Lady Gaga - The Fame Monster

[Dag]

Well I thought it was bloody fantastic.

Love the tub and the toilet. Is it a tour prop?

 

[angelX]

Maybe Lady Gaga is indeed a bit pretentious, but you know pop music needs that. Some artists that actually at least TRY to be something different than a random pretty girl with a big record deal. Maybe not all the things Lady Gaga says add up, but that doesn't mean that all of what she tries to be is false.

That's my opinion on GaGa as well. Maybe some (or a lot) of the 'art' talk is bullshit, but at least she's trying to do something a bit different and fancy.

To be honest, the whole 'artiste' thing has got me wondering: what exactly makes one an 'artist' as opposed to being a poser or whatever? People like David Bowie and Grace Jones, who GaGa cites as influences, what was it they did to make them be seen as artists and not 'just another kooky singer'?

I'm not dissing them, of course - after all, they are total legends - but I do wonder if it's maybe because GaGa is still young and new, that she gets accused of being fake or pretentious.

 

[thesmu]

Loved it.
Favourite performance of it since the AMAs

Edit: actualy now I think about I think the performance itself was better tonight, costumes etc aside..

 

[watchamacallit]

And it was one of the very rare Gaga performances where her vocal was off. I don't think she likes the head-mic. In the places she was audible in the chorus she sounded wobbly.

Yes, if anything it is restricting her as she has to keep holding it perfectly still so it doesnt wobble her vocals. Isn't this why people stopped using them in the first place?

 

[RJF]

I'm not dissing them, of course - after all, they are total legends - but I do wonder if it's maybe because GaGa is still young and new, that she gets accused of being fake or pretentious.

I think that's definitely part of it. I feel the same way when people complain that our generation has no "legends" like Madonna or Michael Jackson. These artists were not considered legends when they started out, so we'll see where we stand in twenty years time, and if Gaga is still churning out hits and Beyoncé is considered iconic. Legends are built over time; they're not instant.

 

[LJB]

Maybe Lady Gaga is indeed a bit pretentious, but you know pop music needs that. Some artists that actually at least TRY to be something different than a random pretty girl with a big record deal. Maybe not all the things Lady Gaga says add up, but that doesn't mean that all of what she tries to be is false.

That's my opinion on GaGa as well. Maybe some (or a lot) of the 'art' talk is bullshit, but at least she's trying to do something a bit different and fancy.

To be honest, the whole 'artiste' thing has got me wondering: what exactly makes one an 'artist' as opposed to being a poser or whatever? People like David Bowie and Grace Jones, who GaGa cites as influences, what was it they did to make them be seen as artists and not 'just another kooky singer'?

I'm not dissing them, of course - after all, they are total legends - but I do wonder if it's maybe because GaGa is still young and new, that she gets accused of being fake or pretentious.

OK, I can appreciate that. I think the best thing Gaga's said is that she hates the truth and loves lying.

The thing is, I wish she'd just calm down in her little stupid claims because when it comes down to it, she, nor her music, can back them up. If she decides to write a song with really inquisitive lyrics, sure. Heck, if she writes a song of random words that make NO sense she could dress it up as 'artsy'. Right now she's just an ordinary recording artist, with absurd self-aggrandisation and try-hard clothing. REALLY ry-hard clothing, to the point of desperation.

See, an artist like Bjork proclaims all these intricate meanings to ambiguous songs but she can most certainly back it up because her songs ARE immensly ambiguous and searching. Even someone like Siobhan Donaghy... Gaga should really try an album more like Ghosts if she wants to be avant-garde. Red One and Darkchild are not avantgarde or anything other than ordinary.

 

[angelX]

I'm not dissing them, of course - after all, they are total legends - but I do wonder if it's maybe because GaGa is still young and new, that she gets accused of being fake or pretentious.

I think that's definitely part of it. I feel the same way when people complain that our generation has no "legends" like Madonna or Michael Jackson. These artists were not considered legends when they started out, so we'll see where we stand in twenty years time, and if Gaga is still churning out hits and Beyoncé is considered iconic. Legends are built over time; they're not instant.

That's pretty much what I was trying to get across, but you articulated it much better than me.

 

[watchamacallit]

Didn't everyone have this exact same argument 8 months ago?

 

[RhythmNative]

And it was one of the very rare Gaga performances where her vocal was off. I don't think she likes the head-mic. In the places she was audible in the chorus she sounded wobbly.

Yes, if anything it is restricting her as she has to keep holding it perfectly still so it doesnt wobble her vocals. Isn't this why people stopped using them in the first place?

What was annoying was nothing would have been lost through the use of a hand mic. I think the only reason she had a head-mic was because of the arms on the GarethPugh thing - an outfit which kept her static for the entire for verse.

 

[Resi12]

That performance left me underwhelmed, kinda lackluster?

 

[vasilios]

Maybe Lady Gaga is indeed a bit pretentious, but you know pop music needs that. Some artists that actually at least TRY to be something different than a random pretty girl with a big record deal. Maybe not all the things Lady Gaga says add up, but that doesn't mean that all of what she tries to be is false.

That's my opinion on GaGa as well. Maybe some (or a lot) of the 'art' talk is bullshit, but at least she's trying to do something a bit different and fancy.

To be honest, the whole 'artiste' thing has got me wondering: what exactly makes one an 'artist' as opposed to being a poser or whatever? People like David Bowie and Grace Jones, who GaGa cites as influences, what was it they did to make them be seen as artists and not 'just another kooky singer'?

I'm not dissing them, of course - after all, they are total legends - but I do wonder if it's maybe because GaGa is still young and new, that she gets accused of being fake or pretentious.

OK, I can appreciate that. I think the best thing Gaga's said is that she hates the truth and loves lying.

The thing is, I wish she'd just calm down in her little stupid claims because when it comes down to it, she, nor her music, can back them up. If she decides to write a song with really inquisitive lyrics, sure. Heck, if she writes a song of random words that make NO sense she could dress it up as 'artsy'. Right now she's just an ordinary recording artist, with absurd self-aggrandisation and try-hard clothing. REALLY ry-hard clothing, to the point of desperation.

See, an artist like Bjork proclaims all these intricate meanings to ambiguous songs but she can most certainly back it up because her songs ARE immensly ambiguous and searching.

Searching for melody, rhythm, a reason to exist (bar the first 2 albums)?

 

[andru]

I find all the guests on X Factor have terrible mixing for some reason - they've all been a bit wonky in places, whether it's quiet backing tracks, loud backing tracks or inaudible vocals. Always something.

I thought it was a pretty good performance and for X Factor it's something different than yet another diva coming out with a choir and singing a dreary ballad no one wants to hear.

 

[RJF]

I thought it was a pretty good performance and for X Factor it's something different than yet another diva coming out with a choir and singing a dreary ballad no one wants to hear.

At least Danyl's gone now.

I have to say, I'm not sure I like her enunciation on Bad Romance when it's live: "I want yo love!" and I prefered it when there was just one completely insane, "LAV! LAV! LAV!" as opposed to it being there at each one.

Although I do like the she says, "BaYAAAD Romance!". It makes it a little saucy.

 

[angelX]

On the subject of GaGa's diction, I thought for ages in Bad Romance she wa shouting "Badaba romance!" instead of "Want your bad romance!" Haha. Until I learned the true lyric I absolutely hated it!

 

[andru]

I was listening to Bad Romance before and my brother thought it said "caught in a pyramid", haha.

 

[watchamacallit]

On the subject of GaGa's diction, I thought for ages in Bad Romance she wa shouting "Badaba romance!" instead of "Want your bad romance!" Haha. Until I learned the true lyric I absolutely hated it!

Yes, i always used to think it was a random wail "Manchaba Romance!"

 

[Christopher]

To add, "fear of [noun] monster" makes me sense. Does she mean to describe a monster that is scared of alcohol? No, the 'monster', by her description, is something of negative context in the song and thus added this same term to the end of her little pretentious phrase doesn't linguistic sense. 'Fear of alcohol' makes sense, but she has LITERALLY just stuck the word 'monster' at the end of everything to give this album some cohesion.

I interpret her use of "monster" to indicate this album as a sort of modern day "seven deadly sins;" personification of evils the modern youth faces. I could be reaching, but the word "monster" does deliver a sort of impact in my mind that simply labeling the songs "fear of truth," "fear of sex" would. To me, each song is a little devil perched on GaGa's shoulder, whispering things in her ear.

It could be that I've simply drunk her Kool-Aid; it could also be that I'm bringing some intertext to the album, and I'd like to think that's the sort of audience interaction for which GaGa strives.

 

[LJB]

Maybe Lady Gaga is indeed a bit pretentious, but you know pop music needs that. Some artists that actually at least TRY to be something different than a random pretty girl with a big record deal. Maybe not all the things Lady Gaga says add up, but that doesn't mean that all of what she tries to be is false.

That's my opinion on GaGa as well. Maybe some (or a lot) of the 'art' talk is bullshit, but at least she's trying to do something a bit different and fancy.

To be honest, the whole 'artiste' thing has got me wondering: what exactly makes one an 'artist' as opposed to being a poser or whatever? People like David Bowie and Grace Jones, who GaGa cites as influences, what was it they did to make them be seen as artists and not 'just another kooky singer'?

I'm not dissing them, of course - after all, they are total legends - but I do wonder if it's maybe because GaGa is still young and new, that she gets accused of being fake or pretentious.

OK, I can appreciate that. I think the best thing Gaga's said is that she hates the truth and loves lying.

The thing is, I wish she'd just calm down in her little stupid claims because when it comes down to it, she, nor her music, can back them up. If she decides to write a song with really inquisitive lyrics, sure. Heck, if she writes a song of random words that make NO sense she could dress it up as 'artsy'. Right now she's just an ordinary recording artist, with absurd self-aggrandisation and try-hard clothing. REALLY ry-hard clothing, to the point of desperation.

See, an artist like Bjork proclaims all these intricate meanings to ambiguous songs but she can most certainly back it up because her songs ARE immensly ambiguous and searching.

Searching for melody, rhythm, a reason to exist (bar the first 2 albums)?

Go and listen to Bachelorette NOW. One of the most beautiful melodies of any song.

Besides, bjork transcents conventional melody. SHE, is an artist. Of course, art is subjective but she at least fits the description. She is an original painter to Gaga's IKEA portrait.

 

[angelX]

In regards to Bjork, I ask you this: I'm not personally a fan of her music, though I don't hate her and I do think she's cool in a kooky way, but what if I think Bjork's music is weird and quirky for the sake of being weird and quirky?

That isn't my actual opinion of Bjork's material, but I guess the point I'm trying to make is, does GaGa have to make music that sounds 'different' and 'left field' in order to be considered a true artist? The impression I get at times is that because GaGa's music is quite mainstream Electropop/Dance that it's not art, or it doesn't back up her claims of artistry, etc. Does she have to go and do some weird music like Bjork and Siobhan Thingy-who-used-to-be-in-the-Sugababes to be the artist she herself claims to be?

 

[tylerc]

I loved her on X Factor. She came off well also, even while looking utterly insane at some parts of the performance. Just beautifully done.