by the way. I will post my report later when I'm fully recovered

[Guest boytoyville]

That one review had some sort of printed setlist (that includes the interludes), which is cool.

Are you referring to the Cardiff Wales online one? Those dumbasses said this morning the stadium was half empty. I wrot eto that douche bag andrew last night telling him that there is no way that over 70,000 tix were released. Maybe for a football game and that is it. Not to mention that Cardiff was sold out at 55,000 for Confessions. Shit like that pisses me off! I saw pics of Cardiff right before the show started and it was def not half empty. Morons! Sorry,nothing to do with you holday guy but inaccurate press annoys me.

[Guest boytoyville]

Retarded music journalist of Sweden's biggest magazine Aftonbladet gives the tour just 1 star (out of 5).

Here are some of his comments:

"Drunk car-race between genres and styles"

"There's nothing wrong with her fantasy. Bad just that it all sounds so incredibly awful"

"Madonna feels cold and forced"

"Sections are empty"

"Many may mourn that Madonna is not coming to Sweden. Take it easy. Throw the disappointment in the trash-can. You're not missing anything"

And he's basically going on that she's trying to be Justin Timberlake and stuff and about You Must Love Me, he writes that even the sleeping ballads in Eurovision have been performed better.

Link to the article if you understand Swedish or use some babelfish translator

http://www.aftonbladet.se/nojesliv/musi/article3167953.ab

Also the other big magazine "Expressen" are dissing the tour and name stuff like "McCain compared with Hitler is a little too much"... with that I CAN agree though.

They also give the tour just 1/5 and write stuff similar to the other that Swedes shouldn't bother that the tour ain't coming over here because it's nothing to see.

Only DN (of the ones i've checked out) are kinda neutral to it.

What psychos. Who writes unprofessional shit like that? Fucking crazies

[Bitch]

Long live the Queen of Pop

STICKY & Sweet is the third Madonna tour I have seen.

I expected controversy and her trademark raunch in Cardiff, but for the first time there was no talking point like the Crucifixion scene from Confessions in 2006 or the electric chair on Re-Invention in 2004.

She had a tough task improving on those shows but she has done it yet again.

Madonna didn’t stop dancing in a show that had most of her fans pausing for breath.

See more snaps of Madonna on stage in Cardiff

The four main acts were punctuated by video.

Get Stupid was a satire of political leaders — ending on an image of BARACK OBAMA.

The Rain interlude was a computerised, sexless version of Madonna made to resemble her hero DAVID BOWIE to the sound of EURYTHMICS classic Here Comes The Rain Again.

More clever samples and mash-ups filtered through the set list.

FELIX’s rave anthem Don’t You Want Me mixed brilliantly with Like A Prayer, turning the stadium into a gigantic dancefloor.

FEDDE LE GRAND’s Put Your Hands Up For Detroit was a smart choice for the girl from Michigan to borrow for a techno version of Music.

TIMBERLAKE, TIMBALAND, KANYE and PHARRELL were all present — in video form.

I hate seeing Madonna play guitar but her rock version of Borderline became a thrash of STOOGES-style chords.

The gipsy section went over a few heads but it was class.

She was joined by a Ukrainian folk trio she knows through GOGOL BORDELLO star EUGENE HUTZ.

She’s Not Me was another highlight.

Madge attacks four of her dancers dressed as her images from the past.

Madonna’s energy and performance is incredible. I doff my cap to a 50-year-old pole-dancing and double-dutch skipping mother.

Without question, Madonna is still the Queen Of Pop. Long live the Queen.

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/showb...icle1601613.ece

[Kurt420]

The tour was scheduled to being at 20:30. She has 40 minutes late. And I didn't hear a single boo because she was late, it was because some eejits on the upper sections failed to make the Mexican wave. Oh, the press is SO dumb sometimes

Fantastic night by the way. I will post my report later when I'm fully recovered

I've seen Madonna 5 times so far and not ONCE has she came out at the time my ticket said. In fact, many people are just entering the venue and getting goodies at around the time the shows are supposed to start. I thought it was pretty much common knowledge....apparently not though! lol In fact most concerts by other major artists I've been to don't start at the time on the ticket either, it's always 30 min to 1 hour later.

Glad you had fun, can't wait to read your review!

[Dr Lecter]

OOh good review from THE SUN

i was worried since VICORIA "VERONICA" NEWTON left, the new guy was ab it anti Madge sometimes, wherea Victoria clearly idolised her

AS IT SHOULD BE

[Guest Hafo]

The Daily Mail loved it

Raunchier than ever...Madonna on stage at 50

By Adrian Thrills

Last updated at 11:17 PM on 24th August 2008

She is claimed to have spent more than 650 hours in rehearsal for her world tour.

But on the opening night, it was the time Madonna had spent pumping iron in the gym which had the most dramatic results.

As she gyrated in Cardiff on Saturday, the Queen of Pop's raunchy stage outfits showed off her bulging thighs and biceps.

Fans paid up to £160 for tickets to Madonna's first world tour since Confessions in 2004, although the Millennium Stadium was far from full.

Cardiff

Madonna kicks off her highly anticipated Sticky & Sweet Tour promoting Number One album Hard Candy at the Millennium Stadium on in Cardiff

They also had to show patience, with the show starting more than 90 minutes later than billed. So was it all worth it?

The last time Madonna played in Cardiff, she opened her Confessions tour by arriving on stage in horse-riding gear.

She then spent the evening turning the Millennium Stadium into the world's biggest disco and causing controversy by posing on a crucifix wearing a crown of thorns.

Two years on, the opening sequences of her Sticky&Sweet tour were even more spectacular.

Amid a dizzying barrage of computerised graphics, the Queen of Pop, in leather boots and figurehugging pants, greeted her Welsh subjects by sitting imperiously on a futuristic black throne.

She then underwent eight costume changes which saw her return to the stage as a pole-dancing, break- dancing cheerleader and later as a gipsy singer with a travelling band of minstrels.

Nobody does a big stadium show quite like Madonna. She might be pop's greatest female icon, but she does not rest on her laurels and this was a theatrical, two-hour blockbuster, featuring 16 dancers and a 12-piece band.

This time, too, there was no need to resort to any shock tactics. If any of the 40,000 crowd had come along expecting any off-piste, Amy Winehouse moments, they would have gone home disappointed.

Madonna doesn't do spontaneity.

She is pop's consummate professional and the 653 hours of rehearsals which apparently went into this tour were evident in some choreographed routines which were nothing short of breathtaking.

The fact that the singer turned 50 earlier this month made her rubber-limbed gyrations all the more remarkable.

If the Confessions tour was a no-holds-barred journey out on to the dance floor, the current show is more diverse.

Perhaps keen to reinforce her musical legacy there are more crowd-pleasing older hits, with Into the Groove, Like a Prayer, Vogue and Borderline all featuring.

Even You Must Love Me, from Evita, gets an airing. Accompanied by just an acoustic guitar, it was forcefully sung and provided one of the night's more intimate moments.

With Madonna regularly strapping on a black guitar and bashing out some crisp but rudimentary power chords, the overall mood was more rock-orientated than previous tours.

For Madonna, a born actress, a musical instrument is the perfect prop and she struck plenty of guitarheroine poses.

Hung Up, originally a homage to Abba, began like the White Stripes on a bad night, but progressed towards a slick finale with Madonna miming the smoking of a cigarette while leaning nonchalantly against a speaker.

The high point was a vibrant La Isla Bonita, sung gipsy-style in a colourful throwback to Madonna's appearance at last year's Live Earth concert at Wembley.

The garbled video montage which accompanied Get Stupid was less coherent.

With the singer off-stage for a costume change, the two giant screens either side of the stage showed footage from war zones alongside images of John Lennon, Nelson Mandela, and, finally, U.S. presidential hopeful Barack Obama.

With the latter's face lingering on screen, we can take it that Madge will not be voting for John McCain.

The predominantly female audience, many in pink cowboy hats, had not come for guidance on American politics, however. They had come to party.

Their spirits were soon roused by a sassy 4 Minutes, with Justin Timberlake duetting via a pre-recorded video.

As is usually the case with Madonna, the asides to the audience were kept to a minimum. After an introductory 'All right, Cardiff?' nothing was said between songs near its end.

Then, after initially asking for requests from the floor, the singer snapped back: 'I'm in charge. I choose the songs.'

It might have been better had she kept her mouth closed. After such an exhilarating show her comments, while jokey, seemed a little inappropriate.

That said, on this kind of form she remains the show woman all the others still have to beat.

----

Nice pics in the article at http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/artic...a-stage-50.html.

[Bitch]

^ It's a second great review from The Daily Mail about this show.

"...on this kind of form she remains the show woman all the others still have to beat."

[zephyralexxx]

Retarded music journalist of Sweden's biggest magazine Aftonbladet gives the tour just 1 star (out of 5).

Here are some of his comments:

"Drunk car-race between genres and styles"

"There's nothing wrong with her fantasy. Bad just that it all sounds so incredibly awful"

"Madonna feels cold and forced"

"Sections are empty"

"Many may mourn that Madonna is not coming to Sweden. Take it easy. Throw the disappointment in the trash-can. You're not missing anything"

And he's basically going on that she's trying to be Justin Timberlake and stuff and about You Must Love Me, he writes that even the sleeping ballads in Eurovision have been performed better.

Link to the article if you understand Swedish or use some babelfish translator

http://www.aftonbladet.se/nojesliv/musi/article3167953.ab

Also the other big magazine "Expressen" are dissing the tour and name stuff like "McCain compared with Hitler is a little too much"... with that I CAN agree though.

They also give the tour just 1/5 and write stuff similar to the other that Swedes shouldn't bother that the tour ain't coming over here because it's nothing to see.

Only DN (of the ones i've checked out) are kinda neutral to it.

Did Christopher give them some "My Life With My Sister" books for free, or what?

[Guest Pud Whacker]

SHES EVERYTHING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Dindi]

Yahoo has a video report with high-quality footage of "Candy Shop" and "The Beat Goes On"

"She's scared of nothing..."

It looks even better in HQ!

And LOL at Liz with the fairy wings.

[HolidayGuy]

That Daily Mail writer said she was a born actress- otherwise, great review.

[markm]

Madonna's showstopping Sticky and Sweet tour kicks off with a bang

By Sean Hamilton, Showbiz Editor in Cardiff 24/08/2008

Madonna kicks off "Sticky &Sweet" tour

Madonna kicked off her Sticky And Sweet world tour in Cardiff last night a week after her 50th birthday.

But age proved no barrier to Madge who delivered an epic show with eight costume changes. Fans who had paid up to s160 for tickets and flown from all around the world, were taken on a high-energy trip through her career.

Madonna split the show into four: Pimp, Old School, Gypsy and Rave. She arrived on stage in a sexy black outfit for opening number Candy Shop.

Husband Guy Ritchie was spotted in the crowd as his wife changed into a white top hat and appeared in a white limo for her second track Beat Goes On.

Britney Spears famously snogged on stage by Madonna showed up for third song Human Nature but not in person. She appeared on a huge screen above the stage - trapped in a lift, wearing a hoodie and looking disturbingly like young Madonna.

For Bond theme Die Another Day the dancers acted out a full-on boxing match in a full-size ring on stage.

Madonna lap danced around a pole in red hot pants to her early hit Into The Groove, then sang alone from the centre of the stage for an emotional performance of Andrew Lloyd Webber's You Must Love Me - from Evita.

But the highlight came during She's Not Me when four dancers dressed as Madge through the ages came on stage.

For two hours, the Queen of Pop reworked songs from her 25-year history. The colossal roof at the Cardiff venue was closed to keep the rain out - and to make the sound even louder.

Rap and R&B stars Kanye West and Pharrell Williams put in virtual appearances alongside Britney, but there was never any doubt who the real star was. With another 50 dates to go around the world, Madonna's back with a bang.

sean.hamilton@sundaymirror.co.uk

http://www.mirror.co.uk/celebs/celebs-on-s...15875-20708803/

[boy skeffington]

In that Reuters/Yahoo report where it shows the beginning on the thrown, the stadium looks capacity. FULL

[daizy1]

So its getting mostly good reviews

[markm]

Madonna sparkles with £1m gems

Aug 24 2008 by Staff Reporter, Wales On Sunday

FIRST her showbiz pals don’t turn up for her 50th birthday bash – then she’s performing to a half-empty Millennium Stadium.

Only 40,000fans turned up to Madonna’s debut performance of her 2008 Sticky and Sweet tour in the capital last night, leaving 30,000 tickets unsold.

In the midst of a credit crunch and fears of a looming recession, even the Queen of Pop couldn’t get enough bums on seats to fill a 74,000-capacity venue.

But for the fans who did turn up, the Material Girl’s show-stopping performance didn’t disappoint, making a grand entrance on an ornate throne surrounded by dancers in top hat and tails and wearing a revealing Givenchy costume that would make even Cher blush, Madonna proved that she’s still as in vogue at 50 as ever before.

After a disappointing turnout at her 50th birthday celebrations her showbiz mates provided a glorious belated present with Kanye West, Britney Spears and Pharrell Williams all recording special video performances.

With a video clip of red-hot producer Williams in the background, Madonna followed her intro track Candy Shop with a thumping rendition of The Beat Goes On, before donning a white top hat and dancing to a video clip of hip-hop mogul Kanye West.

Surrounded by scantily-clad dancers, the style chameleon reverted back to her favourite mode from her 30-year pop career: the dominatrix, during Vogue.

Dancing boxers pounded each other in the ring at the end of the stage during Die Another Day before Madonna appeared with a skipping rope in teeny red shorts for a thumping Get Into The Groove.

Her ‘pimp’ look paid homage to 1920s deco and modern-day gangster style before she tipped her hat to her early 90s downtown New York City dance roots and the birth of rap music.

Her Gypsy-inspired trip to La Isla Bonita was followed by “rave” which included Far Eastern influences.

Her dance-centric performance of Music paid homage to 1980s rap music while dancers emerged from a train carriage onto the stage, but the show’s crowning glory was during lesser-known Devil Wouldn’t Recognise, when a cloaked Madonna performed staccato dance moves in a cage while virtual water cascaded around her.

A multi-Grammy award-winner and recent inductee into the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame, Madonna has long been known for ground-breaking tours that consist of visual and audio extravaganzas with non-stop singing and breathtaking dancing and this took it to another level.

Fifty schmifty!

http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-ne...91466-21594010/