Lady GaGa - Applause (Review)

In a (not really shocking) turn of events, yesterday saw the rushed release of Lady GaGa's new single 'Applause' taken from the singer's upcoming third studio album 'ARTPOP'. Personally, I can't really say it was a surprise. Snippets and leaks had been making their way onto the internet from as early on as Saturday, so the eventual decision to push forward 'Applause' from its set date of August 19th was inevitable. Furthermore due to a series of cryptic tweets from Mother Monster (yep, I said it) herself, the internet was rife with a frenzy of blood sucking GaGa fans demanding new music. And so, after tedious amounts of teasing and toying, 'Applause' was released to general mainstream radio all over the world.

So, what's it like I hear you ask? Well, it's okay. We are given a lush production of sweeping synths and choppy beats over a slightly auto-tuned GaGa which evokes memories of 'The Fame' era. We have bleeps, claps, bass galore but poor girl, I can't (and still now) can't understand a single thing she says. Granted, the chorus itself is catchy, like incredibly catchy but as soon as the song had finished I couldn't remember a single thing about it. Honestly! The whole thing slipped from my mind like a non-existent dream which begged the question, had I been severely underwhelmed? When 'Born This Way' hit the charts, the majority of critics and fans alike felt the hype had too badly built up, leading to an incredibly underwhelming album. Now we are fast approaching the 'ARTPOP' era, and GaGa looks to continue to build such hype. The threat that poses now is whether will 'ARTPOP' follow the same route? Will GaGa storm the VMA's with 10ft Robots that strangle her at the end in order to outdo her 'shocking' 2009 performance? Will she release a new single every other blue moon that under-performs? By the looks of things, it's a yes for all three. But with an army of devoted followers and monsters alike, 'Applause' will no undoubtedly storm the charts and be a commercial success. Click below and tell me what you think.

In terms of musical direction, 'Applause' does bring us back to the catchy-disco pop that 'The Fame' was so well known for, and (so far) there's no BIG message about being true to who you are or being mentally conflicted (yes, I'm looking at YOU Judas!) so maybe, just maybe, GaGa is ditching political pop for just making music that wants to make you dance. With album sales reaching over 23 million worldwide, it only seems like the logical move to make. It's no 'Poker Face' or 'Bad Romance' but it's, quite simply, good fun.  After all, did 'Just Dance' teach us nothing about the mechanics of pop at all? 

A mix of synths, claps and bass with a good chorus, if slightly forgettable, but as a pop song it ticks all the boxes. Oh and it is better with headphones, I checked! 7/10