The Fame

iTunes Review

The Fame is in many ways the perfect soundtrack for 2008, a year in which celebrity culture, club culture, and fashion culture achieved absolute fusion. The album’s philosophy is summarized on its title track: “I can’t help myself / I’m addicted to a life of material / It’s some kind of joke / I’m obsessively opposed to the typical.” Lady GaGa looks to the icy, synthesized funk of the ‘80s for inspiration, and the album’s unapologetic (and unironic) celebration of consumerism is a throwback to the Reagan years. Lady GaGa has explained that the album is about “how anyone can feel famous,” and in a strange way its nihilistic obsession with fame and wealth is a compelling reaction to a crumbling American economy. Unlike similar records by Britney Spears or Katy Perry, Lady GaGa’s background as a DJ validates her songs. “Just Dance,” “Poker Face,” “Beautiful, Dirty, Rich,” “Money Honey,” and “Starstruck” are grounded in the hypnotic funk of classic disco. Lady GaGa reaches for the careless hedonism of Studio 54 and while The Fame isn't likely to be an enduring album, there's something oddly comforting about an album that wants only to speak to the needs of the present moment.