Lady Gaga's "The Fame Monster" - Album Review

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Stefani Germanotta may be her birth name, but Lady Gaga is her god-given game, or fame, or fame monster, or whatever you chose to name the extra-dimensional existence that IS Ms. Gaga. Sure she may choose to strut down a Greenwich village sidewalk dressed for an otherworldly fashion show runway or perform on a stage littered with fiber-optic madness and dangerously sharp-edged couture, but her goal isn’t necessarily to shock you or alienate you, but to draw you into a vivid experience of bold, brass and sensuous serenity. Your eyes are engaged as much as your ears, you can taste the Gaga air, smell the sweet combination of fashion, art, and brilliance, and touch the glamour of Gagaworld. In Lady Gaga’s new album The Fame Monster (and no, it’s not a rerelease of The Fame), the goal is evident that her music is crafted to paint a vivid picture of the lurking glamorous monsters of love and fame, transcending the sonic sphere into visual pictures brighter than any music video could ever capture.

It begins with the lead single of Lady Gaga’s, “Bad Romance”. Here she plays a crazed lover, determined to rekindle a romance that she has herself identified as a bad romance. She’s blinded by the sheer magnetic nature of having a lover, in an obsessive, monstrous way, such that Gaga herself is not the monster, but the captivation of romance. The synths are raging in this song and as the songs builds to the chorus, an explosion of electronic, techno beats is unleashed, much like a caged monster of romance. While her beats have been an signature elements in her previous songs, never has it seemed so essential to the experience as it does with this song, dancing hand-in-hand with Gaga’s haunting ra-ra-ra-ra-ras. Gaga is taking no prisoners, but unleashing the first of many monsters on this track set.

Here Gaga puts on a Madonna/Ace of Base hybrid persona with “Alejandro”, with an equally powerful beat, which she rides quite well. Sonically, the song resembles “La Isla Bonita” in some ways, but shares an even greater resemblance sound-wise to “Don’t Turn Around” by Ace of Base. Lyrically, we meet another monster, this one of temptation and passion. Whereas “Bad Romance” hinged upon the monstrous magnetism of faux affection, “Alejandro” evokes the struggle of lust versus reason. Next up, “Monster”, yikes!

The next monster is a boy she would love nothing more than to escape from, but is drawn in by a seemingly inescapable something that she can’t describe. Again, Gaga lays it on thick with her vocals, while Red One and Space Cowboy lay it on equally thick with the beat. Gaga is determined to revert to late 80s/early 90s freestyle beats and house music instrumentals to guide the direction of this song. Gaga then takes a more personal turn with “Speechless”, which is inspired by her father’s recent health downturns. The song is nice, nothing groundbreaking, but a softer side of her while still keeping the beat as essential as ever.

With “Dance in the Dark”, Gaga attacks the monster of dying esteem of some girls. Again, Gaga tends to channel her inner-Madonna as she runs through the song, listing “Marilyn, Judy, Sylvia” much in the way that “Vogue” lists “Grace Kelly, Harlow, Jean.”

At last we come to the piéce de résistance, Lady Gaga and Beyonce. Titled “Telephone,” Gaga expresses the disdain of having “him” call me on her phone when she’s out in the club. The song is so well crafted and the contributions of Beyonce are so swagger-filled that there is no denying that this song is the high point of the album, so much so that the remaining two tracks are rendered essentially pointless. The beat is once again tremendous and Gaga makes the verb “Telephoning” somehow cool again. I can definitely see this song being someone’s ringtone at a club, and sadly answering it on the dance floor without second-guessing. That Gaga!

The album is a fun adventure, but perhaps a little too fun. The beats are powerful, the singing follows suit, and the images are projected so crisp clear that the music is best appreciated with one’s eyes closed. But just as tempting as cheesy pizza or cookie dough ice cream may be, there is a limit to how much one can consume before calling it quits, or at least taking a break. Gaga has surely crafted an infectious masterpiece, and while songs do start to blend a bit a few tracks into the album, it still emerges as one of the strongest and cohesive albums this year. Nevertheless, I’ve never felt so energized and yet exhausted after only eight songs, and Gaga is to blame!

Strong Track(s): Bad Romance, Alejandro, Monster, Telephone, So Happy I Could Die

Weak Track(s): Speechless

Rating: 4/5

Rihanna's RATED R - Album Review

The past two years have certainly been some of the most life-changing for R&B/Pop singer Rihanna. From a seemingly disposable pop starlet a mere two and a half years ago to international mega superstar with more number ones under her belt than any other female artist (with the exception of Beyonce, of course), things never looked brighter for the Bajan princess. But that pristine bubble burst shortly before the 2009 Grammy Awards Ceremony, a time at which her life would forever change. The famed Chris Brown altercation mystified the public and the sheer cringe-worthy details made it all the worse. Whether Rihanna would use music as an outlet to vent the emotions she had and continues to undergo was an obvious question the listening public was interested to hear shortly after it was made public that she would resume work on her fourth studio album a mere weeks after the attack. Fast-forward nine months and the final product is here, a new album, a new proclamation of edginess, and a new, darker Rihanna quickly shedding the remnant innocence one might have still imagined of the 21 year-old. So what about Rated R?



Rated R opens up with an intro, a first for Rihanna, entitled "Mad House" with its eerie arrangement of extra bass and light synths that does two things. First, it tells that listener that this is no umbrella-twirling Rihanna, begging that DJ not to stop that house-techno music of Good Girl Gone Bad. Hell no, this Rihanna is warning you to "come on, come on, come in," but at your own risk and with a promise to chuck fear at the gate. Second, it introduces a new reincarnation of Rihanna, where she sets her own rules and is daring enough to break even those she's established for herself. It certainly is one of most bizarre and yet intriguing intros and fits so perfectly for this album. Next up, Rihanna's promotional single, "Wait Your Turn."

It's Rihanna's first experimental track with little to no pop fluff. The forewarns are resounding that "it's just the way the game is played, it's best if you just wait your turn." The song is a different sound but Rihanna manages to make it all hers and sell it successfully. However, it pales in comparison to the swagger-strutting "Hard" featuring Jeezy, where Rihanna proudly proclaims herself as the "hottest bi*ch in heels right here." And just when it seems obvious that she is here to portray herself as a strong, powerful and untouchable woman, she unveils her vulnerabilities on "Stupid in Love." In not-so-subtle but never explicit references to her relationship with Chris Brown, she reflects on how a blinding love that left her hurt and lost. But back to swagger-strutting on "Rockstar 101", one of the strongest tracks on the album and an amazing feature with Slash. The song isn't too rock to draw charges of being disingenuous but has enough rock for Rihanna to accomodate some extra sexy, as Rihanna wants to make sure you frisk her good, "check my panties and my bra."

Then back to her vulnerable side with the album's lead single, entitled "Russian Roulette". While the song's title was evocative of something dark, the actual song proved to unveil an even darker, edgier side of Rihanna. Heavy breathing, strumming guitar strings, repeated sounds of a spinning revolver chamber, emotional lyrics, and that one gut-wrenching final gunshot to end the song pretty much sum up the four minutes of anguish and pain. Sure it was uncomfortable to hear the song at first. We never imagined fun-filled, danceable, umbrella-toting Rihanna would project the solemnness and pain of this song as her return to the pop world. Yet, to deny the stunning beauty and awe of the song would be an outrage. The song, the sixth track on the album, is a timeless song of swirling metaphors to reflect the danger of being in an abusive relationship. It's obvious what Rihanna and Ne-Yo were going for with this number.

Rihanna's choice to go more pop rocker with "Fire Bomb" is not the strongest point of the album, even with the strange piano strings and electric guitar mix, resembling a ballad accidentally dropped in puddle of Finger Eleven's pudding. The song would be more appropriate for Kelly Clarkson, but she does a nice job with her vocals. Then, a surprising up-tempo number with "Rude Boy", which is certainly reminiscent of Rihanna during her Good Girl Gone Bad or A Girl Like Me days. The song is littered with sticky, overtly sexual metaphors, but is fun, even if at times I am startled by the vocal resemblance to Beyonce on this particular track. The song is tons of fun, but doesn't aid the album's cohesiveness. Next up, Rihanna and Will.i.am on "Photographs", a softer song further displaying the vulnerable Rihanna.

While we may be more than two-thirds through the album, its most interesting tracks have yet to come. First off, "G4L" or Gangsta for Life, where Rihanna claims to be gangster for life. It's grimy and bold, and we even hear Rihanna send expletive after expletive at one point in the song. Now it becomes obvious that this is yet another persona that Rihanna has chosen to slip into as a chance of strengthening herself. A little later, we hear "Cold Case Love", arguably Rihanna's most revealing song of the album and of hers to date. Here she goes through the emotions of living through a relationship that has fallen off the deep-end with references to a crime scene. At this point, it is obvious that Rihanna isn't gangsta for life, or a rockstar. She doesn't go as hard as she claims, but rather is trying to rebuild for herself the image of a strong woman after suffering the damaging blows that have gone her way this past year. She puts on different personas, only to fall back into her own vulnerabilities. One minute, Rihanna is licking the barrel of a gun, the next she's stumbling through the crime scene of a cold case love. She's high atop her pedestal at one instant, and picking up the pieces of blind love the next. Rihanna wants you to know that she may be as weak at times as the average Jane, but in the end, all she ever wanted to be was a rockstar, with her "black guitar" in hand, "six-inchers" under her heels, and sexy gangster lingerie (and not a gun) around her waist.

Strong Track(s): Russian Roulette, Wait Your Turn, Rockstar, Hard, Rude Boy
Weak Tracks(s): Fire Bomb, The Last Song

Rating: 4/5