Gaga Makes Her Mark
By Claudia Varney
Lady Gaga cemented her
status as an iconic disco diva of
the 21st century
with the
release of her
new doubledisk
album
“The Fame
Monster.”
Her album
reached
number five
on the Billboard
Hot 200
releases, only
surpassed
by R&B
goddess Rihanna,
flamboyant
Adam
Lambert, the
unexpected
Susan Boyle,
and legendary
Andrea
Bocelli.
T h e
glorified reissue,
consisting
of eight
new tracks
tacked onto
her 2008
debut “The
Fame” is
filled with
both Gaga’s
legendary
sexual innuendo
and
catchy synth
choruses. She
is also selling
her new
songs as a
stand alone
EP, a unique
move in the
world of major
labels.
Known for
her offbeat
sense of style
and distinct
mannerisms,
Lady Gaga is a standout among
many cookie-cutter rivals that
share her genre.
Her album opens with
“Bad Romance,” a retro dance
song with 80’s synth beats influences
and a hint of kinky.
The inclusion of her
song “Speechless” shows off
her stunning vocal range, effectively
silencing critics that
dismiss her as a talent-less corporate
creation.
The simple track, one
which is completely uncharacteristic
of Gaga’s typical style
but equally memorable, is a
moving piano ballad.
She crafts another big hit
with “Telephone,” in which she
and the original diva, Beyonce,
sing together about the annoyance
of being badgered by a
man while trying to get away
from reality by dancing in a
club.
Lady Gaga’s icy “So
Happy I Could Die” is yet another
deeply introspective song
on her EP.
However, some of her
songs are borderline predictable.
“Alejandro,” the 90s Euro
dance inspired “Monster,” and
her dreamy
“Dance in
the Dark”
are dispensable
with
their tacky
pop beats
that are all
too familiar.
She
closes her
album with
“ Teeth”,
which is
more a list
of unusual,
vampiric
than a well
written
song.
“The
Fame Monster”
is sure
to be just as
popular as
her original
c r e a t i o n ,
“The Fame.
Gaga, who
was once
expected to
be nothing
but one-hit
wonder by
most critics,
has undeniably
earned
her place
as an established
artist
among
the ranks
of Britney
Spears and
Madonna.
In the
first week of
her album’s
release, she
sold almost
200,000
copies of
“The Fame
Monster.”
With her outrageously
in-your-face outfits, catchy
lyrics and original, synthetic
beats, Lady Gaga has proven
she is a super-sonic singing
machine, not to be messed with
by any artist or musical critic of
our era.
