So about two months ago I spoke with Lady Gaga. Now that her debut album “The Fame” is out in Australia and is set for release in the United States, I figured now would be as good a time as ever to post the piece. So without further ado, it’s time to get Gaga, Crazy.

Hello Lady GaGa, how are you?
Very well thanks Adem how are you?

Very well. The day has been kind?
Oh yeah, it’s been a great day, just really busy is all.

Let’s get on with it shall we?
Sounds good.

You’ve been likened to Madonna, Deborah Harry and even David Bowie. Obvious influences then yes?
I would absolutely consider Madonna, Deborah Harry and David Bowie as influences. You know, Madonna for her provocative stage show, David Bowie for his provocative imagery and the high concept of his visuals, and Debbie Harry for being a blonde icon with a rock and roll heart.

So aside from those three, what other music did you immerse yourself in as you grew up?
I listened to a lot of classical music when I was really little, my parents used to play it at home. But as I got older I discovered rock & roll and listened to Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, the Rolling Stones and then, after I dropped out of college after a year, I got into metal, and I just started really falling in love with theatrical rock, or rock opera. Lots of dramatic pop music, so I started to really analyse Queen’s work, Bowie’s work, even Black Sabbath. Just the way they incorporated theatrics into their performances, it changes the way you hear the music and how it affects the way that you write the music.

“Just Dance” sounds like a song that was either written personally for many of us or someone in our circle friends.
(Laughs) It’s a very relatable song.

Oh absolutely.
The song was written in about five minutes, it happened really really quickly, Red One and Akon were in the studio with me, and Red One played that synth (starts humming the “Just Dance’ synth) and I went (starts singing lyrics from “Just Dance.”) And I looked at him and said ‘What if this song is about getting drunk? Like being too drunk at a party, and he was, like, that’s fucking brilliant. We hear a lot of records singing about “let’s get drunk,” or “last night I was drunk” (laughs) but there’s not a whole lot of that, there’s not a real documentation of that truly shitfaced moment (laughs again.)

So the lyrics are somewhat autobiographical then?
Oh god yeah, definitely! That was my lifestyle in New York, my friends and I would have parties, get dressed up for ourselves; it was our way of feeling ‘the fame’ (!?), very autobiographical. It just was really, like, honest, and came out really fast.

It really details the arse end of a Saturday night for most of us…
(Laughs again) I think every young person on the planet can relate to that particular lyric “where are my keys I’ve lost my phone” (More laughter.)

The video clip is pretty brilliant. How long did it take you to whip that up?
22 years! (Laughs.) That video was my first, and I knew that I wanted it to not be in a dance club, I wanted it to be something that was a little more confusing, fusing great party life with performance art. It’s funny because people find the video to be kind of provocative and I’m just acting what the songs about, you know?

And then there’s the whale…
I always thinks it’s funny how people watch my video on youtube and they comment “why is she humping a whale?” It’s hysterical.

It’s the greatest moment in that clip.
I love it because, when have you ever seen that? You just haven’t. It’s completely sexual, provocative and wrong, but for me it’s performance art. And, uh, I hope I’m really challenging the way people see sexuality. I’m not very sexy in that video, but if you were to play my video next to any other pop female artists that is sexy in her video, it’s a very different type of sexy. It’s not conventional sexy. Which is probably why people say “She’s got a catchy song, great video, but she’s a little weird.” (Laughs.) People don’t know what to think, I love that.

How healthy do you think the combination of sex and fashion is with pop music?
I don’t really think of it in terms of heart rate (laughs for an extended period of time, seems quite pleased with her joke.) I think that it’s got more to do with how it’s used in the medium. Sex and fashion and self expression, as opposed to a cheap sell.

Knowing what you’re doing…
Exactly. It’s like, you just have to figure out how to use the ideas in an innovative way.

If you were to summarize the sound of your debut album, “The Fame,” what would you say?
Theatrical future pop. Definitely.

In the age of Internet Download and file leaking, how detrimental do you think early leaks for tracks or album tracks are to the overall outcome of someone’s record?
I don’t really think that it matters, honestly. Look at Lil’ Wayne, he leaked his whole album on purpose (laughs) and he’s sold 2 million copies already. You can’t download a superstar, you know? You can download a song, but you can’t download the lifestyle. I would really encourage my fans, just as a tip off from the artist, I’m really close to my work, I noted all of the mixing and the mastering, I wrote everything, I was part of the production on a lot of the record, and just as a side note, all of the material from my album that has leaked is all unmixed and unmastered, some of it hasn’t even ended up on the final album, you know? It’s all mp3 files that were stolen from engineers, and um, you know, I want people to hear it the way I intended them to. It’s more of an artistic thing than telling people “I want you to buy my record.” I want them to hear the music the way I intended for them to hear it, in all its brightness and sonic perfection, I really put so much thought into it and I hope that people see that. And go to the stores, I know you can buy my record digitally on iTunes when it comes out, but I really want my fans to go to a record store, the packaging is an experience as well. Put it in your hands, feel it, look through the lyrics.

The early leaks certainly didn’t hurt your case, did they?
I don’t think that the leaks hurt at all, in fact, as a new artist I think it’s pretty incredible that, I’m not even on the radio in America, and, I’m leaking (laughs.) That’s kind of cool!

Do you think legal digital downloads are on the way of bumping out the physical CD?
I hope not. I intend to do away with that! (Laughs.) I don’t want that to happen I think that’s very sad. There’s so much that’s being deleted, and it’s our jobs as artists when the industry and culture starts to delete stuff that we have to bring it back. So how do we do something else to balance out the equal Librium? When you take away the hard copy, the artist isn’t tangible anymore you know? And does that then mean we’re going to stop doing live performances? What’s gonna happen? We can’t just let that stuff happen. Just Dance is not the only song on the record and it’s certainly not the best. There are, like, so many amazing songs on the album, if I did a good job, people will wanna hear the whole thing.

Things seem to be changing on the US charts; more pop-focused music as opposed to the Urban sound the States have been churning out for years. What do you think has changed?
I think people really miss how they used to feel. I mean I know that I do. My god, I feel like I might start crying talking about this…

Oh dear…
(Long Silence.) I really don’t think that right now music is very inspiring. I think there are still a few artists that are inspiring, but I just remember when I was 11 to like 15 years old, I remember the craze of pop music. And I just remember times square being shut down because you couldn’t get near the TRL studios because some pop star was on the show, and every fan in New York wanted to see their finger. It was just so intense, and I used to sit in front of the TV with a giant blanket wrapped around me like a ball gown and watch the award shows, and I knew exactly who was performing, and I used to watch it and video tape it, then learn the choreography in my room. And it wasn’t just me, it was me along with every other young person in the world.

It’s certainly been quite the opposite in recent years…
Music was everything, it wasn’t just about the hit songs, and I think what’s happening is that people are hungry for that. They miss it. It’s very sad right now, it’s not about sales.

How so?
I don’t know everything, I mean, for real, I don’t know everything, but what I do know about is pop culture, and society as it’s affected by music and art. It’s very sad, it’s subliminal, and, as a culture right now, we’re subconsciously beckoning for change.

Let’s lighten things up a bit! What’s the funniest joke you know?
(Long pause.) It’s a Groucho Marx quote from the movie Annie Hall. It’s something like “I wouldn’t want to go to a party that somebody like me was invited to.” A self loathing, over-intellectual artist, I love it, so funny.

Oh, so more of a movie quote then a joke.
(Silence.) Yeah.

On the topic of all things cinema, If there was to be a Lady Gaga movie, who would you have play your role and why?
Marisa Tomei. Every time I watch My Cousin Vinny, I feel like she’s me. That was almost, like, written about me.

Thank you for our hearty discussion Lady GaGa. Any final thoughts?
(After about 3 minutes of umm-ing and aahh-ing) Pop is back. Take a big whiff.

Mmmm, smells good!

Ugh.

It’s been one of the most hectic, frustrating, stressful, mind-boggling, dramatic and — at times — traumatic weeks of the year. It’s just been really taxing on me mentally and physically, particularly after some ghastly crap on Monday which kicked off my week in the most awful of ways. My mind just hasn’t been in any shape to focus on writing at all, even though I have a number of things to talk about. But I should be all fine come Monday.

In the meantime, here is a lovely picture I took of Lady GaGa on Saturday.

Well. Maybe not so lovely.

There’s something somewhat special about Lady Gaga, isn’t there?

A lot of people find her pretentiousness a little off-putting, but her superstar persona harks back to the days of interesting pop acts who had an element of mystery about them. Back in the 80’s (during the swinging days of Smash Hits Magazine), the private lives of people like Madonna, the Pet Shop Boys et al were, generally, kept to a bare minimum. It was an era where pop stars actually had something interesting to say about music, and it was a time where the thought of a music buying public putting up with dull and ordinary popstars was just not imaginable. Cut to 2008 where we are saturated with boring, lifeless, virtually unmarketable reality show contestants. Whilst pop music is still very much alive through the likes of Madonna and Girls Aloud (an exception to the reality show creation rule of being shit), it’s the immediate star-quality in new artists of late that has been severely lacking, that little extra something you saw in the eyes of Madonna as she beamed, with every belief in herself, she would one day “rule the world”.

Taking a first glance at Lady Gaga as she appeared on stage to a packed house at Inflation Nightclub in Melbourne, you could tell; that spark, that extreme pop sensibility, that drive to be one of the greatest pop stars of all time… it’s in her blood. The forcefulness of her entrance onstage was met by a suitably deafening response from the crowd, as Gaga appeared wearing glasses which were actually television screens, displaying images of her to the crowd.

She opened with “Love Game,” which was followed by a well oiled series of performances of “Eh Eh (Nothing Else I Can Say)”, “Poker Face” (the next Australian single), “Beautiful Dirty Rich” and “Paparazzi”, where she practically threw her back into the crowd and began making demands of the audience such as “get your camera’s out and take photos of me!”

Her dancing was impeccable, as were her bizarre back-up dancers. The crowd were full-on, very into it and completely lapping everything she had to offer up. She seemed pleased with herself too; playing for the people that had actually made her the star she so richly wanted to be was obviously an incredibly satisfying experience for her. The show was brief (30 minutes to the dot), but completely worth it. She sang 100% live, didn’t miss a single dance step (even when there were some potentially dangerous moments involving security guards and audience members), and was an absolute star to watch. A truly transfixing experience.

Gaga will no doubt be returning to our fine shores soon, and when she does, you’d be an idiot to miss out on the spectacle she throws in your face.

LADY GAGA
The Fame
(INTERSCOPE) A-

One of the most anticipated records of the year in popland is undoubtedly Lady Gaga’s “The Fame.”  And whether or not your find her intriguing, important, pretentious or just plain annoying, there’s no denying the fact this one little pop star has the kind of drive running through her veins that hasn’t been seen for a very long time.  I had the pleasure of chatting to her a couple of weeks ago (interview online after the weekend,) and, whilst I found her passion a little full on at times (for example, when she told me she may start to cry on the phone as we began talking about what’s changed in the American music scene over the years,) the fact that she was so strongly passionate about POP MUSIC really upped my respect levels for her.  This is a girl who has longevity in her eyes and, after listening to her debut several times through the week after it arrived on Monday, I have no doubt that longevity shall indeed be hers.  Provided she keeps her smarts about her, and releases the right singles from “The Fame.”  Interestingly, a number of the leaked tracks (”Disco Heaven” and “Dirty Ice Cream” which were early favourites of mine) don’t even appear on the finished released.  And yet, the record is STILL brimming with pop gold.

Album opener, The Gaga’s amazing debut single Just Dance, is a smart way to kick things off, with Lady inviting you to dance in a different context to the way she has been with the standalone single, a statement where she’s basically welcoming you by saying; it’s my album, let’s have a bit of fun together?  Come on, just dance.  It’s like her very own Into The Groove.  And that’s the first of several Madonna references I’ll be making…

Love Game opens with the classic line “let’s have some fun, this beat is sick, I wanna take a ride on your disco stick.”  Genius!  Heavy static-synths swizzle their way around which take that sound heard through the last Justine Timberlake album up a few more interesting levels.  The chorus quickly switches into extreme danceable pop, with a sassy-as-fuck middle 8.  Following the disco stick is Paparazzi, my first bona-fide favourite on the disc.  A bit of a stalker theme song, Gaga sings “I’m your biggest fan, I’ll follow you until you love me” over a deceivingly luscious chorus.  “Promise I’ll be kind, but I won’t stop until that boy is mine… chase you down until you love me.”  Not far off from bunny boiling really.

Beautiful, Dirty, Rich is, alongside one other song on the album, where the album loses marks and, as a result, is brought down from being a solid “A” record, to an “A-minus” one.  Whilst the song is by no means terrible, it overstays its welcome way before the 2 minute mark, is incredibly repetitive and one of two skippable humps on an otherwise remarkable album.  Caribbean fever erupts in the form of Eh Eh (Nothing Else I Can Say) which is yet another select favourite of mine on the record.  It’s also the biggest 80’s sounding track on “The Fame.”  That chorus sounds like it was created for a summers day full of smiles and long island iced tea’s.  The lyrics are simple, cute, and they absolutely work, work, work.  

I know muu felt Poker Face sounded a bit too much like Just Dance, but by god am I happy it’s on here.  Yes, it almost IS a carbon copy, but there’s something about the chorus of Poker Face which makes me think it’s just a little bit better than Just Dance.  I love the distortion through the verses, and the killer line (including her sharp delivery - something I also pin-pick in Madonna songs - which totally makes this song one of my favourites yet again) “Russian roulette is not the same without a gun, and baby when it’s love if it’s not rough it isn’t fun,” which COMPLETELY satisfies my musical senses.  Title track The Fame starts off with what sounds like minor influence from The Police, before a maraca makes itself known and a zippy chorus about being rich, famous, drinking champagne and all of that fun malarkey flutters about.

Money Honey is the second track on here which is a bit ropey.  All very same-same, and actually very boring.  The weakest moment on the record.  It’s a wonder a song like this made it onto the final pressing when songs like Disco Heaven and Dirty Ice Cream were left on the cutting room floor.  Gaga very quickly redeems herself with the piano-stomper Again Again, which comes complete with the heartbreaking line “I can’t have you, it isn’t fair… when you’re around, I lose myself, inside your mouth, you got brown eyes, like no one else,” which may only be heartbreaking for me, but it’s a personal connection I’ve made to the song and I’ll more than happily take it thanks.

Boys Boys Boys is not a Sabrina Solero cover, but IS just as fun come chorus time, and Summer Boy is the first time Lady Gaga sounds like someone other than herself; it’s VERY No Doubt/Glenn Stephanie.  Not a bad thing, but does come as a bit of a surprise.

The records biggest moment, though, is track 11: Brown Eyes.  WHOA.  Girl can whip out a ballad or what!!  I can picture this doing REALLY well in the American market (and here in Australia where we tend to enjoy a ballad) should it be released as a single.  That chorus is IMMENSE, and single-handedly solidifies Lady Gaga’s place in pop culture’s musical climate.  What a truly amazing, beautiful and precious song, and that last minute; wow, completely breathtaking.

Lady Gaga does not look like the kind of pop star that would find herself on the town with Paris Hilton, photographed high on coke without any panties on, or busted driving on the roads with a high blood alcohol reading.  It’s all very beneath her.  And maybe that’s another reason why there have been so many Gaga/Madonna comparisons made.  In that sense, they are very alike, and at the end of the day, I honestly believe that comes down to the level of drive they both house.  Gaga may have a very, very, VERY long road ahead of her before she reaches the legendary status of Madonna in the pop world, but if this debut is anything to go by, I’d go as far as saying that these comparisons are, overall, being fairly made.  After all, this may even be better than “Hard Candy.”

Watch this Gaga EPK for some of the best, incredibly pretentious but completely enjoyable, 5 minutes of your life.