Madonna's new album Confessions II has been met with exceptionally positive reception. Critics have described it as her strongest, most cohesive and vibrant album in two decades. Well, you can disagree...

The album, released in early July, is the follow-up to 2005's Confessions on a Dance Floor, which included the smash hit "Hung Up." Madonna has also returned to electronic dance music, house and disco with the same producer, Stuart Price.

The return, however, does not mean a direct re-release of the original album. Confessions II explores the history of dance music, but also Madonna's own life and career. The album references her early years in New York clubs, family relationships, loss and growing old in a world where pop stars are expected to constantly reinvent themselves.

Good reviews…

The album has an average score of 80 on Metacritic, with The Guardian giving it four stars, calling it Madonna's best album since her first album, Confessions on a Dance Floor. Clash described it as her most energetic and irresistible album in over a decade.

Helsingin Sanomat also gave the album a four-star review, calling the comeback a success. According to the review, Madonna appears on the album as a confident yet vulnerable dance floor leader. The latter part of the album in particular is reminiscent of her seminal 1990s albums Erotica and Ray of Light.

The undersigned, however, was not really enthusiastic about this. To be honest, it sounds a bit like a second-rate production. Did the critics lack the edge...? Well, it's a matter of taste, but if you compare this to Madonna's biggest hits, I don't think it has the same pulse.

Dance, nostalgia and personal topics

One of the album's most straightforward club tracks is "Danceteria," named after a New York nightclub associated with Madonna's early career. The song has the same compelling dance energy as her 1980s output.

Towards the end of the album, the mood changes. Fragile is about Madonna's late brother Christopher Ciccone, and The Test is a collaboration with her daughter Lola Leoni. On these songs, Madonna sounds more intimate and personal than she has in a long time.

One reservation is still repeated in the reviews: the album may not have an instantly recognizable hit like Hung Up. The 16-song set has also been considered a bit too long, and some critics have noted that Madonna's whispering vocal style turns into a mannerism at times. According to The Times, the album has a few too many repetitive dance songs, although the best moments are both strong and surprisingly personal.

Overall, the reception is still clear: Madonna is not trying to sound like younger artists this time, but is reclaiming the musical territory she herself was building.

A venerable history and a constant innovator of pop

Madonna rose from New York dance clubs to global stardom in the early 1980s with songs like Holiday, Borderline and Lucky Star. 1984's Like a Virgin established her as a central figure in pop culture.

Her influence wasn't just based on songs. Madonna combined music, videos, fashion, sexuality, and a consciously constructed public image in a way that changed the perception of the modern pop star.

His career has included several distinct phases. Like a Prayer expanded his expression in a more personal direction, Erotica took it into house and darker club music, and Ray of Light combined electronic production with spiritual and introspective themes.

Madonna's output has had exceptionally fine periods in terms of sound quality. From the perspective of a dance music lover, for example, Erotica, Ray of Light, Music and the first Confessions on a Dance Floor are among the most impressively produced pop albums of their time. Their sound is big, layered and rhythmically precise, but at the same time each album is clearly unique.

In the 2010s, MDNA, Rebel Heart and Madame X received a more mixed reception. They had individual strong songs and bold ideas, but the whole was often considered fragmented. Confessions II sounds like a conscious return to what Madonna does best: combining dance music, a strong visual identity and personal themes.

Madonna's TOP 10

The list is inevitably partly personal, but so be it. Like a Prayer, Into the Groove, Vogue, Frozen and Ray of Light are also particularly popular at the top of international critics' lists.

1. Into the Groove: As dance music alone, a nearly perfect song: simple, hypnotic, and still very effective.

2. Like a Prayer: Combining gospel, rock, and pop, the song is both musically and culturally one of the pivotal works of Madonna's career.

3. Vogue: A house classic that brought New York ballroom culture into global mainstream pop.

4. Frozen: The dark, airy and exceptionally well-produced song kicked off the Ray of Light season.

5. Ray of Light: A fast and euphoric electronic pop song where Madonna's voice and William Orbit's production work seamlessly together.

6. Hung Up: The dance hit built on an ABBA sample proved in 2005 that Madonna could still dominate both the clubs and the pop charts.

7. Live to Tell: A restrained and weighty ballad that already showed in the 1980s that Madonna was capable of much broader expression than straightforward dance pop.

8. Deeper and Deeper: One of the highlights of the Erotica album. House, disco and a sense of liberation combine into an exceptionally effective whole.

9.Music: A minimalist and original electronic club hit that sounded like nothing else in mainstream pop music in 2000.

10. Holiday: One of Madonna's first big hits and still one of her most enduring dance songs.

Confessions II may not contain as clear a new classic as Like a Prayer, Vogue or Hung Up, but as an album it seems to have restored Madonna to something more important: her own voice and her place as the undisputed queen of the dance floor.

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The Madonna Timeline: Every Scandal, Every Hit, Every Reinvention