4.0 - I always felt this record dwelled in “Ray of Light”‘s shadow, the more “serious” of the two projects. I’ve changed my mind. “ROL” finds Madonna clinging desperately to relevance with her late-to-the-party rave anthems mixed with yoga-inflected wisdom, offering incantations to a “zephyr in the sky.” Yawn. This record, on the other hand, shows a quirkier Madonna stripped of these pretensions, ready to hang. Sonically, “Music” has aged far better. I like the glitchy, hyperpoppy elements that remind me of “100 gecs.” As is often the case with Madonna, you still get some schlocky philosophizing on clichés and truisms (e.g., “nobody’s perfect”) but she balances that with a pre-#MeToo ballad about the female struggle that resonates (“What It Feels Like For A Girl”). My only real gripe is that the record ends on a melancholy note and I would’ve loved more of side A’s frenetic energy to send this off.