Going Gaga!

In case you hadn’t had enough of them, Bowling For Soup posted links to their first music video for Sorry For Partyin’ today, and of course it’s “No Hablo Ingles,” which in my opinion is probably the funniest song on the new album. The video is pretty clever; you can check it out here.

In other news, Lady Gaga released her new single a few weeks ago (October 26.) It’s called “Bad Romance,” but I avoided listening to it up until now because I’m not sure how I feel about her re-releasing The Fame. I mean, I feel like if you’re going to do a new album, then just do it. Don’t tack 8 new songs onto your old album and re-release it. But last night my best friend (Lady Gaga’s biggest fan) visited me, and of course he had to play “Bad Romance” for me, and I resisted it on the first 2 listens, but it wasn’t long before we were cruising to it and I was dancing and singing along. (I didn’t say I’m not impressionable!)

It’s big. It’s dramatic. It’s catchy. I LOVE IT. (And according to iTunes, I have played it almost 20 times today, and when I went out driving before, Gaga took major precedence over my stereo.) The chorus goes: “I want your loving and I want your revenge / You and me could write a bad romance/Oh whoa, caught in a bad romance.” My favorite lines are: “I want your love and I want your revenge / I want your love, I don’t wanna be friends!” and then the same lyrics repeated in French. She sounds powerful and intense in this song; in fact, my friend and I compared this single to her others and at some parts it sounds like a completely different singer. Could this be because of voice-changers and synths? Probably. But it’s also a slightly different spin on her old style. It’s definitely stronger, which isn’t surprising for someone with her stage presence.

It’s not my favorite—I still like her softer, more girly songs like “Summerboy” and “Brown Eyes,” while “Bad Romance” is definitely a flashy, heart-stopping dance-beat single like “Just Dance” and “Love Game,” which I am sure is what Lady Gaga was going for. She’s got style; I’ll give her that. Possibly she is certifiably insane, but part of me has to think she’s also a genius. I know those are very conflicting views, but it’s true. She’s not just another pop princess like Brittney or Christina, and she’s not the playful girl-next-door like Katy Perry, and she doesn’t have the sexy but bad-ass presence of P!nk. Lady Gaga is in a league of her own, if you ask me. Can she dance? Not in my opinion. Can she sing? Not live, from what I saw of the VMAs. Does she produce REALLY fun, catchy dance songs to rock out to in your car or when you’re prepping for a night out? Hell f—king YES!

Her music videos are nothing short of inspired—she is the queen of flashy costumes and make-up. I’d kill to have her designers and make-up artists. I mean, as far as beauty goes, I love Katy Perry’s cute retro styles and her subtle but always gorgeous make-up. But Gaga is all about the presentation. For instance, I love her music video for “Poker Face,” not because I love the song, or because of her questionable dance skills, but for her black-painted fingernails with poker card symbols on them, the sleek white-blonde hair, and the silver eye make-up. At times I am actually horrified and disturbed by her music videos. She can make herself beautiful or grotesque, but mesmerizing all the same. She makes her body a work of art when it comes to costumes and make-up; she changes her character based on the song and what the performance requires, and that takes skill. I do not think she is the most talented female pop singer of this age, but she is definitely taking the lead as a performer—that is her real talent.

But back to her music (as this is, after all, a music blog.) I will probably get The Fame: Monster on November 23 when it is released, because as much as I dislike female pop artists (P!nk and Katy Perry remain the only two I can tolerate—besides the Gaga, as one of my suitemates calls her) there is something about her music that I can’t resist. Last night, driving back from Stop N Shop with my friend, “Paparazzi” came on the radio, and let me just say that there is nothing better than singing, “Purple teardrops I’m crying don’t have a price/ Loving you is cherry pie!” to each other at 100-million decibels at midnight while cruising around eating cherry Dum-Dums and chocolate chip cookies. And that’s what is so great about her music—they’re not emotional or meaningful songs; you can just let go and belt it out. It’s just careless fun. At an open mic night a couple of months ago, some guys performed an acoustic version of “Poker Face” and we all sang along. It was great, and I got really into it. But those are her kind of songs, ones that anyone can sing—guys, girls, whoever—just for fun.

So keep an eye out for The Fame: Monster. I’m not saying it’ll all be good. I could very well end up hating it and writing a terrible review of it. But I don’t think people should judge Gaga as another dumb blonde pop-princess—she’s a talented performer underneath the dramatic exterior. And definitely check out the new single, “Bad Romance.”

My All-Time Top-5 Gaga Picks:
1) “Eh Eh (Nothing Else I Can Say)”
2) “Brown Eyes”
3) “Paparazzi”
4) “Bad Romance”
5) “Boys Boys Boys”

Have fun going Gaga!
Emily Noel

Disclaimer: All re-printed lyrics copyright of Lady GaGa.