I’m A Sinner, I Like It That Way
Since I had my first listen to the new Madonna album at a comfy little listening room in a sunny Italian morning last week I felt I had to find a way to share my impression on what it was like.
No, not about what MDNA is like, but precisely about what listening to MDNA for the first time is.
Following Madonna as a fan since the start – and being more closely involved with anything happening online for the past decade – didn’t give me many chances to get close to an album release feeling like a virgin. If you are a fan, you can be strong and stay away from any snippet of the new material that floats around – no matter if it’s legit or not.
When you run a fansite, you just can’t. Sometimes you just have to click on that link that someone you’ve never heard of before has sent it to you, because you need to figure out what’s it about. It can be Lela Pala Tute in loop over 60 minutes or the real thing, and you’ll never know if you don’t dare to listen.
This didn’t happen to me with MDNA.
Believe it or not (and a lot of my closest friends don’t) last week it was my very first time with MDNA. And even if before that moment I was feeling a little left out like the worst looking guy in the party nobody wants to dance with – surrounded by people popping out of nowhere spreading words of wisdom about how they got to listen to the new album in advance “but can’t share”, it was only at the time the record started and the speakers started to blow that I realized how priviledge I was.
Yes, because listening to MDNA for the first time is an experience. Now you’ve been warned. Don’t make it happen by chance. Handle it with care. Take your time. Do it in a single shot. Forget the players control, pump up the volume (and I mean that, so do it when you’re sure you can do it). And let Madonna take you on her ultimate journey.
End of Part I.