Madonna/Madame X

Mike Wood

Through the years, and her many incarnations, Madonna has never been shy. Pushing buttons and boundaries is in her DNA, so it’s no surprise that her persona here on the eponymous album is Madame X, a prisoner, professor, mother, child, singer, nun, teacher, and well, just about anything else she wants to be because, well, she’s Madonna and she’ll do what she wants and be whomever she chooses to be in the moment. Interestingly, she spends almost no time exploring these personas on Madame X, and the results are chaotic yet strangely poetic.

We suggest listening to Madame X as a whole rather than one song at a time or in pieces. Madonna moves between musical genres and stylings—sometimes in the same song—so it can feel disjointed unless you’re ready to just go along for the ride. She’s earned that right to take us where she wants to go, so buckle up and take flight. Madonna samples disco, pop, reggae, and of course, her go-to: Latin pop (“Medellín”—with Maluma—is the most hypnotic track on the album). Other stand-outs include “I Rise,” a politically-charged lament against gun violence with sampled soundbites from survivors of the Parkland school shooting. “Crave” offers Madonna at her most bare, with an acoustic guitar (and a Swae Lee assist) and serves up the artist lost in the love song’s sheer emotion. The album has its share of solid dance tracks, too (“I Don’t Search I Find” or “Bitch I’m Loca”) and we want to move with Madonna on that dancefloor…even if we’re not quite sure where she’s going next.

For more info, visit madonna.com.

Stef Chura/Midnight

Jennifer Russo

If The Cranberries and No Doubt had a love child, you would get Stef Chura. The album, released in early June, brings you back to the late 90’s with its indie pop/alternative/punk sound and instantly makes me think of plaid shirts, combat boots, and angsty teen movies from that era. I find the intoning in the vocals well done, and overall the album sparks a self-assured confidence and energy that permeates through every song. The album screams nonconformity.  

The opening track, “All I Do is Lie”, is heavy with bass and sounds like the anthem for a co-dependent relationship. It has a super catchy hook and interesting twitchy guitar solo. I really liked the song “Trumbull”. It’s cleverly written, super short song, backed by only piano and seems like an intentional and humorous break from everything else. I thought “Method Man” was really interesting too – less of a song and more of a spoken word set to music kind of feel. It made me want to witness the individual in the scene she is describing, who seems to be some know-it-all guy telling her what she should do (which she isn’t having, by the way).

“Sweet, Sweet Midnight” is an excellent track. A duet with Will Toledo, who also produced the record, the song displays a lot of his style. Their voices seem like soulmates on this one, with the tone and harmony right on and their vocal chemistry flowing seamlessly.

I liked her Billy Idol cover, “Eyes Without a Face”, which is a sad and slow one and quite repetitive, but I found it compelling nonetheless. She really made the song hers and not a carbon-copy like some other artists tend to do. My favorite is “Jumpin’ Jack”, which is full of dance-worthy backline and has a great change up at the end. It is easily the most fun and it was what stayed in my head when I got to the end of the album.

I really enjoyed this one more than her debut. I think it is much stronger and gives us a little more insight into what she is capable of. It left me eager to hear what else she comes up with, which is always a good thing.

For the official website, visit stefchura.com.

Western Stars/Bruce Springsteen

Jason Savio

Bruce Springsteen returns to his niche of character-driven songs and meditative reflection on his newest solo album, Western Stars, showing once again just how powerful a song can be if its heart is in the right place.

As its title suggests, Springsteen trades in his familiar New Jersey haunt for a trip out west on “Western Stars,” placing himself in the shoes of a washed-up movie actor, a beaten–but not broken–stuntman, and a heartbroken widower, among others.

From Tucson, Arizona to the Sunset Strip in L.A., the locations may have changed, but the characters he sings about are just as desperate as ever, yearning for either their youthful past or someone they’ve lost.

Springsteen embraces the hazy sun-filled western mindset on the majestic “Hitch Hikin’” and “The Wayfarer.” On the former he’s happy to be on the road traveling the expansive world ahead, while on the latter he seems more lost and down on his luck as he roams from town to town. 

The title track is told from the perspective of a western movie actor at the end of his career, who once worked with John Wayne but is now recognized instead for being in credit card commercials. 

“Once I was shot by John Wayne, yeah, it was towards the end,” he sings, “That one scene’s bought me a thousand drinks, set me up and I’ll tell it for you, friend.”

The most powerful song is the last. In “Moonlight Motel” a man reminisces about a special place he and his wife visited together. As Springsteen sets the scene up with a tremble in his voice, the man returns to visit the now-closed motel, and we learn that his wife has since passed on. “I pulled a bottle of Jack out of a paper bag/Poured one for me and one for you as well/Then it was one more shot poured out onto the parking lot/To the Moonlight Motel,” he sings to finish the song.

It will hit you in the heart. Pack a tissue.

For more, visit: brucespringsteen.net.