Music Review: Lady Gaga "Lovegame"

Lady Gaga

Lovegame

Album: The Fame

Year: 2009

           Lady Gaga teases and grabs in the ditzy “Lovegame.”

           A gauzy  beat opens the single, setting a sedentary tone. Part of the pre-chorus begins the song. She’s at the bar, sipping on her drink, talking with the guy she’s been interested in for about a month. She puts her hand on his arm and tells him they have to get out there and dance as a electro beat booms throughout the club. He responds he’s not really dancer. She says they can be silly. It won’t matter. No one will remember it in the morning. She thinks of things they can do on the dance floor and gives him a wink. (“Let's have some fun/This beat is sick/I wanna take a ride on your disco stick/Let's have some fun/This beat is sick/I wanna take a ride on your disco stick.”)

              She pouts after his refusal. His full pink lips remind her of bubblegum, sweet and colorful. She’s worried about getting attached to him. Usually, she goes through guys, stopping them after one dance and moving on. The current guy is a challenge, forcing her to rethink her way of flirting. (“I wanna kiss you/But if I do then I might miss you babe/It's complicated and stupid/Got my ass squeezed by sexy Cupid/
Guess he wants to play/Wants to play/A love game/A love game.”)

                 In the pre-chorus, she yearns for him to take her in his arms and laugh into her shoulder. She thinks a normal romantic gesture will cause her to pull away. (“Hold me and love me/Just want to touch you for a minute/Maybe three seconds is enough for my heart to quit it/Let's have some fun/This beat is sick/I wanna take a ride on your disco stick/Don't think too much just bust that kick/I wanna take a ride on your disco stick.”)

                 In the chorus, she wonders if he’s interested in a long-term relationship or a one-night stand. She can’t read him. (“Let's play a love game/Play a love game/Do you want love or you want fame?/Are you in the game?/Dans le love game?/ Let's play a love game/Play a love game/Do you want love or you want fame?/Are you in the game?/Dans le love game?”)

             She is determined to have him. She keeps fantasizing sleeping with him.. He’s given her signals. All she has to do is make the first move. It’s all she’s thinking about. (“I'm on a mission,/And it involves some heavy touchin' yeah./You've indicated your interest/I'm educated in sex, yes/And now I want it bad,
Want it bad/A love game/A love game.”)

              The pre-chorus is sung again.

           The chorus is sung again.

           In the bridge, he is talking with some friends who are regulars at the bar. In between, she catches him looking at her from time to time. Every romance begins with a glance and she wants to pursue it further. (“I can see you staring there from across the block with a smile on your mouth and your hand on your huh/The story of us it always starts the same with a boy and a girl and a huh and a game!/And a game/
And a game/And a game/A love game!”)
 

           The chorus is sung twice to end the single.

       Lady Gaga’s  bubbleheaded, insecure vocals pose in garish fashion, clamoring for attention by showing off a topless photo, hoping it will impress. Subtle isn’t in her vocabulary and it’s to her detriment. By playing dumb and attempting to be the sex kitten, she ends up being like everyone else.

      The unappealing “Lovegame” embarasses itself in its ridiculous ways it tries to be sexy.