The Fame
Interscope Records
Released October 28, 2008
Grade: A
As strobe-lit ecstasy bounces with the beat and epilepsy turns pandemic, uppity club-kids and post-bumped socialites bow in the presence of their platinum blonde deity, Lady Gaga.
The club/Internet goddess proves she is definitely worth the hype in her debut album, The Fame, which brings out the best of pop on a 14-track disc.
The singer, born Stefani Germanotta and musical prodigy since she was a child, utilizes the most that modern pop has to offer with track after track of catchy lyrics, hot beats and clever vocals.
From the opener "Just Dance" and its addictive chorus ("Just dance/ It'll be OK") to the cheeky closing number "Summerboy," the album urges one and all to drop everything in the name of fun and disregard any consequences for as long as humanly possible.
Collaborations with Colby O'Donis, Space Cowboy and recent hip-hop heavyweight Flo Rida only adds to the album's fabulousness and makes anything seem possible on those crazy nights out.
What makes The Fame unique is not its frankness and admittance to a laundry list of sin but rather its synchronicity and Gaga's irresistible pipes creating a sumptuous marriage of brassy theatrics and shameless confession.
Even the most asinine and stilted lyrics sound like straw turned into gold, most notably on the track "Eh, Eh (Nothing Else I Can Say)."
"Not that I don't care about you/ Just that things got so complicated/ I met somebody cute and funny/ Got each other and that's funny/eh, eh," Gaga sings.
Other standout tracks include "Poker Face," "Boys Boys Boys," "Beautiful Dirty Rich" and the title track, "The Fame." These songs exemplify the marvelously hedonistic aspects of life, both in and out of the club. Blowing the most splendidly euphoric high in listeners faces, Gaga makes one grateful for the aesthetic and material things in life that all of us may or may not happen to have.
All in all, the record offers a massive base of appeal to a plethora of audiences. Those pop junkies who have mistaken recent efforts by other artists for real music will be further enthralled and subsequently introduced to quality. For those disillusioned with the contemporary pop scene will be drawn back in.
The bar and club scene will have reason to rejoice with their messiah's debut and lovers of all dance and pop music will be swept away.
There is no doubt that the reign of Lady Gaga has just begun and current pop divas have justifiable reason to pay attention and watch for what this talented musical every woman will come out with next.
