Saturday 12 February 2011

Lady Gaga - Born This Way


Early in her career, many likened Lady Gaga to Madonna.  Now, she's proven she is in fact Madonna reincarnated.  And yes, I do realise Madonna isn't actually dead.

As is typical in the mad world of Gaga, everything is pushed to the extremes.  Born This Way certainly resembles Madonna's Express Yourself and VogueBut this is meant as a compliment.  It's as if she's taken the best bits of Madonna, turned the knobs up to 11 and thrown in a twenty-first century twist with her own unique brand of crazy. 

Everything about this track is over the top and camp as Christmas - "don't be a drag, just be a queen".  The central message of accepting who you are is more than a little nauseating, but nevertheless it's a great feel-good pop song.  The title, too, is perhaps a not-so-subtle indication that Gaga does not in fact have a 'disco stick'.  She belts out the lyrics with gay abandon and in the process proves she does have a good voice behind the costumes and make-up, despite the words being mostly incomprehensible.  No doubt there'll be an epic three hour weird and wonderful video with gender confusions, bizarre costumes, semi-naked dancing men and some sort of vague storyline.

Born This Way is sure to be the pop anthem of 2011.  But after that infamous meat dress, what will she think of next?  At least Gaga's proven she's the complete pop package, with decent songs to go along with her freak-show appeal.

3/5