Lady Gaga at the VMAs
I know, I know, I’m the last person in the entire universe to get on this bandwagon*, but still: damn, who the fuck is Lady Gaga, and what fucking planet is she from? Her songs are absurd dance explosions, her fashion is already the stuff of legend, and her videos are like super-condensed tiny little films that reference everything from Hitchcock to Minnie Mouse.
*Thanks, Marla!
They combine the superglam pop fashion sensibility that’s come to dominate celebrity culture since the passing of grunge (see: Gwen Stefani, Beyonce) with the grotesque, disturbing, Uncanny Valley sensibility that was once found in the videos of Marilyn Manson. You can find any of them on youtube yourself, though (I particularly recommend “Paparazzi” and “Bad Romance”), so instead I’m going to show you a couple of things that you might not see otherwise.
Lady Gaga is a fantastic songwriter, of course, but that superslick production almost disguises what a talented musician she is. For all the vocoder she employs, woman has got a pair of LUNGS. Check out this video of her playing piano and singing a stripped-down version of “Paparazzi.”
I was really shocked when I heard this; stripped of its production, the song really shines. There’s a melancholy depth that doesn’t quite come through in the regular version, and her voice blows me away. The best way I can think of to describe her presence here is that it’s as if Stevie Wonder and John Lennon had a baby, and gave it to Freddie Mercury, Gwen Stefani, and Regina Spektor to raise. Did you notice that she’s wearing false eyelashes with RHINESTONES under her sunglasses? And that omnipresent fucking teacup. And a tri-cornered hat. Compared to her usual getup, this outfit is practically a nun’s habit.
The other video is my favorite. It’s her performing “Poker Face” on none other than Ellen. Her performance is mind-blowing (minus those wacked out male dancers), and the interview afterward, where she gushes to Ellen, gave me an outright joygasm.
WHAT. THE. FUCK. HOW. FUCKING. AMAZING.
So there you have it, folks: Lady Gaga, the Once and Future Queen.
November 21st, 2009 at 5:55 pm
Team Gaga!
Reply