Daveportivo's Cultural Evaluation Facility

If 2009 belongs to any artist it's Lady Gaga, for better or for worse no artist has made a bigger impact than this little lady. Her debut album The Fame was a triumph, it was the ultimate proof that immaculate style and first class posturing can compensate for somewhat dubious substance. However Gaga is no mere pop sensation, right from her explosive debut she never aimed to be the flavour of the month, she aimed for superstardom, she set her sights for Beyonce, for Timberlake but more importantly she had Madonna firmly in her cross-hairs. Gaga upon debut perfectly captured her age like a sonic screen shot, her music was shallow, aggressively sexual, care free and knowingly hilarious. When it comes to the pop world this decade has seen two great pop innovators who have changed the game, re-set the clock and in some cases reinvent the wheel; Lily Allen was the 21st Century pop star a real girl, brutally honesty and refreshing real, Lily Allen was this generations pop hero, Gaga on the other hand was over the top, she was unreal, she was a caricature she wanted to be this generation's Icon. Yet to be a true Icon you have to at some point deliver the substance to match the emaculate style; afterall when Ziggy Stardust descended from the heavens he brought with him one of the greatest albums of all time. This leads us ultimately to the question at hand; does Gaga the substance to back up her style? Will her ambition outstrip her talent? Will she be doomed to rot along with the other colourful pretenders to Madonna's throne?

If the Fame Monster is anything to go by Lady Gaga has absolutely nothing to worry about, infact, she's on her way to becoming an institution. The Fame Monster not only improves on the impressive if mediocre The Fame it blows that record out the water. Within the confines of this brief thirty minute semi-album Gaga leaps past Madonna and begins to look like the modern day Bowie. From the first minute of opening track Bad Romance you are instantly informed that you are no longer listening to a stylish poser indebted to her influences or relying on a producer, your in fact listening to a true artist, your listening to music that could only be written by Lady Gaga. From this opening salvo the album becomes Gaga, it's crazy, it's stupid and it's sexy as all hell. Bad Romance lays the brilliance of Gaga on the table for all to see, it's so psychopathically morose and yet brilliantly crafted at the same time, with her off key ranting and musical theatre pants Gaga music brings a rye smile to your face while the subversive beat and addictive hook becomes implanted in your head. Either by design or by accident The Fame Monster has a tremendous sense of humour, it's fantastically confusing, you don't know whether she really is this shallow and superficial, or if it's all one big joke at your expense or whether infact your supposed to be in on the gag. Of course before you could ever come to a conclusion you'll be so addicted to her tracks you'll forget why you cared in the first place.

Gaga switches personalities a will, starting out as the demented desperate predator stalking her man before going in for the kill, next she slips into a Spanish love song narrative and she's become the victim of love's obession, of course she's nonplussed about the whole affair. Alejandro is perhaps the album's most ridiculous track, Gaga's cadence is almost too unreal to be anything but parody and the track is a hilarious albeit grating listen at first, however it's sweet melodic hooks and clever arrangement are revealed on multiple listens and it soon becomes a favourite. Monster feels like Gaga's answer to Akon's Dangerous and feels like one of the few reactionary tracks on the album yet it still retains and creative and remarkable dense arrangement to back up a series of sugary hooks. The track is produced to perfection it truly feels like the US's answer to Xenomania. The most striking difference between The Fame and The Fame Monster comes in terms of the sheer song quality, before Gaga relied on posturing; limp basslines, key board break downs, it was paper thin. The Fame Monster strips away the cynicism creating beautifully dense arrangements, it's superbly written pop music of the highest order. Speechless clearly highlights this improvement with a timeless epic sweeping strings movement atop a chugging guitar line while Gaga belts out a classic ballad, it's so well pitched, it doesn't relie on any electro gimmickry or production tricks, this is a song that feels more like a Lennon & McCartney composition than a Timbaland electro fart. Telephone is also particularly telling; it shows that in between all the new found powerhouse song writing moments that Gaga can still be ice cool and as ridiculous as ever. Yet when compared to Beyonce's flaccid Videophone the elevation of Gaga is marked, behind the posturing and the one liners are glorious timeless pop hooks to compensate for the live for the day short sighted production.

The Fame Monster is a sensation, it's thirty minutes of divine pop, loaded with potential hits, irresistible hooks but most importantly brilliant music. The creativity on display is remarkable, while there may still be obvious nods to Madonna and other 80s pop, they are more subtle now, this unmistakable, unequivocally Gaga. The Fame Monster proves that Gaga is no trend, no gimmick, no false idol, this Lady is genuinely super talented. It's scary to think that this collection of tracks was thrown together basically to flog a few extra copies of her debut LP, God knows just how good her next full LP will be? Gaga has shown that she's an artist who can develop and evolve, that she has the potential to get better and better, and unlike Justin Timberlake, unlike Beyonce and yes unlike Lily Allen she has made an album that from the first track to last is wall to wall brilliance. There are still challenges ahead, Gaga sound is still very now, but The Fame Monster gives us the hints that she has the potential to create music that transcends her era. Gaga is no longer the next big thing, the flavour of the month, she's not a trend, a style, she is simply Gaga and she is a Twenty First Century Icon, who deserves to be mentioned not only alongside Madonna, but Bowie, Michael Jackson, Prince and if she keeps going at this rate there's no reason she can't start eyeing Lennon and McCartney. There is a long way to go of course, but the signs are good, and let us never forget Lennon & McCartney started with Please, Please Me not Abbey Road. So while she may never be able to take Lily Allen's crown as our every-girl pop heroine; make no mistake Lady Gaga is THE 21st Century Pop ICON, she's anything but an ordinary girl, she's something different, something new, something terrifying: she is The Fame Monster.

Tracks To Download: Speechless, Bad Romance & Monster

Like A Prayer - Madonna, Dirty Mind - Prince