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Nonoka
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Posts posted by Nonoka
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5 minutes ago, Andra said:
Heard most of the flops have been migrating to *.
I can't @ how this word is censored here now
Anyway, wanted to add I loved her military style jacket. Her styling this era so far is totally on point to me.
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No way I'm ranking the Top 5, picking them was already hard enough. So, in no particular order:
God Control
Looking For Mercy
I Don't Search I Find
I Rise
Come Alive or Killers
...or Dark Ballet, and maybe Extreme Occident
Shit, can't decide!
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41 minutes ago, Andra said:
So today they just closed down madonnainfinity because they couldn't handle the negativity any more, the admin posted a goodbye note. wtf
I see Mtribe going the same route as well sooner or later , it's a long time coming.. It's sad to see what some places that are meant to celebrate the greatest entertainer alive have become.There's so much toxicity.
Anyway thank God for MadonnaNation. And sorry for intrerupting, carry on.
Yes I just noticed too and wondered what was going on....wtf. I never paid much attention to the discussions there, but they did have an amazing multimedia section with so many goodies and rarities. Some of the M stuff I collected on my PC over time I would have never found without that site. Hope they keep it online tbh.
Anyways, yes the performance was great. My favourite was Vogue, perfectly executed and extra points for the live singing! (Isn't this the second time ever she sang the Vogue verses live, S&S being the only other case?) Using the spy doubles was a brilliant idea, she really did trick me in the beginning - at first I was sure that lady at the typewriter was M, until the real M came up on the stairs
She could have slipped that one into the Eurovision set too, would have vastly improved the atmosphere IMO.
American Life was surprisingly solid, but I never had a problem with that song anyway and the album in general holds a special place in my heart, so yeah I'm biased
The live reaction by the crowd seemed to be pretty good though.
Kudos to her for playing God Control, and it was great to see her dancing again. Though I have to say I found the performance a bit stiff at times, it has a lot of potential but they need to work on it a little more before the tour starts IMO. Oh and did anyone else notice the little bit of Hung Up choreo?
I Rise was beautiful and I never expected anything else because I adore that song. I'm still so surprised this one has gotten a somewhat lukewarm reaction among the fanbase!
And yes, I definitely agree with other posters re/ the excitement for the tour. Despite the critical slagging the EV performance (particularly the Dark Ballet part) already got me very interested about what she has in store for us in September, and Pride just confirmed that. Bring it on!
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She‘s such a tease, playing IDSIF at the end but not performing it after all haha
So this was the setlist, right?
1. Vogue
2. American Life
Speech
3. God Control
4. I Rise
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Oh wow a Vogue performance with Madame X spies! That looks epic
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Can somebody rip it and share / post on YT or is that illegal? (It prolly is)
Anyway, finally it looks like it's all coming together! Can someone confirm that this contains the Lisbon observatory / Red Moon footage that we saw snippets of on IG?
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And here comes the ESC talk
QuoteWe are now approaching minute 17. "The last question, please", her manager tells us. So, let's do it: "Madonna, what happened in Israel?" - She takes a deep breath. "Um", she replies. Madonna is silent. "You mean what happened between Palestine and Israel? What are you referring to?" - Later, when listening to our interview tape, we can hear a slight trembling in her voice.
We ask again. What happened during her live performance at the ESC, we obviously want to know. Another "Um", as if she wants to buy some time. Finally, she starts talking - not about the sound issues, but rather about her dancers displaying the flags of Palestine and Israel during the performance. "I wanted to emphasize my wish for unity between both countries, both religions. I did not tell the producers beforehand. I was disobedient, as always."
When we had asked Madonna what her strongest weapon is, she replied: "My mind". So why won't she simply give a short explanation? Maybe her answers show how hurt she's still feeling about the reactions, about the bashful articles in some media outlets which started questioning her whole career.
Then she stands up, shakes our hands. "I'm retracting from this room", she replies with a wink. She doesn't turn around, but trips towards the door, backwards, smiling, her eyes towards us. Is it her tight dress? One thing is clear, she wants to keep control, even when leaving. (Ugh this article)
As for our question who Madonna is, she did give us an answer after all: "At the end of the day, I'm not different to all the other people", she had told us. "All people are lonely. Me too."
That's it
I take no responsibility for some of the shoddy remarks by the journalists haha
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You're welcome everyone!
Here's the last part of the interview, they briefly brush feminism (watch what she says), Catholic church again and a rather awkward talk about EurovisionQuoteShe's lived in Lisbon, in London, in New York. Is there a place that she calls home? - "I live everywhere. Home is your where your heart is", Madonna replies.
Have her views on America changed since she's living in Europe? - "Living abroad gives you a different perspective on the world. You should leave the surrondings that you grew up in. Living in other places is the best education that you can get". As she continues, Madonna admits she does miss America. "There are so many things that I love about America. I still live there after all, my house is waiting for me."
They briefly refer to the Trump / Miami photoshoot story, but no direct talk with M
What does Madonna think of Angela Merkel? We ask in response. For the first time in our conversation, a longer silence emerges. Madonna is pondering. "I like her. She's a good head of state." - Another silence - "You guys are lucky".
They change to her fight for the LGBT community, some quotes from older interviews
Despite her being the role model for several generations of women, Madonna was initially subjected to heavy criticism by some feminists. She was turning herself into a sex object, they used to say. "Better myself than some dirty old men", she replies in a dry tone. "There are feminists out there who hate women, that's just how it is." She does not want to comment further on this topic.
The biggest debates Madonna has been fighting since decades are with the Catholic Church. What is her view on the Church today, currently in the deepest crisis since its foundation? - "We are all in a crisis. I'm in a crisis now too." - She sights theatrically, ponders, then objects to her own reply: "That was irony, okay! You know what that is? Okay, good."
We try again: Is she surprised about the current crisis of the Catholic Church? - "What precisely do you mean? The priests who were abusing children? I think this is something that has been going on for centuries, it's nothing new." - Especially for Madonna, who has been criticizing the double standards of the church for decades. "A man can not live in a world without having sex. That's when things like that happen. Sex is a gift from God. If two consenting people have sex, with noble intentions and in the right context, then it's a beautiful spiritual experience."
Her manager looks down at the timer, our 15 minutes are almost over.
Even though Madonna's last two albums weren't huge successes anymore, she is still here. Or, simply put, she has survived - which is not something that should be taken for granted. Prince, Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston, George Michael - all the other superstars from her generation are now dead. Does it make her feel lonely sometimes to be Madonna, since there's nobody anymore who can remotely relate to her fame?
"They weren't my only friends", Madonna promptly interrupts. However, then she answers: "Yes, it can be lonely, when your life is regarded by people under a microscope, when you get judged by so many people who think they know who you are, even though they have no idea at all." - So who is Madonna? - She shakes her head. "Who are you?", she asks back. "I don't have any answer to that question".
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Here's part 2 of the ZEIT Interview (going to be three in total), this is where she talks about the album cover
QuoteWe start talking about the artwork of her new album, and ask why her lips are sewn in that picture. - "Oh, that's a long story!" - "We have time", we reply. - "No you don't!" Everyone at the table starts laughing. Meanwhile, on the mobile phone of her manager, the timer keeps running. And then, after all, Madonna tells us her story.
"After I finished the production of this picture, I sent it to my sister. And her reaction was: 'Oh my god, you look like Mum.' And it's true: this is the last image of my mother that I have in my mind - when I kissed her for the last time, at her open casket. We formed a line, everyone of us, to kiss the dead body of my mother - my father, my brothers and sisters, my grandmother, my aunts and uncles. We all went round the casket one last time and had a look at my mother, this wonderful embalmed being. She was beautiful. When I bowed down to kiss her lips, I noticed they had been sewn together. I never got this image out of my mind."
"It's quite an odd habit that people have one last look at the deceased in an open casket", she goes on. "It's not a happy way of remembering your mother. But that's just how it's done in Catholicism."
Madonna also decided to use this image as the cover to point out how people always wanted to silence her. "Other people have told me my entire life to shut my mouth, or I would get burnt" (hello Dark Ballet lol)
They then shortly address her father, but they only use quotes from older interviews
What does Madonna think of her childhood today? - "When I was growing up, I wasn't anything special. I wasn't particularly pretty. My father used to live beyond his means, so I never had pretty clothes either, no matter where we went. I wasn't popular. I didn't fit into any group. People said, I am....unusual." - In what terms, we want to know. - "I didn't shave my armpits or my legs. I didn't wear make-up. I hated all these things that society was striving for. I also used to question everything, I always went to other people and bugged them with questions - Why? Why? Why?"
She didn't have it easy with this kind of attitude on life, as Madonna tells us. "My father used to say it all the time when growing up, my teachers in school said it all the time too: Your big mouth is going to get you in trouble!" Already back then, this kind of resistance tempted her, and it's noticeable to this day when she's talking about it. "I always resisted my dad. Especially when it came to the strict rules of the Catholic Church. I just considered them sexist and misogynist. My manner of questioning everything absolutely did get me into a lot of trouble back then."
How precisely can we imagine the rebellious teenager in Michigan? - "I used to say No a lot of times. No, I'm not doing this - unless you can tell me a reason that makes sense to me." - Did your father react upon that? - Madonna shakes her head. "I was always sent to my room". - And what did you do there? - "I read books and got smarter", she laughs.
And how does Madonna react today if she gets told no? - "I slam the door in their face and never speak to them again. I'm an absolute one-way street." - She laughs again, and adds, with some self-irony: "Double standards!" (Rest of the reply is in the IG clip on the last page)
Will add the last part #soon (prolly tomorrow, not the Madame X version of soon)
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Ok, so here's the first part of the ZEIT interview. It's not a Q&A-kind of thing, but a lengthier article spread out over several pages with her answers incorporated
The first page is just about the authors' experience waiting for the interview, mentioning how tightly controlled the access to her is etc. basically saying that interviewing M is treated by the organizers as a very exclusive event and they make everyone who's attending feel this exclusivity. (you don't say)
Imma skip to the part where they start the actual interview with her, again this is abbreviated at some parts so excuse me if it sounds a bit clunky lol
QuoteWe enter a dimly lit room. In the center is a table with four chairs, spotlights directed at one of them. There she is. She stands up - "Hi". Madonna's manager is sitting down at the side, pulls out the mobile and starts the timer - 15 minutes.
We tell Madonna that we would like to pass on greetings from Willem Dafoe (for the flop fans, BOE actor) whom we met several days ago. She thanks us. "I love him, he is wonderful. I haven't seen him in a long time". Madonna tells us that she used to attend performances by the Wooster Group in her early days in New York, with Dafoe being a member of them. We had asked him if he's got any question for her - "How is she doing", he wanted to know.
"Oh, I'm doing fine!", she replies, her voice slightly pitched.
They introduce Martha Graham, tell the backstory of the Madame X moniker as we already know etc.
"Martha Graham is present on Madame X 100 percent", Madonna tells us. Already in our last interview 2007, Madonna named Martha Graham and Frida Kahlo as her biggest role models. "When did that happen? 2007?" - She appears surprised. "I've stayed true to myself!", she exclaims, laughing.
Why is Martha Graham so important for her to this day? - "She changed the Modern Dance forever, as well as the role of women in dance. She was one of the first female choreographs, she founded her own company, she changed the way people thought about dance, she was very defiant, her thinking was revolutionary, her whole approach towards dancing was revolutionary. She worked with fantastic composers, and she dressed up the women who worked with her in a very unconventional style. She let them dance in their bare feet, she caused controversies back then. The first time she went on tour through America, many people tried preventing the shows from happening. The girls were dancing without bras! She was a freedom fighter - and an artist."
Listening to Madonna's monologue, we can't help thinking she's also speaking about her own career. "Like you?", we ask her. - "Yes, she inspired me. She had already surpassed 80 when I got to know her, and she was still dancing..." - Suddenly, Madonna interrupts herself. "My nose is running, and I'm sweating" she says. She looks towards her manager, who immediately gets up and brings her tissues. We do not see any sweat on Madonna's face. Her nose isn't running either. Apparently, the make-up is holding up better than she thinks. (I know, this is cringey)
Madonna takes the tissue, and dabs the invisible sweat off her forehead. Then she continues talking about Martha Graham.
"She was still very strong at that point, she was living the life of an independent woman, she never married, she never had children, she was living alone. She always went on. She had to take a lot of criticism for what she did. But she continues to inspire many modern-dance companies and choreographs to this day. I've just been to Israel, where I visited the Batsheva Dance Company from Tel Aviv - one of the founders, Bethsabée, was a student of Martha Graham as well. The Batsheva is one of the best dance-companies in the world. Do you know the current choreograph, Ohad Naharin? You should see his work!"
And what about her other idol, the painter Frida Kahlo? - Madonna tells us that back in her early days in New York, her first flat used to be completely empty except for a postcard with a Kahlo painting - the famous self-portrait with monkeys. "That's all I had - in my tiny shoebox-sized room, with a view on a brick wall." Frida Kahlo, too, fought against conventions, as she tells us. "This is what motivated me - a starving woman struggling to survive in New York City - to hang in there". She says she doesn't have the postcard anymore. "I don't know what happened to it, but back then I used to wake up with it every morning, with her mustache and the monkeys on her shoulder." Of course, Madonna would not be Madonna if she didn't add: "Now I have the painting hanging in my office" - she smiles.
Why does that painting fascinate her? "I like her stubborn gaze towards the viewer. And I like what it stands for. As we know, Frida Kahlo had to suffer a lot in her life. She used the monkeys to find out when her husband brought his models home and had sex with them. When Frida came home, and the monkeys acted crazy, she knew that he's had sex with them. The monkeys reacted to their scent. They were her protectors." She stops talking for a moment, and lets out a deep sigh - "Yeah".
To be continued soon, have to grab sth to eat haha
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She's replacing Vogue with Candy Shop
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I bought the Zeit newspaper with her interview today
Saw it by coincidence on a news stand, made my morning commute haha
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Excuse my cluttered desk
I can translate the main gist of the interview if you guys want me to! It's quite a lengthy article, including M sharing the back story to the album cover (the Frida one). They also ask her about Eurovision but again, she deflects from the question lol
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I'm speechless! Still have to process all the scenes. One thing's clear though, there's no one as brave as her in the music industry. This video just confirmed it once again. I have so much respect for her
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Does anyone else feel really satisfied with the tracklisting / sequencing on this album?
I have to say it's so refreshing to listen through a new M record again without the need to mess with the tracklist. The whole album flows so well from start to finish!
With MDNA, I had to kick out most of the Solveig songs first and reshuffle the whole thing, while with RH I basically created my own album
(albeit a very good one, still love RH). This one is just perfect - despite the variety of styles everything is tied together flawlessly.
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I agree about reporting. Just did so too.
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Wow, this is giving me D&D vibes but obviously it will have a whole other spin on it. Her styling is drop dead gorgeous, and already judging by these clips, one of her best ever in this decade.
As for the ending - well, looks like she's opening Pandora's box with this vid anyway so yeah, I hope she will just go all out with this topic. Bring on the shock value! (And yeah now it's clear why they didn't use this for the album launch)
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2 hours ago, karbatal said:
Omg Brazilian fans are so annoying in her Instagram! "Do a clip of Faz Gostoso" is the new "Come to Brazil"
I just wanted to say! All the top comments on her IG look like these
(and looks like they're all liking each other's comments lol)
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Wow. I have to say I'm a bit overwhelmed by all these rating and ranking threads lol - 2 days in, I'm just now slowly able to sort my thoughts on this album! You guys are fast
There's just so much to take in, I had to listen several times before I could grasp the entirety of this record.
I saw a lot of posters here using the word journey and yes I'm now thinking this is really the most accurate word to describe this record! I've said before here that one of those things I love the most about M's music is how so many of her albums make for a true listening experience, they take you on a ride from start to finish. The last time I really felt this about a M record was Confessions. (HC didn't offer that feeling if you ask me and MDNA and RH, albeit good to very good albums, had way too many sequencing problems to really create this 'journey' feeling) But now with Madame X out, there's another album to add to this category!
This album really is a journey from beginning to end, through so many genres and music styles - all of it is working well and, most importantly, it all sounds authentic. I have to say my original 'dream concept' for this album was a strong focus on Portugese Fado, fused with the electronic Music/AL sound (which she sort of did with Killers) - but now after having listened to it all, the approach she took is offering so much more than 'my' vision probably could have ever produced!
In fact, I now love that she didn't go down the 'expected' route of making a 'traditional' album that's heavily leaning on one style of music - instead, she used the Portuguese influences subtly along a variety of other styles to piece together an own unique, multi-dimensional record. The result is one of her most layered and musically rich albums she's ever done!
And that's also the second thing I love most about this album, the RICHNESS of the music! From the Fado guitars to the accordeon, trumpets, piano, violins, drums, along with the different choirs....god damn the instrumentation on that record is so vibrant. Also pretty sure some of those have never appeared on a M song before!
And on top of all that vibrancy and musical escapism, she's given us one of her finest slices of experimental pop with God Control (and a honorable mention to Dark Ballet) as well as (IMO) one of her strongest ballads in the last couple of years with Looking For Mercy.
Of course there are always some things one could single out for criticism. Sure, she could have reduced the autotune a little (though it's actually not bothering me at all thanks to the fantastic music), some lyrics here and there are a bit clunky, but at the end of the day what matters most is the overall impression that the album leaves after the last song has finished...And so far, this impression is fantastic - all the more if you consider this is what she put together in her 37th year of her career.
Thank you, Madonna!
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5 minutes ago, nightcutter said:
This is what I asked on the previous page. Is the cd quality good? Does it have clicks and such like.
I consider myself a 'sensitive' listener too so this is always the first thing I'm inadvertently noticing when listening to a record.
Yeah unfortunately there are some clicks in Crave and there is some distortion audible in a few songs, especially Medellin and Future. The vocal production is super crisp though and the richness of the instrumentation really comes through - the guitars, accordeon, the choirs etc. So overall definitely her best mastered album since Confessions IMO.
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I‘m still hanging in there too!
I admit I did listen to the first snippets that floated around last weekend (only the 10-15 sec ones), since I was very curious about the sound of this whole record.
But after hearing those few amazing seconds of God Control....I am convinced there’s nothing to worry about and can happily wait for a great musical ride tomorrow!
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Uuuuugh This description of God Control sounds so so good but I. must. not. listen.
Who else is fighting an internal struggle right now?
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Holy FUCK @ that God Control snippet
This track is going to obliterate us all!
IMO it's not such a big deal with some snippets floating around, in fact this might even drive up the excitement, but yeah let's hope it's not going to turn into a full album leak!
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So let's do this one last time before we finally get the full listening experience in 7 days!
What do you think of the final promo track (and possibly third single) that Madame X has served us?
Personally I'm gonna go with 'Good'. I love the experimental approach as well as the trippy Daft-Punk esque middle part. I fully agree with the reviews by NME and Times - this song is M being bold and taking musical risks. I would have loved it to develop a little longer with maybe some more oomph, but this is just really being picky...
Argh fuck it, I'm gonna give it an 'Excellent'
Amazing that 36 years into her career, she's still doing musical experiments only the rarest pop artists would attempt 
Now it's your turn!
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1 hour ago, Plaything said:
And here I am, a Serb who was born in Germany, who eventually got used to the hate both countries receive.
That said, I‘m sure no member on here is actually hating on any country per se and the generalisations are done in jest. But yes, the German media has been nasty to Madonna for a long time now. They loved her during ROL and Confessions, but that’s about it. They would love her again if she would start singing Power of Goodbye‘s again but that’s not going to happen.
On a funny side note, I was just watching Sting perform on German late night TV (Markus Lanz), singing a dreary guitar version of his good ol' 1982 hit (while clearly struggling to keep longer notes), and he's receiving a standing ovation. Oh the irony.
No offense to Sting as he's obviously a talented artist who built up a big career too, but I was literally thinking of exactly what you said.
Problem is, as others have already said, M is still moving along, creating new music, the music she wants to do - and giving zero fucks while at that. The more time goes by, I really think that's the crucial reason why she's receiving a very different treatment in the press compared to other big music artists.
Madonna NYC Pride thread
in ARCHIVE - The MADAME X Forum
Posted
Yes, I get what you mean. Critical comments, those that are voiced respectfully, do deserve to have a place IMO. Sth I've always liked about the M fanbase is the variety of preferences and opinions, unlike many, and I would say, most other fan communities (of pop singers, mind you) that have pretty much turned into cults where all have to follow one line of opinion. (So also to @cocolattee, I don't see anything wrong with your post)
The problem is unfortunately, at least from what I observed, many don't really know when the line is crossed which is why, way too often here, instead of critical respectful posts we get posts pretty much berating M and that makes reasonable discussions indeed very hard.
See, I don't think it's automatically misogynist or wrong to discuss M's aesthetic choices such as her supposed butt implants - M has been a public figure for 40 years, and obviously she's made her outward appearance a vital part of her career. So I really don't get why it should be taboo to talk about things like her body, as long as it stays respectful....sadly, some people always have to take it over the edge.
I do agree though with previous posters - even when voicing criticism, none of us should forget how spoilt we are as a fanbase. We really are in a totally unique position!
To end my ramble lol, does someone know if there's any other performance planned as of now? I think she's wrapping things up now to focus on the tour?