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 'Ray of Light' • album discussion, 7th album | 1998 |
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 15th June 2020, 05:16 PM
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#1
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Joined: 17 February 2011
Posts: 56,211 User: 13,007 
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 A place to discuss Madonna's 7th studio album 'Ray of Light'. Released in 1998. 1. Drowned World / Substitute for Love 2. Swim 3. Ray of Light 4. Candy Perfume Girl 5. Skin 6. Nothing Really Matters 7. Sky Fits Heaven 8. Shanti / Ashtangi 9. Frozen 10. The Power of Goodbye 11. To Have and Not to Hold 12. Little Star 13. Mer Girl What are your thoughts on this album? Share any opinions, memories, favourite songs, or just discuss it anytime you're re-listening! |
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15th June 2020, 05:16 PM
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#2
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Joined: 17 February 2011
Posts: 56,211 User: 13,007
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15th June 2020, 05:46 PM
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#3
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 Jord
Joined: 12 March 2017
Posts: 10,772 User: 27,116
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My favourite Madonna album!!
It has everything for me! I first heard this album in 2012 I think it was that’s when I fully went and delved right into her career. I didn’t know what to expect from this album prior to hearing it but instantly I was blown away! It was her vocals more than anything what took me by surprise I thought wow she can genuinely really sing! Evita and Motherhood changed her voice for the better with this era but it was everything I loved regarding this era like the production is flawless, it’s lyrically super strong too and it’s so different to anything she’d done both before this era and after this era too. Visually as well it’s captivating and just so unique. This is like one of those albums what’s really stood the test of time. It’s the one album by her as well what I try and get people to listen too who are doubtful of her talent. I love this album though. It’s in my top 5 of all time. But she was just so in the zone on this era and she got everything spot on! An iconic era  I wish I could go back in time and hear this again for the first time or even better be transported to 1998 (but not be 3 as I was then be like my age now) and see and experience the era as it played out. I’d also say this album still kinda sounds current it’s timeless. I just can’t find enough positives regarding this era. |
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15th June 2020, 06:45 PM
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#4
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 I found the love, I found the love in me
Pronouns: He/Him
Joined: 13 December 2007 Posts: 87,451 User: 5,042
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This is gonna be an interesting listen for me. Mainly because my thoughts on the title track are pretty public and well documented... </3
But on the other hand... it holds 'Frozen', i.e. her 2nd best ever song soooooo... Exciting. |
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15th June 2020, 06:49 PM
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#5
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 BuzzJack Idol
Joined: 8 December 2010
Posts: 50,952 User: 12,472
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You don't like the title track?
  I'd say the album was more Frozen than Ray of Light, I think there will definitely be some songs you'll really like!
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15th June 2020, 07:15 PM
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#6
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Joined: 17 February 2011
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QUOTE(Liam.k. @ Jun 15 2020, 07:49 PM)  You don't like the title track? I'd say the album was more Frozen than Ray of Light, I think there will definitely be some songs you'll really like!Jonjo is the resident hate-RoL advocate  But yes, the album is definitely more Frozen than the title track so i'm really excited for you to hear it! |
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15th June 2020, 07:18 PM
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#7
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Joined: 17 February 2011
Posts: 56,211 User: 13,007
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This is my second favourite album from Madonna (and high up in my ALL-TIME list of all albums i've ever heard). It is beaten by Confessions on a Dancefloor, which, while objectively maybe not as strong as this, is the album I return to most.
Like that album, this just has the aesthetics, the vibe, the visuals, the production, the vocals and lyrics - everything spot on. It is a true experience with every listen and I still find myself discovering small production moments or hidden lyrics that sneak up on me and gain new meaning. It's a perfect album and of the best ever! She came off the back of claims that she was dwindling and losing her touch, with this? That's how you silence the critics. |
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15th June 2020, 10:38 PM
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#8
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BuzzJack Platinum Member
Joined: 3 August 2006
Posts: 8,209 User: 1,031
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Amazing album and very much ahead of its time when it was released. Up there as being one of her best albums!
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15th June 2020, 10:52 PM
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#9
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 Break the tension
Joined: 7 March 2006
Posts: 88,970 User: 51
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QUOTE(Jonjo @ Jun 15 2020, 07:45 PM) This is gonna be an interesting listen for me. Mainly because my thoughts on the title track are pretty public and well documented... </3 But on the other hand... it holds 'Frozen', i.e. her 2nd best ever song soooooo... Exciting. There's literally nothing else on the album that remotely sounds like the title track, if that helps. |
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15th June 2020, 11:11 PM
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#10
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Jord
Joined: 12 March 2017
Posts: 10,772 User: 27,116
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Jonjo pls do an album ranking or review when you hear the album.
The title track is the odd one out on this album. I think you could have to perhaps have a few listens to it but if it hits you it’ll do so in a big way! The best way to hear this album is to play it in order through headphones when you’re wanting to get yourself in a switch off kinda mood. It’s honestly a brilliant album though. I’d love to hear the thoughts of someone listening to it from scratch though! |
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16th June 2020, 12:21 AM
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#11
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I found the love, I found the love in me
Pronouns: He/Him
Joined: 13 December 2007 Posts: 87,451 User: 5,042
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I will be! It's up next in my Madonna listen through! So I shall be listening to that probably tomorrow!
 I appreciate ROL overall aesthetic and feel. It just was never to my taste in it's sound and I think she sounds so whiny on it, so it's never really appealed to me. Hopefully it's one of those songs that sounds better in the context of the album than it does on it's own for me. We'll see! |
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16th June 2020, 12:41 AM
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#12
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Jord
Joined: 12 March 2017
Posts: 10,772 User: 27,116
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QUOTE(Jonjo @ Jun 16 2020, 01:21 AM) I will be! It's up next in my Madonna listen through! So I shall be listening to that probably tomorrow! I appreciate ROL overall aesthetic and feel. It just was never to my taste in it's sound and I think she sounds so whiny on it, so it's never really appealed to me. Hopefully it's one of those songs that sounds better in the context of the album than it does on it's own for me. We'll see! To be fair I do think it sounds better in context of the album. it is definitely not representative of the albums sound much at all. I’d say that and Nothing Really Matters are the least representative of the album although they do balance the album out so that it’s not a case of it being too same-like. |
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16th June 2020, 12:44 AM
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#13
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Jord
Joined: 12 March 2017
Posts: 10,772 User: 27,116
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Also! Haus you may be able to confirm this for me but this was originally set to be called Mantra wasn’t it?
She said regarding this album it had to be a 13 track album but she was struggling with the title for a while. The opening track Drowned World... was the first song recorded too. I always love hearing little facts like this. I often try and guess when I hear an album tbh on what I think was recorded first as it’s usually the most representative track of that era. |
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16th June 2020, 11:56 PM
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#14
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I found the love, I found the love in me
Pronouns: He/Him
Joined: 13 December 2007 Posts: 87,451 User: 5,042
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As I have said before, this is going to be an interesting listen as I'm really not a fan of the title track. I haven't heard 'Drowned World / Substitute for Love' before but that's lovely! A beautiful opener. I can't remember 'Nothing Really Matters', but I HAVE heard it (at least I recognise the video screen grab). 'Frozen' is so sublime! 2nd fave Madonna song and one of the very best songs of all time! 'The Power Of Goodbye' is really nice too. I'm hoping ROL is better in context of the album... so we'll see on that.
OK, so ROL works in the album, but I'm still not a fan of the track. Her voice grates on me as it's really shrill and just... VOM. I do appreciate what it achieved though and the production is interesting enough to keep you invested. I just don't think the track is ever going to be to my tastes. Sonically though this album is exactly as I expected. A cohesive and beautifully produced album, so far. William Orbit is such a fantastic producer! 'Skin' has really interested me, in particular. Getting to 'Nothing Really Matters' but I don't remember hearing this before, oops. But it's beautiful! 'Sky Fits Heaven'  I've taken to that one right away! I love subtle, trance/dance bops! Gorgeous!My Ranking: 1. Frozen 2. The Power of Goodbye 3. Sky Fits Heaven 4. Drowned World / Substitute for Love 5. Skin 6. Nothing Really Matters 7. Swim 8. Candy Perfume Girl 9. Ray of Light 10. Shanti / Ashtangi 11. To Have and Not to Hold 12. Mer Girl 13. Little Star It feels like this album is going to be one I return to and listen to in full every time. The last 3 tracks all feel a bit fillery, but still lovely tracks in their own rights, They're not bad or awful, just more "forgettable" than all the other tracks. The only track I'll take away on it's own and get enjoyment out of it as it's own song, is 'Frozen'. I don't mean any of that negatively btw, I LOVE album, albums. It makes it worth listening to the whole project as it was made and intended. The production really is stellar and for the most part, it's used Madonna's vocals to great effect! So I don't "hate" ROL (song)  It's really hard to rank each track individually on albums like this, because I feel like it all serves a purpose being in the postitions that they are! Swim seems particularly low, but I don't know where to rank it if I was to place it higher  It's all... *swoon*Very impressed with this album. One I'll go back to more regularly, I think!  Album Rankings: 01. Ray Of Light 02. True Blue 03. Erotica 04. Like A Prayer 05. Madonna 06. Like A Virgin 07. Bedtime Stories |
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17th June 2020, 12:56 AM
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#15
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Jord
Joined: 12 March 2017
Posts: 10,772 User: 27,116
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I’m happy to see this at #1 in your Madonna rankings (well #1 from albums released up to this point)
A lot of what you say I very much get. Like I feel like this is so much like an album that I’d not often cherry pick certain tracks to listen to on their own. I do listen to the entire album in full around once a month or so. I’d love to see how your rankings of the tracks change as well. For me I was like you at first with the later half of the album being my bottom 3 that’s not so much the case now though. Little Star especially has very much grown on me and Mer Girl when you hear closely is really Bjork like in many ways and so un Madonna sounding but lyrically it’s brilliant. Weirdly I was also like you in that the first time I heard this album in full id never heard the opening track before! Despite it being a single I’d heard all the other singles bar that but it does hit you right away. The final line of “and now I find I’ve changed my mind.... this is my religion” just does something to me! To be fair despite me not thinking this the critique for the title track I can see. It’s a manic, full of adrenaline, in your face kinda song and she’s using her voice and vocals on that in a way she never has before either. I do think the title track with the GP could verge on being marmite! My ranking of this album would probably be 1. Frozen 2. Sky Fits Heaven 3. Nothing Really Matters 4. Skin 5. Drowned World / Substitute For Love 6. The Power Of Goodbye 7. Little Star 8. Ray Of Light 9. Swim 10. To Have And Not To Hold 11. Mer Girl 12. Candy Perfume Girl 13. Shanti / Ashtangi |
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17th June 2020, 08:28 PM
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#16
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Joined: 17 February 2011
Posts: 56,211 User: 13,007
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Omg Jonjo and Jordan the Sky Fits Heaven stans emerge! It's truly one of her greatest album tracks
Great to read your review Jon! The masterpiece still getting new fans even to this day - it's timeless *.* Little Star is an odd one but it does always capture me when I listen to the album as a whole. It's such a sublime album, everything flows expertly and there is so much depth in the lyrics and production. Pure LOVE
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22nd June 2020, 04:20 PM
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#17
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on a bench in coney island
Joined: 9 August 2007
Posts: 17,594 User: 4,089
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Such an incredible album. Like I said in the Music thread, I've only started listening to her albums in full over the last couple of years, but this is head and shoulders above the rest for me.
I can see why it received such critical acclaim at the time and why it's so many people's favourite Madonna album. That one-two hit of Frozen and The Power of Goodbye is just unbeatable, my two favourite Madonna songs back to back
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25th June 2020, 01:45 PM
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#18
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BuzzJack Idol
Joined: 8 December 2010
Posts: 50,952 User: 12,472
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QUOTE(HausofGhibli @ Jun 15 2020, 08:18 PM) This is my second favourite album from Madonna (and high up in my ALL-TIME list of all albums i've ever heard). It is beaten by Confessions on a Dancefloor, which, while objectively maybe not as strong as this, is the album I return to most. Like that album, this just has the aesthetics, the vibe, the visuals, the production, the vocals and lyrics - everything spot on. It is a true experience with every listen and I still find myself discovering small production moments or hidden lyrics that sneak up on me and gain new meaning. It's a perfect album and of the best ever! She came off the back of claims that she was dwindling and losing her touch, with this? That's how you silence the critics. This is my main takeaway from the album. Orbit is an incredible producer, so many layers and intricate details which makes each listen fresh and exciting. I'm with you that this is probably objectively her best album, 'Confessions' just beats it in terms of personal taste but 'Ray of Light' does rate pretty close! It's great to see such unanimous affection in here and I'm enjoying reading about how the songs affect everyone, whether that be a part of its production or a certain lyric. I can remember buying this a good 10 years ago and I was mesmerised by the production. 'Skin' was the one that stood out most, I didn't really have any idea what it was about but I found myself lost in the production - it's so trippy and there's lots of emotions rushing at you; it can be aggressive, eerie, melancholy, anxious. I've never known anything like it. Every song brings something special to the album so it's hard to limit myself in mentioning highlights. 'Little Star' and 'Mer Girl' are the ones I return to the least but I can't deny their importance. |
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25th June 2020, 01:48 PM
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#19
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BuzzJack Idol
Joined: 8 December 2010
Posts: 50,952 User: 12,472
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QUOTE(Jordan Lee @ Jun 16 2020, 01:44 AM) Also! Haus you may be able to confirm this for me but this was originally set to be called Mantra wasn’t it? You're right, the album was originally titled 'Mantra' but was changed because Madonna's albums were usually titled after one of the songs from the album. Other titles in consideration were 'Drowned World', 'Heartbreaking', and 'Electronica' (a remix album had been planned with the name 'Veronica Electronica' too). I've just been reading up on some of the backstory from this era. Apparently 'Children' by Robert Miles is one of the songs that inspired Madonna to experiment with trance music. They were meant to work together but there were scheduling conflicts. The song 'Enjoy' from Robert Miles' '23am' album was written with Madonna in mind for the vocals: A couple of outtakes I'd like to share: Both were written with Rick Nowels so they date quite early on in the album sessions (pre-Orbit). 'Like a Flower' is beautiful, I can see why it was left off the album but it could have made a great B-side, and 'Gone, Gone, Gone' is more in line with the album's sound, although you can still tell it's not Orbit-produced. There are some even earlier demos out there too, from when Madonna was working with Babyface again following 'Bedtime Stories'. They sound so out of place compared to what we know 'Ray of Light' to be! |
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25th June 2020, 04:23 PM
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#20
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Jord
Joined: 12 March 2017
Posts: 10,772 User: 27,116
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Those were some finds there Liam! That Robert Miles one was a good one
I’d heard Like A Flower before and liked it too. Whatever inspired this album I’m so grateful for it. She was just so focused and so energised during this campaign and its so bold and out there to anything she’s done before. This kinda come at a time too when she started getting high critical praise and acclaim as Elle as huge sales. I might just be basing on that this was her first studio album to win multiple GRAMMYs Edit: that should say as well as but it’s already been quoted with my typo
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