The Lady Gaga Rate (Haus Labs now available)

Hmmm the only (solo) ballads I didn't give a 10 are Dope, Before I Cry, I'll Never Love Again, and Til It Happens To You. Still love them but each one has aspects that make them a bit shit, so I guess they can go next.
 

Subwaykid

Staff member
79.

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Dope

(Average: 5.62)

Highest: 10 x 4 (@Remorque, @Music Is Life, @Lila, @daninternational, @push the button)

Lowest: 0 x 1 (@Alenko) .5 x 1 (@Serg.)



A toast to our first “single” to fall. Released as the last promo track before ARTPOP dropped, Gaga had written it as an autobiographical piece on drug addiction and the cycle of numbing her pain after recovering from her hip injury during the Born This Way Ball. Originally titled I Wanna Be With You, with slight lyric tweaks re: her fans, the song eventually found it’s way to the odd little outlier on ARTPOP it is today. In retrospect, it’s a harbinger for the Gaga we know in 2019. Less reliance on metaphors and theatrics (though the organ and sinister synths in the second verse add a dramatic flair), and leaning into reality instead of halfway towards fantasy. The song ended up becoming her 13th Top 10 on the Hot 100 due to a Youtube Music Awards performance and some trickery involving a 30 second ad for it counting towards streams, HA! Bleating WON.

@aux says “this is stunning” but @FresherThanYoucant bare it!” while @sfmartin calls it a “a melodramatic mess” and @Up N Down simply says “oh dear.” @Verandi is probably kicking themselves that they didn’t just break my rule and give it a 0 but also they broke the unspoken rate rule of not even relistening to this! “I didn't find the strength to re-listen to this one sorry. I remember struggling to reach the end. Kinda mad I couldn't give it a 0.” It’s ok its just as weird as you remember it. @Sleepycat also struggles to get through it but is more objective about the whole affair “I never want to listen to this song because it hurts my heart and it's totally disturbing… but objectively I think it's quite interesting and I decided that it deserves a decent score.@Petit nain des Îles also found it quite interesting “A dark synth heavy ballad isn’t what I expected at this point in the tracklist but this goes off a bit.@VitaminBee appreciates the production a tad “I love the production on this, especially once that second verse starts.” I found it a little much at the time, preferring the iTunes Fest demo, but they don’t sound so bad removed from the horrors of the album campaign. Similarly it took @Phonetics Boy 5 years to adjust as well “Getting used to the atrocious vocals took 5 years but now I can confidently say that I love it.@Sprockrooster had the opposite experience when they say “So much more of a fave during the release, but now I can do without.”

The vocals received the most attention in commentary and, whew boy, who could talk about anything else. “Not quite as moving as I remember it being 6 years ago. I know she's aiming for raw and emotional as she screeches through the final third of the song, but it kind of feels like she's overcompensating and ultimately sounds rather unpleasant.” says @R27. And @RJF gives it a 3 and clarifies that “At least half of these points are going towards the fact it was a Top 10 """hit""" in America. That borderline atonal, Tom-Waits-aping grunting. Enough, sis.@Alenko prefers demoGa “Nope! I wanna be with you was better and I hate her voice in this.@RMK adds “I respect this song for what it’s trying to convey, but the vocal execution has kept me from enjoying it.” On the opposite end of the spectrum @jtm says its a “Nice vocal showcase and a welcome break from whatever this album is

It’s here when Gaga’s ballad started to go wrong.@Ana Raquel explains but @daninternational counters with “ Very similar to my 11, this is when Gaga ballads work.” @Untouchable Ace makes me brace for their Joanne scores by comparing the two “she just had to put a full on Joanne song on here didn't she.@Laura Vanderbooben reminisces about the first time he hexed Gaga at a concert “remember when she performed this at Roseland and killed the energy of the entire show within three minutes?” I do! Another iconic concert we both were at, alongside Tony Bennett. Her climbing a ladder to serenade him as the Little Monsters could feel the duets album creeping in the distance. Ah that’s history. @Laurence also remincises on a bit of forum history “I can't stand this, as the demo was superior, but we know what happened with this album. I'm glad we got the I Wanna Be With You studio version at last. This? What was that commentary? Old man frog voice? Still kills me. A Top 10, that is true. But the rest of the track is not worthy I think. I don't like it, bye.” FFF the Old Man River voice nooo. Was it coined in this post or at another point? I can’t seem to find it now but part of me knows @RJF is involved somehow. Apologies in advance to @Seventeen DaysThe creepy fake teeth, please get them out of my mind. I love the electronic bass that bubbles underneath the otherwise acoustic ballad feel of this.@KingBruno must’ve forgot about “I am rich as piss” when they comment “An excruciatingly cliche songwriter ballad that is just third-rate for her. “I need you more than dope” could be the worst line of her whole career”. @Stradiwhovius calls it “A big broadway style hit with sensational energy, emotion, and context. But… The chorus doesn't quite hit the emotional release it needs to. "I need you more than dope" should be a wrecking ball, but it just sounds slightly absurd. And I don't know how you fix that.” You make it I Wanna Be With You.









 
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'Dope' suffers because of the production and the mumbled vocal. But in a way I think that almost adds something to it?

'Again Again' is my favourite of The Fame bonus tracks. The non ending fucks me off though.
 
La Vie En Rose - 7. Pleasant enough but if you record this song you should try and add your own spin to it which Gaga doesn't do. Grace Jones and Donna Summer both do to brilliant effect.

Retro Dance Freak - 7. As someone who is a freak for Disco and 80's dance music I feel this should have been more funky. Still an enjoyable listen though.

Christmas Tree - 3. Just not my thing

Again Again - 6. The chorus lets it down badly but the verses aren't too bad.

Dope - 5. Piano ballads and me just don't go together except on rare occasions and her vocal grates.
 

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