ARTPOP 
Lady Gaga
Released by Streamline and Interscope
It’s been two years since Lady Gaga released her follow up to The Fame Monster, Born This Way. Her follow up had some stellar singles but just didn’t have the variety and consistency of her debut. But her new album, ARTPOP, has more single power than its predecessor and flows much better.
Leading off with the strange “Aura” and “Venus,” it definitely feels like Lady Gaga has taken the weirdness and epic sound of her second album and mixed them with the songwriting and vocals of her first. This becomes very apparent when “G.U.Y.” starts sounding reminiscent of “Disco Stick.”
“Sexxx Dreams” is one of the few Gaga songs to use real instrumentation like “You and I” and “Summerboy” did on past albums, making it curious why Gaga hasn’t attempted to make an album more like that.
Unfortunately, the album isn’t free from problems. “Jewels N’ Drugs” sounds generic, and even though T.I. is only featured it sounds more like his track than hers. “MANiCURE” is slightly better but its guitars sound strange in the song.
But one of the album’s best tracks is “Do What U Want,” which sounds how collaborations should. R. Kelly’s smooth sound and beats mix with Gaga’s choruses and throaty singing. The song soars because of it.
The title track “ARTPOP” unfortunately doesn’t go anywhere and seems like it is destined for many (better) remixes. “Swine” also suffers from sounding generic but redeems itself occasionally when the keyboards sound.
There is strange appeal to the weirdly syncopated beat of “Mary Jane Holland’s” early choruses that excuses somewhat boring verses, as well as a very Queen-esque bridge, that redeems the song. Like “You and I,” “Dope” proves that Gaga is at her best and most amazing when she’s in front of a piano—it feels real.
Lead single “Applause” has a dark dance sound to it. Its piano sounds sweet in the wash of synth, although the single is not entirely representative of the whole album.
ARTPOP is a mostly good, sometimes great, return for Gaga. More than that, its more acoustic songs create hope that the rumours of her jazz album are true.
