Lady Gaga has pushed boundaries and rebelled against being defined her entire career. Infact, her exploration of different genres and art forms have built her up to be one of the worlds' largest stars. While Gaga’s refusal to fit in one box confused some, it attracted the people who knew she was paving a new path. On her seventh studio album, MAYHEM, that path is clear and smooth. Here, it’s no doubt that Lady Gaga has spent her career crafting her undeniable “touch”, one that is only able to be used by her. MAYHEM is a seamless fourteen track rejection of genre, blending electro-pop, dance, industrial, rock, disco, and synth-pop elements all together. The opening track, “Disease”, is a mind-bending blend of electronic and live instrumentation that begins the thematic journey of the album (“Poison on the inside, I could be your antidote tonight / I could play the doctor, I could cure your disease”). “Abracadabra” displays Gaga in her element, in a soundscape that can be traced back to her own craft at the beginning of her career.
That same nostalgia and freshness continues on the following track, “Garden of Eden”, with pulsating lyrics and immediately catchy melodies that are impossible to be still to. Coming off the dance floor of the past tracks, “Perfect Celebrity” is an automatic career highlight for Gaga. Leaning all the way into an electro-grunge sound, Gaga dives into the complexities of navigating life as her larger-than-life career looms over her every move (“I’ve become a notorious being / Find my clone, she’s asleep on the ceiling now / Can’t get me down, you love to hate me / I’m the perfect celebrity”). Following its first four tracks, MAYHEM pivots into a liberated sound. “Vanish Into You” dives into a bittersweet and emotional depiction of wanting to disappear into love over a glitzy pop-rock infused sound. The smooth, sneaky groove of “Killah” (which features Gesaffelstein) is reminiscent of the works of David Bowie and Prince, while “Shadow of a Man” is an instant earworm that taps into a Michael Jackson-like energy. The momentum of the record comes nowhere near slowing down with “Zombieboy”, a track that demands all attention with an instantly iconic chant and infectious disco elements (“We ‘bout to be up all night, wakin’ up a zombie / So put your hands all over me, you zombie boy!”).
“How Bad Do U Want Me” leans full into 80s synth-pop in a dreamy challenge of one’s expectation of Gaga (“That girl in your head ain’t real, how bad do you want me for real?”). Tender hearted moments on the album (“The Beast”, “Blade of Grass”, and the massive hit with Bruno Mars “Die With a Smile) round out the album both sonically and thematically. In fact, the album’s last lyric (“If the world was ending I’d wanna be next to you”) gives listeners a true glimpse of where Gaga is at both personally and within her career. Reaching the point in life where she feels at home both within her personal life and within her career, Gaga is embracing everything that has been and will be. MAYHEM shows Lady Gaga at her very best, and proves that she’s not going anywhere. In fact, seventeen years since her first album, Lady Gaga is full steam ahead in continuing to shatter expectations and creating her own way.
- Logan Bandi
