One of modern pop’s most celebrated and influential figures takes us back to the dancefloor and gloriously returns to lead pop music’s revival. Boasting a true and satisfying return to form, unlike some of her peers, Mother Monster manages to convey a weird sense of déjà vu as Mayhem showcases sounds she has never fully embraced, yet manages to coherently retain all the Lady Gaga characteristics throughout. Perhaps that’s because the New Yorker is no stranger to contradiction, to chaos, to mayhem. No mentions of reheated nachos will take place in this review as we explore her latest album.
Lady Gaga is one of those artists who come to Earth once in a blue moon—those rare living legends. The mother of reinventions, responsible for defining the 2010s and influencing culture in so many different intrinsic ways, her legacy is unmatched as she has consistently set herself apart from her peers, with Mayhem being no exception. The record’s timing is ideal, coinciding with recession pop’s resurgence, which can only mean two things: the world is in a bad place economically and socially, and pop music is getting good again. We’ve seen it with Charli XCX, Tate McRae, and Chappell Roan, where upbeat and danceable tracks fuel our escapism and celebration, as well as inspire a younger generation of artists.
The thing that really sets Gaga apart from these types of pop stars, especially Charli and Tate, is her commitment to approach her return to pop running in the opposite direction of being sexy or a party girl, and instead embracing the theatrical avant-garde, edgy, and high-fashion weirdness that is synonymous with her name. “When they wanted me to be sexy, or they wanted me to be pop, I always… put some absurd spin on it that made me feel like I was still in control,” she said in her 2017 documentary, in reference to her legendary 2009 VMAs Paparazzi performance—words that ring true today. The fumbles along the way to her first major album in half a decade, following Chromatica (special mention to the bizarre Joker sequel), have been well worth it.
Disease marked the start of the Mayhem era, our first taste of ‘she’s still got it,’ swinging back in the most Gaga-esque way possible. A twisted fashion fantasy that was equal parts glamorous and grotesque took us straight back to the The Fame Monster era with an eerie wardrobe and alter ego, Mayhem herself, in the music video. The gimp mask with a long, black, ruffled coat and kilometre-long steel nails gave us absolutely everything — that goes without even mentioning the single itself. Lyrically and sonically, it just keeps aging better with time, and it doesn’t abide by the rules of short singles made for TikTok and the streaming era. No wonder Azealia Banks has been living insanely for this dungeon-dark electro-pop fantasy.
On the other hand, the first contradiction came when it was revealed that Die with a Smile, featuring Bruno Mars, would also be part of Mayhem, despite previously denying those rumours. While the ballad is an undeniable smash hit that will become a classic, just like Gaga’s own Shallow, it’s a bit lacklustre in closing off Mayhem and reads more like a business move to collect streams. Nonetheless, as Whitney Houston said, “Songs like that, they are stories that people can identify with. You know what I mean, anybody. Children were singing the song at graduations. At weddings. At funerals.”
With the second official single, Abracadabra, https://metalmagazine.eu/post/lady-gaga-abracadabra Gaga cast a spell on us and had the internet in a frenzy as everyone clamoured to celebrate her return to form. Featuring callbacks to her discography, like Poker Face and Bad Romance, it just proves how ahead of her time she has always been and how iconic you have to be to become a reference for yourself in that way. These nods to past versions of herself, however, are done in a way that doesn’t come off as pretentious or desperate nostalgic cash grabs — the case for artists like Nicki Minaj and Katy Perry. Abracadabra is the perfect amalgamation of her earlier edgy material that catapulted her to genre-redefining global icon status while still sounding novel and instantly being a standout in her catalogue of hits.
The mayhem continues with Garden of Eden, another track that recalls her earlier work, particularly evoking The Fame. It is a loose electroclash, fizzy but pulsating bratty pop song with one of the album’s most addictive hooks: “I could be your girlfriend for the weekend / You could be my boyfriend for the night,” she sings. It’s like we forgot what pop music used to sound like, and she jolted us back in. It’s a new iteration of herself that is self-aware and in good taste, pure theatrical and bratty pop bliss.
Perfect Celebrity seems like the closest Little Monsters who have been begging Gaga for a rock record have gotten in over a decade, since Artpop’s MANiCURE. The rich production, commentary, and strong lyricism talking about her tumultuous relationship with fame make this sinister electro-pop rock banger an instant highlight in her already impressive catalogue. With a nod to fan-favourite unreleased track from the Born This Way era, Princess Die, as she sings: “Choke on the fame and hope it gets you high / Sit in the front row, watch the princess die,” it seems as if Gaga is more self-aware than ever while also tightening her bond with her loyal fanbase.
Stepping down from the darker and edgier tracks, Vanish Into You is a quintessential Gaga ballad that begins to mark the departure from the aesthetics of the era and, with that, the expectations many listeners had as to what it would be sonically. The ballad, an “apocalyptic love song,” as Gaga described it in her fan press conference, talks about disappearing into the person you love the most. Accompanied by hard-hitting beats and big sweeping vocals reminiscent of Queen, as well as some David Bowie in there, it has quickly become a fan favourite.
Speaking of David Bowie, his influence is most heard in the funky Killah, featuring the French DJ and producer Gesaffelstein. It is a pure homage to the likes of Prince, some light touches of Janelle Monáe, and undoubtedly Bowie’s Fame and I’m Afraid of Americans. Along with its debut performance on SNL, featuring some of Gaga’s strongest vocals in years, it really had us yelling “We are so back.”
Now comes the time to talk about Zombieboy, and whatever we can say about this track will be too short regardless. It was first teased in the Disease video and has been stuck in our heads since. It is one of the best songs Gaga has ever put out, period. The subtle nod to Gwen Stefani’s Hollaback Girl, the Donna Summer, Nile Rodgers, and Chic influence, the guitar and playful lyrics on a disco song — this was made for those of us waiting for the original disco-influenced LG5. Wanting someone to consume her as a zombie, it’s the perfect soundtrack to all your bad choices and a clear contender for song of the summer.
Following it would be a tough act for any track, but Lovedrug precisely marks the loss of momentum of the album. The concept of love as a drug is nothing new and has been slightly overdone; nonetheless, it’s still an exceptional pop song. I wish I could say the same about How Bad Do U Want Me — however, I can’t. It could quite literally be a Taylor Swift 1989 reject, complete with weak and borderline cringe lyrics. It divides the album into two: the first half boasting career highlights and peaks, and the second, which for this album and Gaga herself, is more lacklustre.
Despite being unable to match the bar set in the first half, Don’t Call Tonight has a noteworthy bridge reminiscent of Daft Punk, pure ‘80s bliss. Shadow of a Man, the song teased at the end of the Chromatica Ball film, is incredibly Michael Jackson-coded with its hypnotic chorus, tight rhythm, and some of the best guitar detailing across the album. The Beast and Blade of Grass bleed into each other, and while the former is quite forgettable, the latter is romantic and beautiful — yet would have probably been better suited for a different album. Can’t Stop the High and Kill For Love, the latter being another heavily Michael Jackson-inspired track that shouldn’t have been left out, are two exclusive tracks featured on physical copies of Mayhem, something Gaga has never done before.
Mayhem is an amalgamation of inspirations and styles Gaga has dipped her toes in over the years, being an album that is undoubtedly an homage to her idols — a mix of Michael Jackson, David Bowie, Prince, and Nine Inch Nails, amongst others — and a pat on the back to herself and her legacy up to this point. Arguably her least sonically uniformed album, hence chaotic, it also has some of her best vocals in years and highlights her versatility as an artist, combining visceral, macabre dance-pop moments with disco tracks and ballads. Time and time again, she has proven that she is the Lady Gaga of the previous, present, and future generations — no one comes close. Our paws are up and higher than ever.