Godspeed
Blessed Madonna- God Has Left The Room (Intro)
- Somebody s Daughter (feat. Kareen Lomax)
- Nowhere Fast
- Henny Hold Up (feat. Mother Marygold, Ric Wilson)
- Jinterlude (feat. Jin Jin)
- Serotonin Moonbeams
- Edge of Saturday Night (feat. Kylie Minogue)
- U Want 6 Grand 4 Wut (Interlude)
- Blessed Already (feat. Ric Wilson, Mabl)
- Strength (R U Ready) (feat. Joy Crookes)
- Why Trax Records Still Sucks in 24 (feat. Jamie Principle) (Interlude)
- We Still Believe (feat. Jamie Principle)
- That s The Shhh (Pure Love) (Interlude)
- Carry Me Higher (feat. Joy Anonymous, Danielle Ponder)
- Henterlude (feat. Joy Anonymous)
- Back 2 Love (feat. Jin Jin)
- Brand New (feat. James Vincent McMorrow, A-Trak)
- Count On My Love (feat. Daniel Wilson, KON)
- Godspeed (feat. DJ E-Clyps)
- Secretariat (feat. Shaun J Wright)
- Mercy (The Welcome) (feat. Jacob Lusk)
- Mercy (The Godsquad Album Mix) (feat. Jacob Lusk)
- Your Mom <3 (Interlude)
- Happier (feat. Clementine Douglas) (Bonus Track)
The Blessed Madonna has released her long-awaited debut album, ‘Godspeed’.
Comprised of 24 tracks including the singles ‘Mercy’ ft. Jacob Lusk, ‘Serotonin Moonbeams’, ‘Edge Of Saturday Night’ with Kylie and UK Top 20 single, ‘Happier’ ft. Clementine Douglas, ‘Godspeed’ was written over the course of three years, detailing thousands of hours worth of work.
At 24 tracks long, the album is both a testament to Marea Stamper’s (aka The Blessed Madonna) decisive and far-reaching influence, and a homage to her roots in underground electronic music. Drawing on a rich groundswell of collaborators —from pop megastars in Kylie Minogue to long-established names at the beating heart of the US underground like Jamie Principle and A-Trak, breakout acts like Joy Anonymous and vocalists tracing classic soul (Danielle Ponder), new-age gospel (Jacob Lusk) and UK RnB (Joy Crookes) — ‘Godspeed’ explores the myriad sounds, eras and touch points that make The Blessed Madonna the artist she is today.
There are also deeply personal themes at its core. Balancing the twin flames of rave and religion — both are of crucial importance to Stamper — ‘Godspeed’ explores the full spectrum of human emotions, tackling everything from joy to grief with equal gusto.
“Godspeed: the word marks the beginning of a journey and sometimes the end of one”, Stamper explains.
“After nearly a year in lockdown, when I signed the paperwork and knew that I was going to be allowed to make this album, I called my dad in Kentucky to tell him the good news. He could not contain his pride and in a way his relief. I was going to be ok. He says it better than I do at the beginning of the record. I lost him suddenly just weeks before the first session, but his voice will live in Godspeed forever and make a million more journeys to everyone who hears it.
This is a welcome and a farewell.
The end of a journey and the beginning.
A clock running out and an alarm.
These are the days running over the hills like wild horses and nights that never end.
There is no second of this album that was not touched, heard, shaped and believed in by The Godsquad, and first and foremost my twin, my brother Pat Alvarez.
And then by some miracle Jon and Dom from Sportsbanger appeared and seemed to instantly understand how to get inside of this project and speak on my behalf in visual ways. They saw me immediately and helped me make sense. To be able to trust them was a relief, a vindication and a blessing. I have no higher respect for any group of artists.
So here it is:
This is Godspeed.
This is your chance.
Now do your dance.”
With creative direction overseen by acclaimed DIY bootlegger artists, Sports Banger, the album also makes a stirring visual statement. Sports Banger drew inspiration from Stamper's pentecostal church upbring, for example, and recreated a scene from the ‘60s tent revival movement for the front cover, which depicts a young girl as the subject of a laying of the hands ceremony. A black & white photograph of Stamper’s husband, Vadim, wearing a custom-made Godspeed belt buckle is also depicted on the reverse of the vinyl sleeve, while the vinyl’s gatefold features a collection of re-purposed club relics lifted from across The Blessed Madonna’s 30+ year DJ career.
“The album artwork and supporting material are image-based and distinctly scrappy as a reaction to the mundane design that plagues dance record sleeves” Sports Banger explains.
“The artwork had to comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable. We took a ride through Marea's extensive rave archive to understand The Blessed Madonna's origin story. The girl pictured on the cover could easily be Marea, having grown up around the Tent revival and Pentecostal rituals of her home state of Kentucky.
What we ended up with was a Crass-meets-religious-Midwest-rave-degenerates via an industrial estate in Tottenham, London.”