Amazon Gags On Gaga 180
theodp writes "Having hawked Google Chrome over the weekend with an ad that aired on SNL, Lady Gaga turned her attention Monday to hyping Amazon's Cloud Player service. Fans were delighted to learn that they could download Gaga's entire 'Born This Way' album for a mere $0.99, until technical difficulties set in. 'Amazon is experiencing high volume and downloads are delayed,' Amazon said in a statement. 'If customers order today, they will get the full Lady Gaga, Born This Way album for $0.99. Thanks for your patience.' Some frustrated users meted out one-star ratings for the album as their way of protesting Amazon's slow service, lowering the album's rating to three stars. So, was that karma for upstaging Donald Knuth at the Googleplex?"
Re:Amazon Gags on Gaga (Score:4, Interesting)
The girl can sing, and write lyrics and music. Can't dance though. Some of her songs are very good in their unplugged versions, and she does not shy away from catering to mainstream tastes with overproduced studio versions, videos, and her looks.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IiqHICcqi9s [youtube.com] for an unplugged pokerface
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Zet3eLu-ms#t=2m43s [youtube.com] just for fun, another good unplugged something else, by someone else.
Re:Amazon Gags on Gaga (Score:4, Interesting)
I don't think her music can stand on its own, but I enjoyed her performances on SNL as visual spectacle.
Speaking as a singer/songwriter/musician, I have to disagree. Gaga's material is not really my cup of coffee, but she certainly can write compelling songs. She sings very well, too - her voice is powerful, well-trained, and has decent range. And she can play a variety of instruments quite capably. (Before she became a pop star, she made her living as a session pianist in the demanding and very competitive world of NYC recording studios. You don't get those jobs because of hype - you have to be very, very good on your instrument.)
As I say, dance pop is really not my thing. At all. But, out of curiosity, I watched her "Monster Ball" HBO special. Relentless pandering to her audience and her obvious self-esteem issues aside, under all the glitz and spectacle, I was pleasantly surprised at her songwriting and performance chops. In particular, her new single, "Born This Way", with which she closed the show, is a genuine pop anthem - and, behind the closing credits, her a capella reprise of its chorus was even more powerful than the kitchen-sink production number that preceded it.
As for the "visual spectacle" aspect of her show, her (occasionally tiresome) speeches to the audience made it quite clear that she cultivates a fan base of people who consider themselves social outcasts - and gays, in particular. Since outrageous flamboyance is pretty much the sine qua non of gay pop culture, hers makes perfect sense, when seen in that context.
Anyway, I don't plan to buy her albums, but I have gained considerable respect for her as a writer, singer, and musician.