Ariel Pink Says He’s Been Asked to Work on Madonna’s New Album to Stop Her "Downward Slide"

Here’s a bit of a curveball: Ariel Pink says he’s been asked to work on Madonna‘s new album, the follow up to 2012′s MDNA. In an interview with Faster Louder, Pink said he was contacted by Madge’s label, Interscope, to help out. 

“They need something edgy. They need songwriting,” he said. “She can’t just have her Avicii, her producers or whatever, come up with a new techno jam for her to gyrate to and pretend that she’s 20 years old. They actually need songs. I’m partly responsible for that return-to-values thing.” (Watch out, Diplo and Blood Diamonds!)

That said, he doesn’t sound like he’s fallen under her spell. “I guess it’s called ‘throwback’, but the first record was so good because of the songs,” he said. “It’s been a downward slide [since]. Ray of Light is not cool. And all the other stuff she’s done after that, it’s not like it matters. It really shows a drain of values. People need more substance in their mac-and-cheese. People need more sugar or something.”

It’s worth pointing out that dozens of songwriters are asked to write for artists as big as Madonna, so it’s entirely possible Pink’s contributions will never come to light. (Or that after reading this interview, Madonna will wave her hand and have him thrown to the dogs.)

It’s also worth noting that Pink covered “Everybody” for 2007′s Through the Wilderness, a Madonna tribute album. And which Madonna record is “Everybody” from? Her first one! He’s not just being retroactively selective with his tastes, then. Come on, Ariel, you don’t even like “Like a Prayer”? 

Read our Update interview with Pink.

Watch Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti perform “Witchhunt Suite for World War III” at Pitchfork Music Festival:

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