Editing Ray of Light (section)

== Composition ==
{{Quote box|width=300px|quote="I feel that talking about it trivializes it. I've been studying the Cabala {{sic}}, which is the mystical interpretation of the Torah. I've studied Buddhism and Hinduism and I've been practicing yoga and obviously I know a lot about Catholicism. There are indisputable truths that connect all of them, and I find that very comforting and kind. My spiritual journey is to be open to everything. Pay attention to what makes sense, be absorbed. For me, yoga is the closest thing to our real nature."|source=—Madonna talking about the inspiration behind "[[Sky Fits Heaven]]" and "Shanti/Ashtangi".<ref name="spin" />
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''Ray of Light'' was a notable departure from Madonna's previous work, and has been described as her most "adventurous" record.<ref name="allmusic" /> An [[electronica]],<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/ray-of-light-19980402|title=Ray Of Light|magazine=[[Rolling Stone]]|access-date=September 12, 2016|archive-date=September 19, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110919163803/http://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/ray-of-light-19980402|url-status=live|quote=riding the electronica wave with her new collaborator, U.K. beat master William Orbit.}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.ew.com/article/1998/03/06/ray-light|title=Ray of Light – EW.com|magazine=[[Entertainment Weekly]]|access-date=September 12, 2016|archive-date=November 18, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161118062512/http://www.ew.com/article/1998/03/06/ray-light|url-status=live|quote= Madonna has dipped her latest collection of songs in a light batter of electronica.}}</ref> [[trip hop]],<ref name=theguardianmadamex>{{cite web |last1=Beaumont-Thomas |first1=Ben |title=Madonna: Madame X review – her most bizarre album ever |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2019/jun/04/madonna-madame-x-review-her-most-bizarre-album-ever |website=The Guardian |date=June 4, 2019 |access-date=21 July 2019 |archive-date=June 4, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190604114234/https://www.theguardian.com/music/2019/jun/04/madonna-madame-x-review-her-most-bizarre-album-ever |url-status=live|quote= she did an about turn, delivering convincing, idiosyncratic trip-hop on Ray of Light (1998)}}</ref> [[synth-pop|techno-pop]],<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ayeEJMF-CZUC&pg=PT10 |title=Mess Is More |magazine=[[Spin (magazine)|Spin]] |volume=15 |issue=5 |date=May 1999 |access-date=June 9, 2016 |last=Walters |first=Barry |pages=145–46 |archive-date=February 15, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170215013406/https://books.google.com/books?id=ayeEJMF-CZUC&pg=PT10 |url-status=live|quote=After sculpting the user-friendly technopop of Madonna's Ray of Light....}}</ref> and [[New age music|new-age]] album;<ref name="Pitchfork Staff 2022">{{cite web|last= Pitchfork Staff |title= The 150 Best Albums of the 1990s |website= [[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]] |date= September 28, 2022 |url= https://pitchfork.com/features/lists-and-guides/the-best-albums-of-the-1990s/|quote= Fusing icy electronica and new-age music...''Ray of Light'' found Madonna trying...to evoke the blackest depths and most euphoric joys of the human heart.|accessdate= April 26, 2023}}</ref> it also contains elements of several different types of music, including [[house music|house]], [[ambient music|ambient]], [[drum and bass]], [[rock music|rock]], [[New wave music|new wave]], [[Eastern music|eastern]] and [[classical music|classical]] music.<ref>{{harvnb|Metz|Benson|1999|p=24}}</ref> Vocally, the album was also a marked change from Madonna's previous work; as the singer underwent vocal training lessons for her 1996 film ''Evita'', her vocals exhibited greater breadth and range, as well as a fuller timbre. In many songs, she also abandoned the [[vibrato]] which was present in her previous work. Critically, the album is said to have Madonna's most full-bodied vocals.<ref>{{harvnb|Fouz-Hernández|Jarman-Ivens|2004|pp=59–61}}</ref>

The opening track and third single, "[[Drowned World/Substitute For Love]]", is a downtempo ballad drawing influences from [[Oldschool jungle|jungle]], drum and bass and trip hop music.<ref name="slant" /> The title is inspired by [[J. G. Ballard]]'s post-apocalyptic science fiction novel ''[[The Drowned World]]'' (1962).<ref name="slant" /> "Swim", the second song, has a spiritual tone. She sings: "Swim to the ocean floor/So that we can begin again/Wash away all our sins/Crash to the other shore".<ref name="vibe">{{cite magazine |year=1998 |title=Revolutions: Madonna's "Ray of Light" |magazine=[[Vibe (magazine)|Vibe]] |volume=6 |issue=3 |page=196 |issn=1070-4701 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HCwEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA140 |access-date=December 25, 2010 |archive-date=January 1, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140101182051/http://books.google.com/books?id=HCwEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA140 |url-status=live }}</ref> "Ray of Light", the third track and second single, is an uptempo electronic [[dance-pop]] song with strong [[techno]] and [[Trance music|trance]] influences. A "sonically progressive" track,<ref name="allmusic" /> it also incorporates elements of [[Rock music|rock]], with a prominent [[electric guitar]] [[riff (music)|riff]]. Its [[sound effect]]s include [[whistle]]s and [[bleep sound|bleeps]].<ref name="allmusic" /> "Candy Perfume Girl" has a [[grunge]] intro and continues to pair post-modern beeps and beats with old-fashioned electric guitar flare ups.<ref name=michigan>{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2706&dat=19980310&id=9QlbAAAAIBAJ&pg=1044,2605069|title=Madonna Opens Heart and Soul on 'Light'|first=Bryan|last=Lark|work=[[The Michigan Daily]]|publisher=[[University of Michigan]]|date=March 10, 1998|access-date=November 2, 2011|archive-date=April 29, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210429192607/https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2706&dat=19980310&id=9QlbAAAAIBAJ&pg=1044,2605069|url-status=live}}</ref> In the next song, "Skin", Madonna sings "Do I know you from somewhere?" in a yearning voice over the beats of an electronic orchestra.<ref name="michigan" />

The sixth track, "[[Nothing Really Matters]]", is an up-tempo [[Dance music|dance]] track which contains influences of techno.<ref>{{harvnb|Metz|Benson|1999|p=63}}</ref> "[[Sky Fits Heaven]]" focuses on Madonna's spiritual studies and her daughter Lourdes. Some lyrics include: "Sky fits heaven so fly it, that's what the prophet said to me/Child fits mother so hold your baby tight, that's what my future can see".<ref name="michigan" /> Elements of the lyric are taken from the poem ''What Fits?'' by poet [[Max Blagg]], the poem used for a 1993 advertisement for [[Gap Inc.]]<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1431615/madonna-gets-lyrical-help-from-gap-ad-freezes-frozen.jhtml |title=Madonna Gets Lyrical Help From Gap Ad, Freezes For 'Frozen' |date=March 18, 1998 |publisher=MTV News |access-date=April 1, 2013 |archive-date=December 3, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131203135208/http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1431615/madonna-gets-lyrical-help-from-gap-ad-freezes-frozen.jhtml |url-status=dead }}</ref> "Shanti/Ashtangi" is a Hindu prayer and up-tempo techno song sung by Madonna in Sanskrit, over a driving dance rhythm.<ref name="vibe" /> The techno dance track features Madonna singing the adapted version of [[Shankaracharya]] entirely in Sanskrit with lines such as "Vunde gurunam caranaravinde/Sandarsita svatma sukhavabodhe".<ref>{{harvnb|DeRogartis|2003|p=398}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Gopinath|2005|p=28}}</ref>

"Frozen", the ninth track and album's first single, is a mid-tempo electronic ballad which has a layered sound enhanced by [[synthesizer]]s and [[strings (music)|strings]].<ref name="fouzz">{{harvnb|Fouz-Hernández|Jarman-Ivens|2004|pp=92}}</ref> The song additionally contains [[Ambient music|ambient]] qualities, a moderate dance rhythm during the chorus and techno-influenced beats towards the end. Madonna's vocals throughout the song lack vibrato, and have drawn comparisons to [[medieval music]]. Lyrically, the song is about a cold and emotionless man; nevertheless, subtexts have been noticed.<ref name="fouzz" /> According to Jarman-Ivens, lyrics such as "You're frozen, when your heart's not open" reflected an artistic palette, "encompassing diverse musical, textual and visual styles in its lyrics."<ref>{{harvnb|Fouz-Hernández|Jarman-Ivens|2004|pp=55–58}}</ref> "The Power of Good-Bye" is an emotional ballad which lyrically meditates on loss and longing. It was released as the album's fourth single. "To Have and Not to Hold" is about a distant lover and "Little Star" is about her daughter, Lourdes. Both are superficially vibrant but with underlying subtlety and restrained arrangements prevailing.<ref name="michigan" /> "Mer Girl", the album's final track, is a surreal meditation on mortality and the death of Madonna's mother Madonna Fortin Ciccone, in which she sings, "And I smelled her burning flesh/Her rotting bones, her decay/I ran and I ran/I'm still running away."<ref name="slant" /> "She stepped out of the vocal booth," Orbit recalled of its recording, "and everybody was rooted to the spot. It was just one of those moments. Really spooky."<ref>{{cite magazine|first= Danny |last= Eccleston |title= Sexy Mother |magazine= [[Q (magazine)|Q]] |date= March 1998 |page= 88}}</ref>