MAYHEM

Ultimately ‘MAYHEM’ blurs the line between the two [Lady Gaga and Stefani Germanotta], in its sheer pop-filled joy offering the fresh conclusion that they are by all accounts the very same; perfectly unsubtle and all-out fun.

Brash, squirmy, full of detailed grooves and expertly crafted hooks, it’s a winning reclamation of her trademark sound — her best since 2011’s “Born This Way”.

Her refusal to be boxed in by genre constraints ensured that the album became a homecoming without feeling like an ending. Mayhem is a testament to the power of constant reinvention that isn’t pandering, proving that even after two decades at the forefront of pop culture, Lady Gaga remains an artist in constant motion.

It’s a bold and fearless descent into deliciously chaotic party that is simultaneously heartfelt and hammed up. The project is eager to satisfy fans from all eras without necessarily resting on the laurels of those.

Mayhem marks a wholesale return to dancefloor freakiness, complete with self-quotes (Abracadabra) and a hard-edged electronic takedown of fame (Perfect Celebrity) that would not have been misplaced on her debut album, 2008’s The Fame.

Little of the album ever actually dips in quality (“Don’t Call Tonight” is the only real leftover nacho), the confusing aesthetics of the album cover and the decision to tack “Die With a Smile” on here do go a long way to making this package feel a tad disjointed and lacking a bow. Still, the aesthetic failings are only a disappointment because the contents are so dang good.

Subtlety, she reminds us throughout the maximalist spectacle of “Mayhem,” has never been her love language, and she can only convincingly play the girl next door if you happen to live on the dark side of Mars. But that is also what makes “Mayhem” feel like a refreshing anomaly.

It may not be an instant classic, but it's still clear that no one can do it like Gaga.

MAYHEM may have played better if its tracklist were whittled down from 14 to, say, 10. Still, it is among Gaga’s strongest ever full-length statements.

She’s made one of her most sonically challenging and uniform albums yet: a mix of Nine Inch Nails, David Bowie, Prince and her Fame Monster-era self, rolled into the year’s strongest pop release yet.

Mayhem is both a satisfying return to form and also an unabashed revisiting of stylistic and thematic roots, even linguistic tropes and tics.

MAYHEM does, however, re-connect Lady Gaga with a sound – and approach – she deserves to own. With the world growing darker by the minute, one of the planet’s biggest stars is ready to unroot pop’s foundations once more – and we’re totally here for it.

Ultimately, ‘Mayhem’ feels like a great Gaga album because it’s just so much fun. At times, it’s a bit like reconnecting with an old friend who makes sense even when they seem to be chatting nonsense.

Gaga is at her best when she boils down ideas to their tastiest kernels. “Mayhem” isn’t unnecessarily overthought or ornate; Gaga sounds unencumbered, free from the lofty expectations that both she and her audiences have placed on her.

Mayhem is exciting but exhausting, a battering ram sonic assault. In such bland pop times, it’s good to see her parking her tanks back on the dance floor.

It’s consistently well-written, teeming with hooks and liberally sprinkled with intriguing musical left-turns.

Mayhem is still a fun, spry record, playing like a greatest hits of her discography that, at its best, finds Gaga at her loosest and friskiest and, at its most flawed, recycles sounds and textures from her previous work and that of other dance-pop musicians.

Nothing new on MAYHEM has the earworm immediacy of “Telephone” or “Poker Face,” but the songcraft is undeniable and the product feels thoughtful. Occasionally, the sounds are a bit too polished for the effect Gaga is going for.

It's certainly not the culture-shifting force that The Fame or Born This Way were, but it does recapture some of that former glory after some years where Gaga's biggest contributions have been blockbuster soundtrack ballads.

The result is a record that will remind listeners of her remarkable past but also point to a somewhat disappointing present. Mayhem shines a glaring spotlight on a wildly creative artist who finds herself behind the times, following trends instead of setting them and seeming out of step.

MAYHEM is more like an inspired album rather than one that inspires, and where Gaga usually flips the game on its head, she’s stuck to the rules this time. LG7 feels like it’s come and gone, and where we’re usually saying ‘wow she’s amazing’, it’s more like a resounding ‘wasn’t that nice’ – not bad, not life changing, but a record I’ll be playing for a while I’m sure.