You’ve seen her poker face, and pretty much every other part of her body deemed appropriate for basic cable music videos. You’ve seen her commit self-inflicted celebricide at the VMAs and adorn herself in fragmented threads that make even Kermit the Frog blush.
If you think you’ve seen enough of Stefani “”Lady Gaga”” Germanotta, you had better suck it up and prepare yourself for another round of lovegames, because with the launch of her new dance-tastic album Fame Monster you’ll have to find a quiet spot on Mars to escape the Gaga mania.
Even borrowing half of her 2008 debut album’s title, Fame Monster is essentially The Fame 1.5, delivering eight more tracks of the same chunky dance beats, quirky, party-hardy lyrics and hyperbolic glamour that teems from Gaga like so much sweat and glitter. Chances are if you were a fan of The Fame, then you already own Fame Monster.
The album’s centerpiece is Gaga’s recent single “”Bad Romance,”” a thumping dance standard peppered with just the right amount of the Lady’s warbling wail and infectious gibberish lyrics (the recurring bridge goes a little something like “”Ra-ra, ah-ah-ah/ Roma, roma-ma/ Gaga, ooh la la/ want your bad romance””). The theatrical violin and spoken-word introduction to “”Alejandro”” has Gaga sporting a mock French accent that quickly degenerates into her trademark cooing in yet another account of some exotic lover that her fame has afforded her.
The middle of the album can seem too reminiscent of her debut, specifically the out-of-place ballad “”Speechless,”” which comes a little too close to “”Brown Eyes,”” both in melody and lyrics, for comfort. Despite the repetition, the album ends on an unusual note with the hillbilly-stompin’, vaudevillian number “”Teeth,”” which has the Lady harmonizing with herself as she takes a page from Christina Aguilara and beckons “”show me your teeth”” over flaring horns.
Fame Monster may not be anything new, but who cares? The whole damn world loves Gaga’s glammed-out modus operandi and hyper-catchy mixes; that’s what made The Fame platinum in a dozen countries, and that’s what’ll make the Lady’s newest effort just as successful. Cover your ears if you must, but it’ll do you little good; Lady Gaga is everywhere.
Welcome to the new world order. You’ll need some glitter.
