Celebrity Watch: Lady Gaga Previews Born This Way Tracks

Saturday, February 26, 2011

Lady Gaga Previews Born This Way Tracks

Rolling Stone heard four new songs, which seem to draw from the past while still pushing the envelope.
By MTV News Staff Report

Lady Gaga
Photo: Michael Caulfield/ Getty Images

Hours before reviving her long-running Monster Ball Tour in Atlantic City, New Jersey, recently, Lady Gaga gave Rolling Stone magazine a sneak peek at four songs off her upcoming Born This Way album ... and from the sound of things, she's not only pushing the boundaries, she's borrowing from some of the best in the business.

For example, E Street Band saxophonist Clarence Clemons, who lends his prodigious skronk to a pair of the songs — "Edge of Glory" and "Hair" — or Nine Inch Nails, circa Trent Reznor's Broken era (on "Hair," which also apparently draws inspiration from '80s singer Pat Benatar's "We Belong" and the inspirational, all-encompassing lyrics of LG's own "Born This Way"). Another song, "Judas," which is set to be the second single off Born This Way, is described by Rolling Stone writer Matthew Perpetua as "a classic Lady Gaga pop banger," with a "thumping, house music breakdown" and a vocal hook "that borrows a bit of Rihanna's distinctive cadence."

"Edge" is "a massive power ballad with heavy club beats" that also contains "an element of cheesiness" and an "Eighties stadium rock vibe." "Scheiée" — a remix of which Gaga actually debuted last month at a fashion show in Paris — contains flavors of '90s dance hits by the likes of C&C Music Factory, Snap! and RuPaul, and a chorus that "vaguely" recalls Survivor's "Eye of the Tiger." And "Hair" features LG proudly proclaiming "I am my hair!" for reasons unknown.

On Friday, Gaga's "Born This Way" officially became the fastest-selling song in iTunes history, having blown past the million-download mark in just five days. The song is also #1 on the Billboard Hot 100, and sits atop the charts in 23 different countries. The video is reportedly set to premiere this week.

Gaga's Born This Way album is due May 23.

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