I think I might like Lady Gaga

When I say “I think I might like Lady Gaga,” I am saying that with extreme caution.

I first saw this pop creature on So You Think You Can Dance a couple of years ago. When she performed in a broad-shouldered blazer, straight-cut bangs and nude pantyhose I thought, “What. The. Fuck. Is. This?” Nonetheless, I did her points for being ahead of the curve when it comes to trends.

As years passed, I have refused to be a fan of hers; mainly because of her self-indulgent “look at me I’m different and avant garde” showiness.

As much as I refused, I unwillingly got pulled into the Gaga orbit via acoustic guitar versions of “Poker Face”, her constant costume frenzied media stunts and her technicolor-hued dance music which repeatedly played on the radio (I swear, if I hear “Paparazzi” one more time, I am going to vomit bile). I even saw her in concert once at the Mezzanine in San Francisco, but I was just there for work and nothing else.

But alas, I felt that it was part of my civic duty as a pop culture junkie to know what was going on with her. There was the whole hermaphrodite fiasco and her stint with Madonna on Saturday Night Live, but I still remained unimpressed by her. I do see why many people adore her, but I just didn’t care. She’s bringing something to the table. She keeps the drooling masses of pop hipsters wondering: What will she do next? And that’s what the public wants: something different; an “artist” who slaps us in the face with bizarre style and performances. They want someone who is unpredictable. Gaga keeps the public on the edge of their seat with wide eyes and a hankering for trends that the normal person could never achieve.

Still, I had not clicked the “Become a Fan” button on her Facebook page.

Then, I watched her video for “Bad Romance”.

I was captivated by this piece of work. Her taste level has evolved. The whole thing looks like a futuristic S&M Dolce & Gabbana ad – and who doesn’t like those?

First off, I enjoy music videos that are set to a white sterile backdrop. Contrast that with crazy imagery and twitchy dance routines and you got yourself a pretty darn good music video.

Plus, there was something different about this video from her past ones. She seems a bit more mature in her “artistry.” Her taste level has lifted. Even that rotting corpse at the end is sophisticated. Also, the fact that she showed her face without makeup gave the video vulnerability and proved to us that she doesn’t need to be all batter-dipped in makeup. And yes, I realize she can kind of sing.

This was the first video where I was inspired by her aesthetic. She is actually making music videos worth watching – and we rarely see that in the 21st century.

Some of my adoration for this video had to do with the use of pieces from the best show from any fashion week this year: Alexander McQueen.

Apparently her and Mr. McQ are chummy now. First, he used her song at the end of his spectacular S/S 2010 show in Paris. Now, she is donning his garments from said show in this music video. In the beginning you see her in the sting-ray silhouette dress and towards the end she dons McQueen’s aquatic lizard queen outfit complete with crab claw impossible-to-walk-in shoes (circa timestamp 3:29 in the video above). Throughout the video she is also wearing his fossilized sea creature heels as well.

All hail the aquatic lizard queen

Am I ready to be a full-fledged Gaga-ite? No. Am I starting to respect her as an artist? Maybe. Will I click her “Become a fan” button on Facebook? We’ll see.

For now, I’ll just add “Bad Romance” to my iPod Shuffle. It will make for a great song to run to while wearing my McQueen heels.