Understanding Music Today: 3 Integral Albums

Music today is a vast landscape where distinctiveness and individuality are greatly praised attributes. To understand why certain sounds are present and why specific subject matters aren't considered shocking and frowned upon, you must do a deep dive into the music of our past. There are millions of songs and albums out there to consume, and finding a place to start can be overwhelming. To assist in that task, I am going to breakdown three albums that I consider massively influential to the musicians of the present.

Ray of Light - Madonna (1998)

"Ray of Light" is often considered Madonna's magnum opus, and for good reason. Her 7th album and first in four years, saw her departing from the R&B-tinged mood-setters of 1994's "Bedtime Stories." Freeing herself of the success expectations placed upon her during previous eras, she went ahead and released "Frozen" as the first single, one day after the albums release. A move like this was bold at the time, as artists labels often pushed them to release one, or even two, singles prior to the albums release to generate excitement from fans and the general public. Madonna is often considered one of the pioneers for making the "surprise drop" a feasible strategy for a musician.

Following the birth of her first child, Madonna began working on this record with the intention of doing something completely different than what she'd done before. She abandoned traditional song structures and big, pop choruses for a mellow, electronic sound. The albums title track, is perhaps the most standout moment of her career. The pulsating song contains a reworked interpolation of "Sepheryn" by Curtiss Maldoon, and feels like the breath of fresh air Madonna had been waiting to take through her entire career. Constantly under scrutiny and a microscope, she was finally free to do what her intention always was, make art.

Janet Jackson's "The Velvet Rope" was not well-received by fans and critics alike when it was initially released. On the album, she invites listeners to come "behind my velvet rope," alluding to a more personal Janet than previously seen. Themes of introspection and depression are a common through-line as the listener makes their way through the album, which, in the 90s, were not often-spoke-upon themes. Everything was new for her, the sound, the tone, the mellow-ness of it all... all of these factors contributed to it's not-overly-positive initial reception.

The reason that this album has aged into the classic that it is, to put it simply, is it being ahead of its time. Vocal layering, effects, and experimental production choices that at the time were deemed to left of centre, have progressed into aspects that are regularly seen in most music now. None of this is to say that the world suddenly turned on Janet Jackson when Velvet Rope was released, because that is simply not the case. The hits "Got 'Til It's Gone," which flips "Big Yellow Taxi" by Joni Mitchell into a jittery, sideways groove, and "Together Again," spawned from this record. A recently celebrated 25 year anniversary, with a special deluxe edition reissue of the album, proves that its legacy and impact live on to this day.

Often deemed the weird girl of the music industry, Bjork's sophomore album "Post" brought her musical genius to new heights. Even in the year of 2024, this record still remains ahead of its time. It takes an extremely well-trained ear to understand the brilliance of "Post," and I would argue that this album still remains overlooked and under appreciated by not only the music industry, but the masses. Despite this, it has received an insane amount of critical acclaim. Accredited music publication "Pitchfork" gave the album a perfect 10, calling it "the foundation for one of the most consequential careers in pop history."

She opens the album with "Army of Me," an aggressive, pulsating jam about self-reliance. Immediately after, we transition into "Hyperballad," one of the most incredibly produced songs of our time and, perhaps, the crown jewel of her career. Her encapsulating tone and ability to transport you to her world is what makes her such an exciting artist. The instrumentals and sounds used throughout the album could be described as wacky, but I think a better descriptor would be "captivating." When listening to "Post" front to back, you can't help but wonder what was running through her head not only during the writing process of this album, but in the preceding events leading up to its inception.