back to earth

for almost half a year, much has been brought up about lady gaga's highly-anticipated third album born this way. from its meticulous finishing-touches to the mother monster herself declaring that it will be the greatest album of the decade, it's hard not to perk your ears up whenever there is a further development on something relating to it. and nothing has been more interesting than the unfolding of singles and subsequent videos that gaga has released before the album makes its consumer debut two weeks from now.



after the freaks-n'-geeks messianic anthem "born this way" charted its way to heaven along with its sci-fi-creationist video, the not-so angelic "judas" soon followed, bringing her back to earth and beyond. to me, "judas" was a way of getting over the constant madonna accusations received for the eponymous track, giving us a pop-religious banger smothered in industrial german-bondage-bar throbs and lyrics fit for a pre-british invasion girl group. further utilizing her bubbly yelps and the vampirish chills that saturated her last album, she finds common ground in a medieval-rap that uses words like "prostitute wench" and her usual pleas of the angst of bad romance. its video, in addition, is even more amazing. without the high-production looks of her previous work, the clip is directed by gaga herself and reimagines mary magadelene as a gypsy-biker chick, jesus as a sexy latino with cornrows, and judas as an older, gen-x scruff-god. it says everything and nothing at all, which has always been the brilliance of gaga's goal of sculpting the pop charts to suit her needs. here, she proves herself as artist and businesswoman, fanning the controversial fires with homages to botticelli and baz luhrmann.



but just when it seems to be over (at least until the album comes out), gaga decides to release the promotional single "the edge of glory." i'd read a few months ago about how it included a passionate (and bloody amazing!) solo by saxophonist clarence clemons from the e street band and how rolling stone thought it had an element of "cheesiness," but i never knew if it'd like it or not because, on paper, it sounded nothing like gaga herself. however, on monday, gaga sent down this charming stadium fatalist love story and i have to admit that i love it. it has the 80's revisionist fashion that only she could do, but in a totally organic way that harks back to my first thoughts of "born this way." "the edge of glory" is fresh, sweet, sad, optimistic and most of all, good-natured; the kind of jazz-pop electro song you wanna scream at the top of your lungs with your fist clenched and your body shaking with all its might. if anything, this seeps into gaga's love for freddie mercury and his ability to capture that overwhelming feeling of accomplishment without kitsch. however this is a song that can overall be viewed in two ways: one as an ode to romantic love and that fleeting emotion it gives; or as a desperate longing for keeping a person around you just before you let them go, which hints at the song's original meaning of dealing with gaga's grandfather's recent death. it is heartbreakingly beautiful to hear something so gentle and kind from this goddess of manipulation and mass-art, and makes the anticipation of her new album even more painstaking. pop goes the world.