[lbo-talk] Paglia on Gaga

[c b]

Without having read the Paglia piece, I've felt reflexively that
Gaga's shtick seems like a well-worn modern pop star formula, to me:
Decadence, "spectacle," manufactured scandal (a dress made of meat at
the VMAs, a glittering bikini outfit at a baseball game), and an open
call for queer rights, which is probably the safest "political" route
one can go in the pop music/showbiz industry these days, thanks to
folks who've tread this ground before: especially Madonna, who seems
to have provided the template to which Ms. Gaga strictly adheres.

Even the songs all sound like Madonna, to me.

I guess I'm getting old, 'cuz I don't get it. History repeats itself,
the first time as tragedy, the second time as farce? I just feel like
I've seen this show before. The thing is, younger people haven't,
except on VH1, so maybe they want it while its current and
contemporaneous horribly derivative though it might be.

The songs are crap.

-B

^^^^^^^
CB: Hey , old is good; you're no doubt wiser , too.

Remember Tiny Tim ?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiny_Tim_%28musician%29

It may be a vulgar materialist notion, but some of US capitalism's
rottenness in its relations of production is reflected in its culture.
Madonna and Gaga may be conscious of this and exploit it.