My review of The Fame Monster

[Guest]

So I like to write both fiction and nonfiction so here's a review of Gaga's magnum opus. Feedback would be nice

When Lady Gaga burst onto the music scene seemingly out of nowhere with a number one single in 2008 (as pop girls were able to do in those days), reviews were polarized, to say the least. Slant Magazine characterized The Fame as vapid and trashy, not realizing just how "in" this new style of music was to become. Songs such as Ke$ha's TiK ToK were empty and soulless at the core, but their simple infectiousness seemingly made up for all of it. Lady Gaga made a name for herself with the best selling single of 2009 - Poker Face. It was a type of dance-pop unlike that which populated the 1980's - it was dark, but with somehow more furor. Poker Face sees Gaga snarling and belting her feelings about her own bisexuality, and an infectious jam is born. After several more hits from The Fame, Gaga found herself as a new Madonna; the pop landscape was back, and the LGBTQ community flocked to her in droves. It was at this point in mid-2009 that Gaga decided to head back to the studio to record music for a reissue of her debut. What ended up happening was enough unique material to create a sort of mixture between an EP, an album, and a reissue. It was a sort of concept effort, designed to detail Gaga's "Fear Monsters". In just eight tracks she would explore the dark side of fame, the antithesis to her debut. When she presented the cover art to Interscope of her staring with melancholy into a camera, black tears flowing from her eyes, they told her it was not pop enough. She erupted, scolded, and schooled them on what pop was, and The Fame Mons†er was unleashed upon the world. 

The album details Gaga's eight main fears, with each track channeling a different iconic artist from the past. Except one... 


Bad Romance - 5 - what better way to start the album off with one of the greatest pop singles of all time? The "rah-rah-roma-ma-Gaga-ooh-la-la" hook is unmistakably unique in the annals of pop, as Gaga details her desire to be in a relationship so volatile and yet so hot - the Fear of Love. The chorus is anthemic, and the verses pack a punch of adrenaline right to the groove receptors. Between the French snarled with fury in the bridge, her declaration of how she doesn't want to be friends, and her downright bizarre wants such as his "leather studded kiss in the sand", it's a wonder if anyone will manage to make a song in the same alley as Bad Romance ever again. It's the most "Gaga" track in her repertoire, and it's bittersweet that she'll likely never top it. But some things are better left untouched, leading us into track two.

Alejandro - 4.5 - Gaga suffered a sexual assault by a much older man at age 19, and as a result was unable to enjoy relationships or sex for some time afterwards. She channels this on Alejandro with the Fear of Men. The song is a curious blend of tropical and gloomy with heavy influence from ABBA, where she declares she must choose her own well-being or the men who love her. Alejandro, Fernando, and Roberto not only act as this, but also as a reference to the Holy Trinity - Gaga was raised Roman Catholic. The references to her assault on this track are well interwoven with others, but not so much on the next.

Monster - 4.5 - Tackling her struggle head on over a dark synth-laden instrumental, Gaga delves into how the man ruined her; "He ate my heart and then he ate my brain." She asked a friend if she knew the man, but Gaga was too drunk to hear the response. It's amazing just how fun a dance track this is for its subject matter - the Fear of Sex. Adding still more is the demonic voice in the background of the man catcalling her. And if you thought she was heartfelt here...

Speechless - 5 - Having a tight relationship with both her mother Cynthia and father Joe, Gaga was shocked when the latter refused to get heart surgery despite knowing it would extend his life. In this Queen inspired intense tearjerker, she pours her emotions out, declaring she'll never love anyone again if he dies early, while at the same time decrying his decision. It almost seems at times that she's angry, but it's just sheer desperation. The piano and drums make this ballad the exact opposite of boring, but still, it is the Fear of Death, which he does not seem to  share.

Dance in the Dark - 5 - With what is hands down the best intro to a mainstream pop song, and one that might as well outline the genre - Gaga screams "Make it stop!" before delving into the Fear of Judgement. The song tells the story of a woman who's boyfriend makes her believe she's ugly, so that she only feels comfortable having sex in the dark where he cannot see her. The bridge has Gaga yell out the names of women and girls who met untimely deaths (though a JonBenet Ramsey reference might have been too far). Regardless, the utter intensity and darkness will leave you hypnotized, but as for Gaga? Well, she's a FREE BITCH, BABY!

Telephone (feat. Beyoncé) - 4.5 - If any one song on this album seems crafted just for the dance floor, it's this. Gaga, known to avoid features like the plague, teams up with who other than Queen Bey to deliver an anthem to the Fear of Suffocation - that is, the pressures of fame. It is simply such an infectious tune that it becomes easy to ignore the meaning behind it, of how everyone wants you somewhere all the time. But with a hook like this has, it might not need much meaning at all

So Happy I Could Die - 5 - Okay, gloomy one last time. The sparsest production on the record comes from the Fear of Alcohol, in which Gaga comforts her addiction by masturbating and through her good friends (not both at the same time). It's on tracks like these where the world seems so fragile and yet so unwilling to accommodate the feeling of  loneliness. Don't worry Gaga, we've all been there

Teeth - 4 - Gaga, never pushed to be a sex kitten for the industry like so many others, should not be surprised at this song being the only one from the album to be somewhat disliked by fans. Fitting perfectly in on a Christina Aguilera record, but not so much a Gaga one, it's a basic song of lust. The delivery is spectacular, but it slightly disrupts the album for being its final track. Further complicating matters is that it is supposedly her Fear of Truth, given how she wants the man's material side in lieu of all else, but the drums and snarled singing seem too material themselves. But Gaga still manages to make it a fine listen.


In conclusion, The Fame Mons†er is a magnum opus not only of Lady Gaga's career, but also of pop music as a whole. Through its dark imagery of pain, desperation, and desire, it manages to be a record to be awed. Despite the aforementioned qualities it is a sure crowd pleaser (if you have the right crowd) and has stood the test of a decade to be a landmark. You might want his love Gaga, but we want yours even more.

5

[Guest]

If this is the wrong section someone can move it

[VOLANTIS 16,013]

Beautiful. You really snapped on this skinny tea. 

[Doot 2]

Teeth is a banger. 

[Guillaume Hamon 5,563]

Good work.  

[BabyMario44 82]

TFM is a masterpiece