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With American Life having been a stateside failure, Madonna did what any smart businesswoman or politician would do: cut her losses and appealed to her constituency. In this case, that would be the (mostly gay) clubs that got her started way back in the late 70s/early 80s. Confessions on a Dancefloor isn’t just a fluffy piece of disco-pop. While it’s not quite at the level of Like a Prayer or Ray of Light, it is just a tiny bit below Music. To phrase that in non-fan terms: it’s a great album from the reigning Queen of Pop.
The opening shot of “Hung Up” remains one of her greatest moments as an artist. From that ABBA sample to those sassy lyrics, the Madonna from the 80s made a comeback and there’s no denying her. And “I Love New York” has a almost-Stooges flavor, if, you know, the Stooges had layered synthesizers upon their hard-hitting guitars. It’s a return of the Madonna brassiness that made her a superstar in the first place, don’t try and over think it, just go with her. “Future Lovers” with it’s Donna Summer sample and spoken-word segments sounds like an instructional video for the kind of dance-inspired spirituality she’s been talking about for the past few years.
“Get Together” and “Forbidden Love” move along on slinky ambient electronic grooves which reference her past, past dance hits and other artists in the electronic field when she first appeared on the scene. And “Like It Or Not” works as the album’s closer simply because it sounds like Madonna’s philosophy for living, even if it is a string of clichés. Her vocal performance and attitude make it work. While “How High” and the sublimely beautiful “Isaac,” which sounds to me like the story of Isaac from the Bible and not the Kabbalist icon, create a Middle Eastern disco genre that create two of the best moments on the album. Madonna’s best moments are always when she explores spirituality through the transitive power and nature of music, dance and love. Confessions is full of these kind of moments.
I absolutely loved Confessions when it first came out, and I still do. It’s definitely one of my favorite Madonna albums. It’s a delicious mixture of Donna Summer inspired disco and ABBA-licious good times. DOWNLOAD: “Hung Up”
