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 'Hard Candy' • album discussion, 11th album | 2008 |
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 6th July 2020, 07:14 PM
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#1
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Joined: 17 February 2011
Posts: 56,208 User: 13,007 
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 A place to discuss Madonna's 11th studio album 'Hard Candy'. Released in 2008. 1. Candy Shop 2. 4 Minutes (feat. Justin Timberlake and Timbaland) 3. Give It 2 Me 4. Heartbeat 5. Miles Away 6. She's Not Me 7. Incredible 8. Beat Goes On (feat. Kanye West) 9. Dance 2Night 10. Spanish Lesson 11. Devil Wouldn't Recognize You 12. Voices 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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6th July 2020, 07:15 PM
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#2
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Joined: 17 February 2011
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6th July 2020, 07:30 PM
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 BuzzJack Idol
Joined: 8 December 2010
Posts: 50,948 User: 12,472
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In a parallel universe, the lead single was 'Candy Shop' and Madonna appeared on the cover with blackface.
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6th July 2020, 07:47 PM
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#4
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Joined: 17 February 2011
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QUOTE(Liam.k. @ Jul 6 2020, 08:30 PM)  In a parallel universe, the lead single was 'Candy Shop' and Madonna appeared on the cover with blackface.  Instead we got, the last #1 single she's had... but still a HORRIFIC album cover. |
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6th July 2020, 07:52 PM
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#5
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Joined: 17 February 2011
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This album is on the whole one of her weakest for sure but it does hold 3 great singles and one of the best album tracks she's done: 'Devil Wouldn't Recognize You' still gives me chills whenever I hear it. It's a haunting masterpiece and doesn't totally make sense on this album given the lyrical power and the sublime production against the throwaway nature of a lot of the rest of the album. The fact that it follows the GHASTLY 'Spanish Lesson' too? No words.
It's a shame some of the album lies somewhere between filler and pure trash when there are moments of genius scattered throughout it. |
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6th July 2020, 08:02 PM
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#6
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 is in hibernation
Joined: 24 August 2014
Posts: 11,385 User: 21,161
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BOP. 'Entiendio means I get it' literally helped me in my Spanish Exam 
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6th July 2020, 08:05 PM
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#7
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Joined: 17 February 2011
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Andrew
 It's her worst song recorded up until that point! Makes my skin crawl lmao. |
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6th July 2020, 08:07 PM
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#8
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is in hibernation
Joined: 24 August 2014
Posts: 11,385 User: 21,161
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It's very Timbaland-esque pop by numbers but I make no apologies x
Give It 2 Me and 4 Minutes are again, of their time but great! Probs her last songs to strike a chord with the GP I guess. |
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6th July 2020, 08:47 PM
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#9
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Mansonette
Joined: 7 March 2006
Posts: 35,301 User: 54
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Devil Wouldn't Recognize You is the definite highlight of this. I do like 4 Minutes, Give It 2 Me, Heartbeat, Miles Away and Voices too though... just not as much as I'd usually like my favourites from her albums up to this point. Still miles better than what was to come next though.
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6th July 2020, 09:06 PM
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#10
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 Jord
Joined: 12 March 2017
Posts: 10,771 User: 27,116
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This is like not one of her best but there are moments of good on this.
This was kinda like the start of her not really setting trends but more following them but it is quite a good album. It’s been a while since my last listen and a whole so I may do that at some point later in the week but yeah it’s kinda released a time where her last studio album was a game changer in a good way and the one to follow this was the worst thing she’s ever put her name to. I’ve always liked Give It To Me and Miles Away. 4 Minutes was a bop but not one I revisit much now. |
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6th July 2020, 09:22 PM
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#11
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BuzzJack Platinum Member
Joined: 31 August 2010
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I actually really like this album.
The album cover is horrid tho !!! The Beat Goes On and Devil would have been big hits ! I also love Heartbeat and She’s Not Me. |
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7th July 2020, 11:46 AM
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#12
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 Schlagerdrottningen
Joined: 23 August 2010
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The Beat Goes On demo was amazing, INSTRUMENTATION! That’s the most important thing to note.
I do enjoy quite a bit of the album, but it feels very “basic” in a way that nothing she had done before did. Even ‘Madonna’ doesn’t feel as throwaway and it’s a cheaply produced debut album. There are of course some clunkers, Incredible being the worst song she had recorded up to that point (though Love Song runs it close), Spanish Lesson and parts of Candy Shop and Heartbeat are just WRONG. On the other hand Miles Away, Devil, Voices, Give It 2 Me and She’s Not Me are all great. Even Kanye can’t ruin Beat Goes On entirely. It’s a shame about a good deal of the vocals too. I’ve said it before but this really did mark the beginning of the creative and vocal decline that hasn’t really abated since 2008. 4 Minutes was a global smash, yes, but very much IN SPITE of her rather than because of her. She feels entirely incidental to the whole thing. I loved it at the time but rarely even revisit beyond a handful of tracks. This and MDNA mark the nadir of her creative output, albeit in different ways. |
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7th July 2020, 10:27 PM
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#13
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BuzzJack Platinum Member
Joined: 3 August 2006
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This was such a disappointing album coming on the back of confessions. I don’t like the style at all. Have never got into 4 minutes but don’t mind give it to me. It’s the only album of hers I don’t have!
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8th July 2020, 12:47 AM
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#14
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Jord
Joined: 12 March 2017
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As for the album cover I don’t actually mind it that much although there are nicer images in the booklet.
I will say though that cover what was meant to be the album cover where she had blackface was kind of stunning but would’ve also done a lot of **** to her career even then never mind what would’ve been said about it now. She looks HOT in that music video for Give It To Me though  This album was always gonna have a lot to live up too though as it followed Confessions. But it also felt to me in the UK at least it was kinda like the lasts time the GP felt behind Madonna and that there was positivity around her. To think we got 4 Minutes to #1 for like a month when she was coming up to 50 at the time was really like a rare chart feat but we still managed to do that! I echo what I say though in that it wasn’t like trend setting as much as her previous albums. |
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8th July 2020, 06:23 AM
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#15
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Joined: 17 February 2011
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It was another transformation of sound, style and aesthetics so we have to applaud that. A reinvention into a sound she'd never really delved into before! I just wish the album had less filler tracks, because the singles were spot on.
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8th July 2020, 07:45 AM
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#16
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 BuzzJack Gold Member
Joined: 20 May 2020
Posts: 2,270 User: 106,588
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QUOTE(Qween @ Jul 7 2020, 11:46 AM) There are of course some clunkers, Incredible being the worst song she had recorded up to that point (though Love Song runs it close), S Incredible is probably my favourite song on the album  |
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12th July 2020, 08:46 PM
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#17
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Mansonette
Joined: 7 March 2006
Posts: 35,301 User: 54
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Has hard candy killed Jonjo off?
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13th July 2020, 12:19 PM
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#18
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 I found the love, I found the love in me
Pronouns: He/Him
Joined: 13 December 2007 Posts: 87,449 User: 5,042
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QUOTE(dandy* @ Jul 12 2020, 09:46 PM) Has hard candy killed Jonjo off? SORRY!  A mixture of me not being able to pull myself away from Confessions + restarting my job!  I'm about to listen now. I'm fully prepared to have a very unpopular opinion on this, but we shall see! :') |
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13th July 2020, 01:03 PM
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#19
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BuzzJack Gold Member
Joined: 25 July 2016
Posts: 4,364 User: 23,471
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QUOTE(LJ JORD 7 @ Jul 6 2020, 10:06 PM) This is like not one of her best but there are moments of good on this. This was kinda like the start of her not really setting trends but more following them but it is quite a good album. It’s been a while since my last listen and a whole so I may do that at some point later in the week but yeah it’s kinda released a time where her last studio album was a game changer in a good way and the one to follow this was the worst thing she’s ever put her name to. I’ve always liked Give It To Me and Miles Away. 4 Minutes was a bop but not one I revisit much now. This was always my main issue with it — it was a few years behind the curve and didn't really build on it. I would rather just listen to 'Loose' or 'FutureSex/LoveSounds' than this. Beat Goes On remains a trashy bop though. |
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13th July 2020, 01:22 PM
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#20
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I found the love, I found the love in me
Pronouns: He/Him
Joined: 13 December 2007 Posts: 87,449 User: 5,042
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I've heard this album (I think - I'm actually not sure, I think I downloaded the wrong album that someone had t*rrented and just thrown 4 Minutes in :') lol) but it was only ever a couple of times on release, if I did and I honestly don't remember anything from it bar the first 2 singles. :') I love a bit of Timbaland so I'm intrigued by this album and what makes it so disliked amongst the fans (bar the obvious opinion that she followed trends as opposed to setting them, like we're very used to by Madge at this point) (Just read the credits (during 'Heartbeat') on Spotify and a lot of this was produced by Neptunes and a few by Timbaland
)'4 Minutes' is a banger! One of my favourite Madonna singles (sorry x) but it's always been a fave of mine and it's partly down to Justin *eyes* I never liked 'Give It To Me' at the time and my opinion has not changed today either. Meh. I find it quite annoying. The production on the first 3 tracks have been Pharrell by numbers. Thin, percussion-heavy beats. With '4 Minutes' at least they remembered to turn things up more and pad it out. 'Miles Away' I don't remember it, but I know I've heard this. It's lovely! And surprise, surprise, it's Danja + Timbaland and not Neptunes... :') I've noticed Danja, Justin + Timbaland had a hand in not only 4M & MA but the fan-favourite (from what I gather?) off this album 'Devil Wouldn't Recognize You' as well as 'Dance 2Night' + Justin & Timbo on 'Voices'. They're another 2 tracks I've heard a little about but not as much as DWRY, so would 'Hard Candy have been better as a solely Danja, Justin + Timbaland produced album?  (I'm not up to those tracks yet so I won't comment until my overall thoughts after my ranking below)1. 4 Minutes (feat. Justin Timberlake and Timbaland) 2. Devil Wouldn't Recognize You 3. Miles Away 4. Heartbeat 5. Incredible 6. She's Not Me 7. Voices 8. Dance 2Night 9. Give It 2 Me 10. Ring My Bell 11. Spanish Lesson 12. Beat Goes On (feat. Kanye West) 13. Candy Shop There are great pop songs in both 'Heartbeat' & 'Incredible', but the production is so piss poor that it kind of ruins them when they just have random spurts of awfulness throughout! The melody of 'Incredible' is LUSH! Very 80's Madge and it would've been nicer had it been produced by someone with a more pure pop sound. Max Martin would've smashed this! I don't mind 'She's Not Me', but it's just typical Neptunes and I'm not really a fan of them/their work so... 'Dance 2Night' is cute enough? It's pretty much just a blueprint for Ciara's 'Love Sex Magic' though. Which is superior. 'Devil Wouldn't Recognize You' is really good! Over time this may sit better in my rankings, but I love this. It's like her version of 'Ice Box' by Omarion. *.* I'll keep my top 7. The rest can be flushed. Sorry, I just don't get anything from GI2M (the IRONY in that though LMAO!) Going back to my point earlier, this 100% should have been solely a Danja, Justin & Timbaland produced album. (Before reading the credits I thought it predominantly was going to be but then I heard Pharrell and checked )Album Rankings: 01. Confessions On A Dancefloor 02. Ray Of Light 03. True Blue 04. Erotica 05. Like A Prayer 06. American Life 07. Music 08. Madonna 09. Hard Candy 10. Like A Virgin 11. Bedtime Stories |
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