For someone who claims to be all about diversity, Lady Gaga sure has a pretty uniform sound on her newest album, “Born This Way.” It seems like a step backward for her; straying from the more complex and interesting songs of her previous albums, she reverts to songs that follow a similar pattern and aim for the same dance club demographic. Where her previous albums gained her fans from all over the musical spectrum, “Born This Way” threatens to alienate some of her beloved Little Monsters.
The album starts off with “Marry the Night,” which might fool listeners with its slow intro, but fear not, a relatively substance-less techno dance song is on its way. It’s so obvious you can almost see the strobe lights and sweaty, dancing bodies. It’s reminiscent of an old Cher song, which is not meant to be a compliment, but the Mother Monster would probably take it that way. It, like many of the album’s other songs, is too cheesy to take seriously.
Next up is “Born This Way,” her anthem of self-acceptance. The message of the song is great, and it’s admirable that Gaga uses her icon status to promote such positivity, but her message threatens to lose validity when she sings it with bizarre horns coming out of her forehead and shoulders in the music video. She was definitely not born with those.
Though it’s almost too easy to bring up how much the song “Born This Way” sounds like Madonna’s 1989 hit “Express Yourself,” it’s impossible not to; the similarities are undeniable. Be it a ripoff, homage or legitimate coincidence, the Madonna influence is so heavy all over this album, listening to it is like stepping into a time machine.
Gaga’s unfailing ability to work her name into any given song is as present as ever on “Born This Way.” She’s not in any danger of people forgetting who she is, so it comes off more egotistical and obnoxious than anything else. On this album, she also has developed a new habit of weird speak-singing in many songs. Aside from being annoying, it makes it seem like it’s just part of a formula for each song.
“Judas” is the album’s second single, and it’s more on-par with Gaga’s previous songs than some of the filler on “Born This Way,” which is at least partly thanks to its “Bad Romance” vibe. It’s a catchy and hum-worthy song for the most part, until the speak-singing part begins — and then a shift to a ridiculous breakdown — before it resumes its natural course with the chorus.
Lady Gaga is known for beautifully poetic metaphors like “I wanna take a ride on your disco stick” on her 2008 song “LoveGame,” and she is back with more oh-so-subtle symbolism. “Heavy Metal Lover” gets real classy with lines like “I want your whiskey mouth all over my blond south.”
Though they are all obvious and unapologetic dance club songs, there are some standouts on “Born This Way.” “Americano” mixes house music with a Latin/gypsy sound. It’s a weird mix, but at least it’s something different. “Electric Chapel” starts with an almost metal guitar riff, which reappears throughout the otherwise slower and softer song. This song is more likely to appeal to a broader audience than some of the others on the new album.
“You & I” is genuinely sweet, unlike any other Gaga song. Oddly enough, it has a slight country sound. It’s stripped of all her need-to-be-edgy outrageousness and gives us a glimpse of what we might hear from her if she wasn’t Lady Gaga the music icon, but just Stefani Germanotta. It’s intriguing to think about what her music would be like if she didn’t have this image to keep up.
Diehard Lady Gaga fans will love “Born This Way” for exactly what it is: outspoken, unapologetic dance music. However, those who are looking for the more varied sounds of her previous albums might be disappointed.
Lady Gaga’s ‘Born This Way’ regresses to generic ’80s dance vibe
Daily Emerald
May 23, 2011
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