Lady Gaga

[bascule]

Who likes her? I do!

[Severian]

I like her too. She is a bit whacky and weird, but I think that is a good thing, even if I am not very into her music. She reminds me of Madonna when she was younger (whose music I was also not into).

 

And lets be honest. All those kinky outfits are kind of sexy.

[bascule]

Wow Severian, I agree with everything you said, except I'm way into her music. She has all these wonderful Norah Jones-style songs that are absolutely amazing, like Speechless and Brown Eyes. I love her Madonna-sounding songs too. Dance in the Dark reminds me a lot of Vogue.

[iNow]

Any woman who can pull off a song saying she wants to ride my disco stick is a-okay in my book.

 

 

 

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[tomgwyther]

To be contrary, and invoke discussion... I don't like her music.

In a world where we have - at our finger tips - access to so much music, art and culture from the entire globe, spanning thousands of years; to spend time listening to a vacuous, one-dimensional-sounding non-entity, seems a waste of synaptic activity.

 

If one were to remove the industry imposed pitch correctors, quantized sequencers and multi-band compressors, one would be left with a piece of 'music' unworthy of a passing musical grade for and eight year old student, let alone the artistic accolades awarded such celebrities as Miss. Gaga.

 

There is sadly a growing trend for lacklustre, mediocre noise to be pumped out across the airwaves. It inhibits true artists from being heard.

The Jeremy Kyle/Jerry springer watching, Heat magazine reading, McDonalds eating populous are not at fault though, they are blamelessly ignorant, as the media is saturated with such generic dullness, most people are unaware of the power and enjoyment which real music can have.

 

If Lady Gaga's music were to impart wisdom, move people to tears of joy or of sadness, start a revolution, empower a people against oppression or change the collective consious understanding of the world for the betterment of humanity, then I might start listening to her. Until that time I neither love or hate her... I nothing her.

[Severian]

I don't dislike her music, but it is not something I would listen to.

 

I also quite like that she is not classically beautiful. In fact, she is a bit plain. But that adds something I think, because it shows that someone who is a bit plain can still be incredibly sexy and successful if they have enough charisma and... for lack of a better expression... balls to pull it off.

[bascule]

In a world where we have - at our finger tips - access to so much music, art and culture from the entire globe, spanning thousands of years; to spend time listening to a vacuous, one-dimensional-sounding non-entity, seems a waste of synaptic activity.

 

Your wealth of bombastic prose fails to disguise your ignorance of the wonderment that is Lady Gaga.

 

Unlike virtually everyone one of the major female pop stars of our day, Lady Gaga is not only a singer/songwriter but a talented pianist. Honorable mentions certainly go to Christina Aguilera, but I definitely prefer Gaga.

 

Gaga's music falls into essentially two categories, her Madonna-esque synthpop that she's most famous for, and her Norah Jones-style piano ballads. The synthpop made her famous, but her piano ballads are where she really shows her talent.

 

Speechless is one such song, which has not only exquisite lyrics but excellent and passionate vocalization. Lady Gaga really is talented:

 

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(Hint: It's about her father)

[swansont]

She reminds me of Madonna when she was younger

 

That was my reaction, too, when she popped up on my radar.

 

I've listened to a few of her songs. They all sounded alike.

[ecoli]

I do like her piano work. However, I wish her pop music was more in line with her outrageous image (I mean that in a good way). In the end music is about the music. If I can't tell what your image is just from listening (and I have to resort to music vids) then you're sending mixed images to your listeners.

 

In other words, her regular pop music isn't interesting enough to warrant much notice. Obviously, she's all about her look and physical presentation. This is why she hasn't even been on my radar until very recently.

 

A talented musician should be able to evoke the same sense from her music as she does from her clothing.

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Speechless is one such song, which has not only exquisite lyrics but excellent and passionate vocalization. Lady Gaga really is talented:

 

Eh... I'm not impressed. A song about being sad b/c she's so famous?

 

This material has been covered like 10^6 times and I still can't relate to it.

Edited May 21, 2010 by ecoli
Consecutive posts merged.

[tomgwyther]

Admittedly, 'Speechless' is probably one of her better songs, and Lady Gaga is one of the better pop acts. But that's like saying

"I have genital warts; the best of the sexually transmitted diseases."

Its lyrical subject matter and execution, although poignant, still didn't do much for me.

Musically, it has two obvious chord progressions glued together.

(1)

1,5,6,3,4,5,1. with the root note occupying the chord's 3rd every so often. it was used in 1717 by J.S Bach for his piece 'Air on G string' and has been used repeatedly ever since.

(2)

1,7,6,7 using the relative minor of the tonic key which dates back to pre-history and has also been used repeatedly ever since.

The are a few other stock changes borrowed from Bob Marley

It modulates between A minor and C major, which basically means it was written on just the piano's white notes; the tell-tail sign of an amateur with little song writing talent.

The only bits worth listening to were put in by Ron Fair who did the arranging and orchestration.

 

Sorry Gaga fans, I still nothing her

Edited May 21, 2010 by tomgwyther

[ewmon]

to spend time listening to a vacuous, one-dimensional-sounding non-entity, seems a waste of synaptic activity.

 

Ditto. Very little is "real" about some of today's entertainment. Vocals are modulated, backup music is synthetic, makeup requires hours of application by experts, costumes are custom fit by experts, and untold money and time spent on skin conditioners, tans, workouts, plastic surgery, etc. Add to that blue screens, computer graphics, and take after take after take. Vasts sums of our economy are pumped into fake entertainment, commercials, TV shows, videos, movies, etc. We used to be a manufacturing-based economy, now we're service-based, and are becoming entertainment-based. "Everyone" wants to be a rock star or videogame developer/tester. Like drugs, it's all unsustainable/unrealistic fantasy that leads to collapse.

[bascule]

Eh... I'm not impressed. A song about being sad b/c she's so famous?

 

I'm not sure how you got that. Speechless is a song about her father killing himself (figuratively) with alcohol, cigarettes, etc. Could we fix you if you broke?

 

The Fame was certainly a meta album about fame, however, which is pretty daring, considering it was released before she was really famous.

 

Lady Gaga is one of the better pop acts. But that's like saying

"I have genital warts; the best of the sexually transmitted diseases."

 

So what you're basically saying is you're a pretentious snob? Got it

 

'Speechless' is probably one of her better songs, and [...]

Its lyrical subject matter and execution, although poignant, still didn't do much for me.

 

That's certainly not the case for myself, and I think Gaga has emerged as the best singer/songwriter of this decade. The vocals on speechless were phenomenal.

 

Musically, it has two obvious chord progressions glued together [...] was used in 1717 by J.S Bach for his piece 'Air on G string' and has been used repeatedly ever since.

 

Kind of like how tons and tons of modern pop songs use the same chord progression as Pachelebel's Canon? Yeah, I don't really care, that doesn't diminish their value to me musically.

Edited May 21, 2010 by bascule

[Cap'n Refsmmat]

That's certainly not the case for myself, and I think Gaga has emerged as the best singer/songwriter of this decade.

 

For reference, what are your other favorite musicians?

[bascule]

For reference, what are your other favorite musicians?

 

Some other singer songwriters I really respect: Bob Dylan, Donovan, Neil Young, Roger Waters, John Lennon, Jim Morrison

 

As far as what I've been listening to recently: New Order, Ladytron, Kraftwerk, The Cure, Fischerspooner, Röyksopp, Depeche Mode, The Smiths, Crystal Castles, Komputer, the Gorillaz, and Cut Copy.

 

Some more "classic" stuff I love but don't really listen to as much lately: The Beatles, Pink Floyd, Nirvana, Led Zeppelin, The Doors

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They all sounded alike.

 

Her Madonna-style pop songs sound a lot different from her Norah Jones-style piano ballads (e.g. Brown Eyes, Speechless, Again Again, Wish You Were Here)

[ParanoiA]

bascule, you have great taste in music. I think you said sometime back that you don't like Radiohead, but I don't hold it against you.

 

I adore The Lady Gaga. When she stated she loved David Bowie and Freddie Mercury, I already wanted to like her. Then when I saw her hang herself at the music awards with theater blood, I totally fell in love.

 

Although I relate with ecoli's statement about her pop sound not really quite living up to her image and stage awesomeness. The pop tunes, almost sound dated, with soundblaster MIDI instruments or something.

 

But that's not how I measure a musician. She does her own writing and that just earns so much respect from me, particularly when most pop dolls are processed and artless. And the stuff she writes is catchy. And she's just freaky as hell.

 

Now, bascule is saying she's a talented pianist, and I had no idea. So, I'm going to have to actually go find some of her music then. Should be interesting...

 

By the way.. has anyone heard this 12 year old kid, Greyson Chance, play Paparazzi by Lady Gaga, on piano? Look for it on Youtube, it's gone viral so it shouldn't be hard. Lady Gaga called into the Ellen DeGeneres show (one of my favorite people) while she had Greyson there and he was just smitten with his pop hero.

[bascule]

Err, not sure why that frowny face is there... here's a few extra smiley faces to offset it :D

 

And she's just freaky as hell.

 

That's one of the main reasons I like her. She's giving both Madonna and Christina Aguilera a run for their money in terms of how kinky the stuff she writes about can get, especially in songs like Teeth and Dance in the Dark, not to mention how often she mentions touching herself in So Happy I Could Die.

[Rickdog]

In my case, till I saw this thread, I didn`t know nothing about her, so I can`t say a word about her music, and by the look of her in the pictures posted here, I don`t see nothing out of this world in her at all. I stepped in this thread only by curiosity of what it was about, so now I guess I will have to hear a couple of her songs before saying anything else about her. However, in music I got stuck way in the past (Zappa, RUSH, YES, King Crimson, Jimmi Hendrix), so really don`t think that I am going to like it at all, but you never know, got to give her a try. Maybe if she resembles Death Metal bands, that are the only modern style of music that I`ve managed to hear lately, then maybe I`ll like her.

 

Oh my god !!! (now I`m a theist), 30 seconds with the "Love game" and 48 seconds in the monster one, well I guess that the second title describes her very well alright . Don`t ask me please to ever look at this again. Jesus, Mary and Joseph........

Edited May 21, 2010 by Rickdog
Can`t wait to express my opinion

[bascule]

However, in music I got stuck way in the past (Zappa, RUSH, YES, King Crimson, Jimmi Hendrix), so really don`t think that I am going to like it at all, but you never know, got to give her a try.

 

For what it's worth, I am a fan of Frank Zappa, Rush, Yes, and Jimi Hendrix.

[Rickdog]

At least refering to relatively modern music, got to give you that you have a "wider range" of acceptance than me, as I said before I got stuck in the past.

 

Ufff, I`m still dizzy after that minute of anguish and pain. I think that I even had a better time of "joy" during the February`s earthquake, than in the past recent minutes. Anyhow, I`m no expert in music at all, so maybe she still has a chance for the rest of the world, and it also gives me another very good reason to never hear the radio again.

[DrDNA]

She's a cheap Madonna knock off and probably should be tested for toxic metals in her paint.

 

Along the lines of imitation crab meat, which is often passed off as crab in "crab salads" and cheap Chinese food, but is actually leftover pieces of some sort of cheap white fish that has been minced, massed and pressed into a tubular shape, with an orange dye on the outside.

 

So, she's a minced and mashed, rubberized piece of otherwise destined for cat food fish product with fake color added which has been pressed into an unnatural state and pawned off to the masses as the real thing.

 

Totally without flavor and substance.

 

Just my opinion. Don't intend to offend any fans.

[Genecks]

*moves his hand across his face*

"Pokah faccceeeee..."

 

 

I think that, despite the quality of her videos, she has some good songs included with good vocals. Even if its digitized, it sounds good. I guess I've learned to accept that many singers will digitize the quality of their voice, thus not showing a true representative voice that exists. Still, the songs are good.

 

I think she also does show some absurdity, which is what I like. Her body movements, emotional facial displays, and more in her music videos are good. She really continues the concept of what it means for something to be a music video.

 

Do I think she's the next Madonna? No, I do not think so.

Madonna was more subtle with facial expressions and blocking, I think.

Lady Gaga tends to extrapolate her movements.

 

Nonetheless, I think she is a 21st century musician to remember.

[bascule]

I think that, despite the quality of her videos, she has some good songs included with good vocals. Even if its digitized, it sounds good. I guess I've learned to accept that many singers will digitize the quality of their voice, thus not showing a true representative voice that exists. Still, the songs are good.

 

She does perform live, without auto-tune, and she does a damn good job of it:

 

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[Cap'n Refsmmat]

Nice. Why can't she use that for recordings? I much appreciate real sounds -- real (fake) piano and real voice -- to synthesized everything and autotuned voice.

 

On the other hand, I'm a Simon & Garfunkel fan, so acoustic is my thing.

[iNow]

She does perform live, without auto-tune, and she does a damn good job of it:

 

That was awesome. Thanks, man.

[bascule]

Nice. Why can't she use that for recordings? I much appreciate real sounds -- real (fake) piano and real voice -- to synthesized everything and autotuned voice.

 

I'm not sure if you gathered it from my listing of recent music, but I'm a huge fan of synthpop (and more specifically electroclash)

 

Auto-Tune can also be used artistically, although I hope you realize all these complaints about Gaga abusing Auto-Tune are pretty moot. I mean, check this out:

 

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