Lady Gaga - MAYHEM
Dance-pop – Released March 7, 2025 – 14 songs, 53 mins
ROZ
This week's TSR review, MAYHEM, marks the return of American singer, songwriter, and actress Lady Gaga. From pop star, to movie star, to collaborating with jazz legend Tony Bennett, to having film roles alongside the likes of Joaquin Phoenix and Bradley Cooper – Lady Gaga has had a career that would make any one of her industry peers (multiple industries at that) blush. She is an individual who has been able to transfer her illustrious talents across multiple mediums and still come out on top for all of them. She has been known as both a creative and cultural trail blazer since she hit the scene in 2007. The question at this stage for me is this: has Gaga lost her roots? Can she deliver a dance-pop album with the same desire and drive as she did all those years ago, after all the organic growth as not only an artist, but as a human being?
On MAYHEM, The answer is a loud and resounding ‘Yes’. As if thrown into a time machine and teleported back to 2008, MAYHEM is vintage Gaga through and through. Even as the album throws one dance-pop trope after another right in your face, the overall record never feels stale or played out – a testament to the expert craftsmanship of her tight knit production team. Andrew Watt, Henry Walter (Cirkut) and Mike Lévy (Gesaffelstein) are sprawled across the production credit list on MAYHEM, each of them championing their own individual success stories amongst the other pop greats in the industry by showcasing their talents across every track on the list. This, amplified by the superstar at the helm, results in the object of desire for any pop album: a body of work that is accessible yet technical, interesting yet simple, and most importantly, fun.
MAYHEM can be best described as an array of various electrotonic and dance sensibilities smashed together into a mosaic of fresh ideas and old homage. Disease starts us off at a mid-tempo pace, heavy kick-snare combo, offbeat 909 hi hat and dark synth arrangements. Abracadabra introduces a 303-acid style sequencer as its foundation, cementing the EDM flair that is prominent throughout most of its 53-minute run time. Classic Gaga is on full display in tracks such as Garden Of Eden, Vanish Into You, LoveDrug, and Don’t Call Tonight. At points it really does feel like you’re listening to an album made by a Gaga 15-20 years younger than her current self, and I mean that in the best way. The Fame was iconic in its day and its influence is without a doubt all over this album. Killah is a stand-out in its own way, with infectious basslines, melodies, and an experimental send-off that acts as a beautiful crescendo to the track as a whole. In a moment of reflection, I make sure to play this track out a few times in a row in order to enjoy what’s really going on here. It’s these moments that, I find, elevate a pop track from simply good, to really great.
One major point of admiration that I couldn't help but notice was the clear attention to detail and dedication to perfecting the basslines across MAYHEM. Such an addictive variety of high-quality basslines – from the composition to the sound selection. The making of a great dance track (or dance-pop track in this case) is the low end energy. If you nail the low end, you'll nail the track. Whether it’s the downward pitching loop on Garden Of Eden, the heavy chugging bass throughout Vanish Into You, or the infectious bass guitar pluck on Zombieboy; the production team knows how to get it right and they deliver it flawlessly. In understanding the need for a cooling off period before coming to a close, Blade of Grass and Die With A Smile (the latter being a collaboration with talented superstar Bruno Mars) bring the record to a pleasant end. A great example of using arrangement as a tool to get the listener down from the high you just put them on.
Lady Gaga may truly be one of the last shining stars of a bygone pop star era. The era that doesn’t mind rustling feathers or challenging the conservative natures within our society, as can be seen by her consistent support of the LGBTQ+ movement. In a generation that seems almost sanitized to an absurd degree, Gaga stands up and proudly rubs a little dirt on the world. MAYHEM is a soon-to-be chart-breaking album carefully crafted by one of the best to ever do it. Without missing a beat, the star proves that even after all these years, Lady Gaga is (and has always been) pop music, personified.
Overall Rating: 8.3/10
Favourite Song: Garden Of Eden
REID
Lady Gaga has established herself as an icon since her breakthrough on the scene in 2008. The American singer, songwriter and actress has acted in five feature films, released six solo studio albums on top of a seemingly endless list of EPs, soundtracks, compilation records, remixes and reissues. Despite her successes, she has continuously challenged herself and the status quo, reinventing and exploring new avenues for her sound with each new project. I’d be amiss to leave out her edgy, flamboyant music videos and live performances. Gaga constantly pushes boundaries and is a popstar in the truest form. MAYHEM is the latest chapter in her decorated career.
The release of her sixth record comes at an interesting time. First of all, it’s opportunistic. No matter your thoughts on The Weeknd, Drake, FKA Twigs or the others, the first quarter of 2025 has been underwhelming for new music. Any Gaga release is bound to get the attention it deserves but combine this lull with an album drop and a Saturday Night Live appearance and the spotlight is all hers. Another point of intrigue is how dramatically the pop scene has changed since her last album, Chromatica (2020). Her closest competitors, if you will, remain at the top in Taylor Swift and Beyoncé. The former continues to tighten her stranglehold as the biggest worldwide music star while the latter went dance withRENAISSANCE (2022) before going full on country with COWBOY CARTER (2024). Elsewhere you’ve seen the meteoric rise and debuts of four women who have become household names and festival headliners in short order. After a decade in the industry, charli xcx finally struck gold with brat (2024). Sabrina Carpenter and Olivia Rodrigo graduated from their Disney roots to rejuvenate early 20’s cookie cutter anthems. Perhaps the closest comparison to Gaga is LA’s queer pop, superstar-in-the-making, Chappell Roan. The world of pop music is in good hands and Gaga’s return only strengthens the case.
Now, back to MAYHEM. I’d be lying if I said I was well versed in the depth or evolution of Gaga’s discography. So I’ll use a quote of hers from an interview on the making of this album with Apple Music’s Zane Lowe:
“ARTPOP was a vibe. Joanne was a sound. Chromatica had a sound. All different. The Fame Monster was more chaotic. The Fame was theatrical pop. Born This Way, to me, had more of a metal/electro New York vibe to it. I actually made the effort making MAYHEM to not do that and not try to give my music an outfit, but instead to allow myself to be influenced by everything.”
The result of this mindset is a dose of nostalgia mixed with a plethora of influences. Two early singles serve as a blast from the past in Abracadabra and Disease. Two infectious synth-beats with revving bass and earworm lyrics that’ll have you humming for hours. Perfect Celebrity leans into synth-rock and Vanish Into You has a little hit of ABBA for you to chew on, which I’m sure Roz enjoys. You have to double take when Zombieboy begins that you didn’t mistakenly put on Hollaback Girl by Gwen Stefani. It settles into some 80’s funk with nice groovy bass, likewise with Killah. How Bad Do U Want Me sounds so Taylor Swift, it’s confusing. It almost feels like there’s a sneaky ulterior motive behind it. (Tinfoil hat time!) No matter the influence, Gaga makes each song her own with her incredible range and versatile vocal. Most songs continue to evolve throughout their runtime as opposed to fizzling out and becoming stagnant and Gaga’s voice is there to meet every new direction.
One big misstep is in its composition. All three slower songs are stacked at the end. They’re typically sprinkled in and a welcome change of pace on an album but this feels like an unwanted comedown after a night out. And while a song about a werewolf (The Beast) fits the MAYHEM mantra, two love ballads to close out things out seem a little out of place after forty plus minutes primarily centered on sex and seduction. She should’ve cut these three along with Shadow of A Man and kept it at 10 songs – now that’s MAYHEM!
Lady Gaga further solidifies her legacy as a pop superstar on MAYHEM. She proves she can wind back the clock with a modern twist on her old, tried and tested sound while successfully exploring new influences at the same time.
Overall Rating: 8.2/10
Favourite Song: Vanish Into You
LUNDI
Writing about music is a game of superlatives and hypotheticals so let’s cut to the chase and give this week’s artist her flowers. Lady Gaga is the greatest pop star ever. Period. Musically she has six studio albums that each cover different sub-genres with all hitting number 1 on the billboard charts. She is one of the highest grossing female artists and the only to have four singles sell 10 million copies. She is the highest streamed female musician and will take her eclectic award winning live show to headline the world’s premiere music festival, Coachella, this year. But stardom isn’t only about the music and she also boasts a well acclaimed acting lineup spanning thrillers to dramas and also Saturday Night Live. She is, for all accounts, the pop stars pop star, a trailblazer that shaped what modern pop is. There’s next to no controversies surrounding her life, standing alone at the top as a truly beloved person. She is the most dynamic, well rounded and prolific pop star the world has ever seen and she doesn’t appear to be slowing down any time soon. Her reign is still very alive, look no further than her latest release, Mayhem.
Coming into Mayhem, my album rotation was mostly filled with other major pop releases in an attempt to calibrate my senses in line with the pop machine. See to me, a really great pop album can have a fair few misses across the track list while a truly great rock record on the other hand needs near front to back consistency. Pop stars are afterall a creation of the spotlight and to stay there they are forced to put everything on the table into just a few tracks in hope of finding a mega hit or two to take over the radio airwaves. As an album lover, it’s shocking how many terrible songs are littered across what I’d consider great pop albums. And that is what makes Mayhem all the more impressive. It’s astonishing how downright consistent Gaga is across the 14 tracks. Would I have cut it to 10 in an ideal world? Hell yes. But that comes down to personal taste as I’d have trouble saying there’s a truly bad song amongst the bunch.
Gaga once again separates herself from the pop star pack penning an album filled with unique fantastical lyricism woven with typical genre tropes on love and desire. Her unmatched ability to supplement traditional lines of thinking with tales of magic, religion, sci-fi and apocalyptic being shines bright. While a lot of pop songs will be monotonous and generic from a lyrical point of view, Gaga embraces a desire to make the listener think while still permeating the brain with tasty hooks and electrifying choruses. Her other worldly vocal prowess only adds to what is an intoxicating listening experience.
The admiration for Gaga only continues to improve as you dissect the elaborate production and sublime sonics that fill Mayhem. While the album comes together as a whole to classify as dance pop, each individual track finds its own sonic path to get there. The production team took a very interesting direction with each track by amplifying and highlighting a singular musical element while maintaining fairly standard song arrangements. There are points where radio friendly synths, disco inspired funky guitars, new wave bouncy bass lines and deep distorted electro house all have their own time to shine. Music is still ultimately the sum of its parts but this team put a very nice twist on the expected product that can only be summed up as banger, after banger, after banger.
The pop star GOAT finds a fresh musical lane and delivers a hit filled album for the sixth time in six tries. Press play on Mayhem and witness the greatness that is Lady Gaga.
Overall Rating: 8.0/10
Favourite Song: Killah