Conseco Fieldhouse, IN
July 15, 2010
By Anthony Kuzminski
{Pictures Courtesy of Starcasm}
(Original review published over at at antiMUSIC HERE.)
“Dance in the Dark”, from The Fame Monster ensnared everyone instantly in a brazenly audacious opening. Hiding behind a gigantic curtain we were shown glimpses of Lady Gaga as the song began and even moved through the first chorus. A straightforward curtain drop would be painless for Gaga but she opted to tease the audience, revealing a piece at a time before she unleashes her fury like a remarkable lover. The Fame Monster is an immeasurable step forward for her as an artist and it delves much deeper into her own psyche and onto those who feel alienated. “Dance in the Dark” is a song where a woman lets loose in the shadows of a bedroom during the most intimate moments. In a recurring theme or self-expression throughout the show, Gaga encourages people to let out their inner freak and above all else, be themselves. Half way through the performance, after the scrims lights revealed Gaga in a Blade Runner styled jump suit, the crowd felt as if they were one with her. “Dance in the Dark” is a synth-heavy beat and it’s astonishing to me it hasn’t been a single yet, because it may possibly be her best to date. The song while draped in a tale of sexual expression has some profound lyrics done in a “Vogue” style rap; “Find your freedom in the music/ Find your Jesus/Find your Kubrick/You will never fall apart”. These lyrics were birthed for more than pure escapism, but in the hopes that a personal exorcism would take place. It’s only when one comes to terms with themselves that one becomes truly free and the convergence of escapism and exorcism go hand-in-hand.
Lifting the hood of a car that resembled a clubby New York street, she unveils a keyboard and plugged into the opening chords of her first hit “Just Dance”. From here on out, virtually every part of the highly crafted stage was exploited continually throughout the nineteen-song set. One song after another, Gaga delivered. The playful “Boys, Boys, Boys” had a slew of beefy male dancers, “So Happy I Could Die” had her disappear, reappear in a new elaborate outfit only to be lifted fifty-feet into the air. “Monster” had accompanying video images which were beautiful, dirty and downright rich in repugnant images that harmonized the ferocity of the song. The theatrics of the show are worth the price of admission alone and they’re substantial enough that everyone from the general admission floor to the nosebleeds could savor in them. This is a very choreographed and succinct show, but it isn’t the least bit icy; this is an impossible feat considering all of the timing and precision it takes to make it a nightly reality. The staging was first-rate and perfect for an arena. Including a protruding stage that came half way out onto the floor, the general admission crowd draped it on all sides. Backing her up were twenty dancers and musicians. To recreate her music with grace, she’s including a violin and harp amidst other essentials such as drums and guitars. Shifting between changing sets, outfits and more than a dozen choreographed numbers, the Monster Ball is a rare marriage of theatrics, props, video images and music that converges into an elevated understanding of not just the songs, but Lady Gaga as well. This tour is an inconceivably daunting production that unites on every level conceivable; aural, visual, sexual, spiritual, immense and intimate.
Theatrics aside, the show has the purity and amiability of an epic Bruce Springsteen marathon because Gaga emits her personality from the concert stage in such a convincing fashion she could turn a cynic into a believer. During the 1970’s and 1980’s, Springsteen spoke to his audience, not as lesser beings, but as people who he shared intimate secrets with. These speeches (best personified by “The River” on the Live 1975-1985 live album) endeared Springsteen to his audience possibly deeper than any of the music. During a speech to the crowd that preceded the spunky “Vanity” (found only on the UK edition of The Fame), Lady Gaga echoed “The Monster Ball will set you free” and there was a riotous detonation of acquiescence from the crowd and this roar wasn’t manipulated from them, but won over. Lady Gaga seems to have a superior perception of the median person’s strains and needs than anyone else making music at this moment. The new song “You and I” calls to mind the Elton John of the 1970’s. Stark minimalism on this retro ballad that was just as effectual as any of the more choreographed numbers. She ended in on top of the piano playing the keys backward. Even when she pulls back, she still puts on a show. Without question, she is an unyielding force to be reckoned with and remarkably adept at being in showbiz without losing her sense of compassion. “Telephone” was preceded by a speech about the charity work she is doing with assistance from Virgin Mobile who donates $20,000 from every show to a charity to help gay and transgender people who have been abandoned by their families. A person who donated earlier in the night receives a phone call from Gaga onstage, their seats are upgraded and they even get a brief 1-1 with her backstage after the show. I seen far too many acts in recent years manipulate their audience into applause, but Gaga’s words were earnest. Before the arm-waving ballad “Speechless” she confessed to the crowd that “I don’t do this for the money and I hate Hollywood”. In a day and age where the average person is confronting insurmountable trials and tribulations, she understands the key to our hearts (and believability) is to empathize with the crowd. She doesn’t scold them, she doesn’t talk down to them and even though her tickets aren’t necessarily cheap, it’s possibly the best bang for your buck on the road right now. But the most real moment came from the raw emotion on display in her vocal for ”Speechless”. There was nothing to hide behind and everyone hung on every last lyric. She has a pulse on the hearts and minds of her fans and that is worth more than any market research or advice from a record executive ever could provide.
Lady Gaga’s ability to weave her influences into shapes and patterns no one has imagined before makes her distinctive. Like directors Martin Scorsese or Quentin Tarantino, her influences are wide ranging and instead of settling for one-dimensional aspirations her dreams are further and wider than anyone could imagine. She executes her stage presence with a nod to Madonna and Michael Jackson but on the subtler numbers, she demonstrates the same musical admiration and aptitude as Prince. The aforementioned acts had mountains to climb and time to grow into their celebrity and success whereas Gaga’s ride to the top has been a rocket ship fueled on steroids. In less than two years she went from creating what many deemed a one-hit wonder to not just headlining arenas, but owning the crowds within their walls. This is more than far reaching ego, it’s about correlation. It’s about being real and despite there being a spectacle, she is capturing the imagination of everyone because she’s delivering her art in a fashion that is wholly her own. This is an epochal moment in the career of Lady Gaga. It’s not merely a broadening of financial pastures, but an artist who has just begun to ascend to staggering heights. But here’s the best part; based on what I saw in Indianapolis, the best is yet to come. With fame and success, she has empowered herself to follow her own muse and reach creative plateaus once viewed as unreachable. You may love death metal, only be concerned with a pop princess, strictly value the purity of the blues or a southern girl who is in love with country music; none of this matters, because Lady Gaga touches on universal elements that anyone can grasp. She is the musical equivalent of Pixar; one hit after another cut from the same cloth emanating the same high level of quality. She delves into her subconscious just not for herself, but for her audience as well. It’s when this dual lane highway opens that artists achieve their greatest success. Her music is all about empowering oneself and embracing your inner spirit and I can’t imagine a more universal theme than that.
In a fractured society with more choices than ever to choose from, what makes her so indelible that people feel linked to her? The music speaks for itself, but there’s something more. The truth is the world at large loves being cheerleaders and we haven’t been able to get behind anyone in these numbers in years. We have sports teams we follow and love, but when was the last time a film star, musicians or athlete truly connected with society at large? There’s exhilaration when you’re within the walls of an arena and it appears that everyone is experiencing what you are at that very moment and Lady Gaga’s current show is two-hours of this heightened feeling. Over the last two-years her hits have grasped the public in ways I never felt music would be able to ever again, but she made it possible. These hit songs took an A-grade show and took the show to levels I’ve only witnessed at a handful of concerts in the last twenty years. “LoveGame” found Lady Gaga revealing herself via a subway car in a nun hat and wrapped in a futuristic dress that looked like latex. “Telephone” had twenty-people on stage dancing on their knees, jumping and fist-pumping with as much gusto as your average metal head. “Alejandro” featured impassioned choreography (and an unfaltering vocal) in front of a bleeding Bethesda Fountain. “Poker Face” was the greatest turbo charged dance party you’ve ever been to and “Paparazzi” began in a Wizard of Oz world which segued into a monster film and culminated in sparks emitting from her chest and lower regions. You know those concert videos of bands in third-world countries where you see the crowd jumping, singing and shaking in-sync with one another that you think is some sort of CG effect because it’s too perfect and powerful to ever be real? This is exactly like those experiences. You wish you could capture the feeling in the air and bottle it, because no drug could capture the same essence. Lady Gaga’s command of the crowd is unparalleled and in a day and age where the crowds at many shows are pokerfaced and discreet this wasn’t merely revitalizing but downright enthralling providing a concert no one else could even dream of giving.
If you haven’t seen the show, you need to seek it out. What you will witness is so much richer and intense than you could ever imagine. You will see an artist evolve from a girl into a woman over two-hours from the Saturday night mischievousness of “Just Dance to the sumptuous heart wrenching pop epiphany “Bad Romance”. On the latter, the crowd was in such an orgasmic mental and physical state, they continually defied the laws of gravity. The entire event had shades of grandiosity paired with bedroom intimacy and it takes you to places within yourself you never knew existed forcing internal confessions. Even if Lady Gaga’s music isn’t your cup of tea, the show will never leave your consciousness because the event will latch itself into your mind and never let go. Lady Gaga’s music and concerts are a celebration of not just her journey to date, but all of our dreams, desires and lives. The Monster Ball tour is a cathartic slice of entertainment I am not sure the world has seen the likes of before on this magnitude. It’s improbable one could behold a more emotionally raw, visceral, far-reaching and personal show in 2010.
Set List:
Dance in the Dark
Glitter and Grease
Just Dance
Beautiful, Dirty, Rich
Vanity
The Fame
LoveGame
Boys Boys Boys
Money Honey
Telephone
Speechless
You and I
So Happy I Could Die
Monster
Teeth
Alejandro
Poker Face
Paparazzi
Encore:
Bad Romance
