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Lady Gaga’s ‘Mayhem’ is Pop Therapy for the Masses
Her seventh record is every good, dark, glittering thing Gaga has learned about herself and the industry.
You know how people throw around the phrase “return to form?” Like an artist’s original project is the only one that defines what they can be?
What a crooked thought. Because form follows function: When you’re certain about your purpose and pursue it accordingly, the form in which you do it falls into place every time. It is secondary; it serves the function. An artist’s form mutates along with their mission.
Thankfully, your form becomes this malleable membrane that gets a little more discerning every time it shifts. It knows what to keep, what’s fulfilling, what’s temporary, and what doesn’t serve you at all. It’s your ticket to growth. When in doubt, it’s what you should come back to.
Twenty years into her career, Lady Gaga has become the consummate student of pop. She’s experiencing her first great return to form in Mayhem.
This album isn’t just the peak of all of her musical loves, it breaks new ground for her in terms of storytelling. The theme is very much Gaga Versus All of Her Selves; as she recently told InStyle, “There’s a lot in Mayhem about multiple yous or multiple mes…
