Posted March 15, 20169 yr 0vqsLV0SJyU Madonna is quite formiddable when it comes to her religious connotations. In songs such as Like A Prayer she combines religion with sex and identity. But in many of her songs she takes the darker route of religion and looks to the Devil. These two songs explicitly reference it. The first is often cited as the best album track on 'Hard Candy' - Devil Wouldn't Recognise You certainly stands above the rest in terms of lyrical content and seems to be less in your face and brazen as many of the other songs that feature on the album and is more concerned with tender explorations of love. It's quite a stunning and powerful metaphor where not even the devil can recognise the mysterious person she sings of, but she is able to see through the darkness. The second, Devil Pray is taken from her latest album and first premiered in demo form before the album surfaced. It was immediately taken up as a solid effort for many fans and it remains a favourite on the album with many claiming it should've been a single. She sings of trailing down the dark side with the devil, and being intoxicated with narcotics to get closer to this dark side. Both are haunting songs in their own ways and use the image of the devil to explore much wider issues. Which are you more tempted by? 0Yx-E-xG4kU Vote for your favourite one in the poll and comment in the thread below! Also discuss any other favourite songs or lyrics that relate to these.Frozen vs Open Your HeartCandy Shop vs Body ShopRain vs Wash All Over MeHoliday vs La Isla BonitaMer Girl vs Promise to Try vs Mother and FatherGMAYL vs I Don't Give A vs Bitch I'm MadonnaJustify My Love vs EroticaForbidden Love vs Forbidden LoveI'm Addicted vs Addicted (forgot to include this on all other polls, but I just remembered it existed now lol)
March 15, 20169 yr I love both but ultimately think devil pray is superior ! It's more 'Madonna' and the last supper scene was genius when performed live ! The other track is very timberlake/timbalandinfluenced :)! Saying that it should have been a single .
March 15, 20169 yr Author The last supper scene was incredible I totally agree. I really like Devil Pray but this is a no brainer for me, Devil Wouldn't Recognise You ALLLLL the way. It's my second favourite album track out of everything she has ever done and is one of her best tracks going for me even when including singles. Love it so so much and in a way I'm glad it didn't get single treatment because it remains a hidden GEM on the album. <3
March 15, 20169 yr 'Devil Pray' for sure, my jaw dropped when I first heard it and it's such a brilliant track. Plus I kind of relate to it.
March 16, 20169 yr Devil Wouldn't Recognise You, OBV. Devil Pray is fine, but as with much of her recent output it suffers from production that will not date well and the lack of a proper chorus IS always going to irk me slightly. Plus DWRY is classic Madonna, despite the heavy JT influences/Cry Me A River comparisons. It's a dark, brooding ballad and brings out her best vocally too.
March 16, 20169 yr 'Devil Wouldn't Recognise You' for me too. Definitely a surprising moment on the album, it's exactly what a trend-chasing Madonna song should sound like if she insists on doing so: using the sounds of now to compliment the classic ingredients to a great Madonna song. More brooding ballads like this are definitely something I'd like more of - as John says, it brings out the best in her vocals, particularly now as her voice changes as she gets older. 'Devil Pray' is also great, a really clever song that seems controversial on the surface but actually holding an important message if you pay attention. It's like an answer song to 'Skin' which I've always thought was about drug use and likely to be regards to searching for a superior power.
March 17, 20169 yr Author Glad 'Devil Wouldn't Recognise You' has sneaked ahead, although it should be by a much higher margin!
March 17, 20169 yr Devil Wouldn't Recognise You! Although I voted for Devil Pray, oops. Swapped for you!
March 17, 20169 yr I love the Coachella feels that "Devil Pray" gives me ("we can get high and we can get stoned" :wub:), but "Devil Wouldn't Recognize You" gave me visuals that I wouldn't expect from a Madonna song this late into her career. So I'm torn.
March 18, 20169 yr I went for Devil Pray. I actually like both about equally right now but Devil Wouldn't Recognise You I love because it sounds like a Justin Timberlake song where as I love Devil Pray because it sounds like Madonna.
March 27, 20169 yr Devil Wouldn't Recognize You is a highlight in the later part of her career, a perfectly written and produced song that was immortalized by the stunning live rendition. Devil Pray has always been just ideas thrown together that does not stick, some parts are good, mostly the lyrics but others are ruined by the simple Avicii-like melody and especially the iffy vocals, like during "The ground beneath..." bit. I also fail to see the point of those weird auto-tuned vocals added in the album version, she seems to have really obsessed to change *something* after the songs leaked. The song was interesting for 15 minutes when she put the first 6 songs for sale in December 2014... Edited March 27, 20169 yr by Cyrax
