mp3: Lady Gaga – Alejandro (Rusko’s Papuseria Remix) [via]

Although it may not be my favorite Gaga video, I applaud her efforts to keep the music video format alive and interesting. I wonder where this storyline will go next…

mp3: Lady Gaga Featuring Beyonce – Telephone (Kaskade Remix) [alt]

In all honesty I feel most awards ceremonies are so out of touch with what I consider quality music, but nonetheless I always tune in for the performances, fashion, surprises and disappointments.

Sunday night’s’ show kicked off on a high note with Lady Gaga performing a high-concept run through of Pokerface and duetting with no other than Sir Elton John for lovely renditions of Your Song and Speechless. High performance notes came from Pink who performed nerve-wracking acrobatic rendition of Glitter in the Air, Stevie Nicks, Maxwell with Roberta Flack and Jeff Beck with Imelda May in tribute to guitartist Les Paul. The eloquent acceptance speech by Prince Jackson and Paris Jackson on behalf of their late father Michael Jackson was also very sweet and endearing.

There were no big shockers on the fashion side (beside Gaga being a bit subdued): Rihanna and Beyonce glamming it up, Katy Perry and Ke$ha appearing haggardly, and Fergie and Britney not dressing up for the occasion. Along with the dead air censored performance by Lil Wayne, Eminem and Drake, Gaga and Yeah Yeah Yeahs being snubbed, the overly hyped 3-D visuals that accompanied the Michael Jackson Tribute were a disappointment.  The headache-inducing 3D visuals didn’t really work with the visuals and overall it was just distracting, but the performances were great. I was also disappointed by the lack of crowd shots and lack of awards handed out. Also, WTF did Beyonce sing You Oughta Know?

mp3: Pink – Sober (Bimbo Jones Club Mix) [alt]

mp3: Kings of Leon – Use Somebody (RAC Remix) [alt]

mp3: Lady Gaga Featuring Beyonce – Telephone (Passion Pit Remix) [alt]

A few awards I agree with are below, fill list of winners HERE.

Lady Gaga at Radio City Music Hall 1/23/10

Two years ago I attended an Anti-Valentines Day themed party with my cousin at the now defunct Le Royale.  Toward the end of the night, in walked a blonde wearing sunglasses, heels, a huge white fur coat…and not much else. We snickered “Who the hell does she think she is?” and continued checking out the scene. Shortly after open bar we were on our way out but stayed to check out The Lady Gaga Revue at the insistence of the bouncer. As the set began we soon realized that the show was being spearheaded by that female with the questionable wardrobe from earlier in the night…

Our initial reactions were “What the hell is this?” along with chuckling at the naughty choreography and silly, innuendo-heavy lyrics of Boys Boys Boys, Paparazzi, LoveGame and Beautiful Dirty Rich. However a few minutes into the show, we were hooked fans dancing and singing along to the mega-catchy songs that we’d never heard before. That night I described The Lady Gaga Revue as a strange breeding of Missy Elliott’s Supa Dupa Fly (lyrically), guilty pop, S & M and girl on girl burlesque. At the time of the show Gaga’s debut album The Fame had not yet  been released and Just Dance (which went on to be her debut single) was omitted from the live performance but played by the DJ as a preview after the performance. From that moment on I had no doubt that Lady Gaga would blow up but I had no clue HOW FAST!

Two years later I found myself at Radio City Music Hall on Saturday night for the third of four SOLD OUT Lady Gaga shows, a feat preceded by a monstrous string of record-breaking hits, nominations, awards and her overall domination of the industry. As I walked into the madness that was Radio City Music Hall, not only was I totally excited for the show, but I felt really proud of Lady Gaga’s coming full circle.

The venue was packed with people of all ages and mostly consisted of teenage girls and older gay men, many of which dressed in some form of Gaga incarnation and ridiculousness. It was what I always imagined going to a Madonna concert in the 80′s would have been like. At 9:30 PM the venue darkened and a transparent screen flashed visuals in front of Gaga whose outfit comprised of strategically placed lights for the fitting opener Dance in the Dark. For the next two hours Gaga delivered a non-stop kick in the teeth with every performance from the set.

Personal highlights from the show (to name a few) include the avant-garde S&M performance of Paparazzi, the steamy Alejandro, the stunning downtempo piano medley and the showstopping Pokerface. Visual backdrops, about 10 costume changes, unpredictable crowd interaction and video montages (including a surprising use of Mobb Deep’s Shook Ones) kept the show fresh and concertgoers on their toes.

It’s amazing to see how much Gaga has evolved in 2 years and how she has crafted her performance: from a small stage in the West Village on a random weeknight with 2 backup dancers and backing tape, to having the hottest sold out tour at Radio City Music Hall in 2010. The Monster Ball was an impressive headlining tour and a strong vantage point for Lady Gaga, which in turn set the bar high for 2010′s pop stars to follow suit.  An arena tour including a show at Madison Square Garden will follow the wrapping of The Monster Ball, which will surely bring  a polished show to a much larger audience. Can’t wait!

Enjoy a few pictures below, many more: FULL GALLERY HERE.

mp3: Lady Gaga – Eh Eh (Frankmusik Remix) [alt]
mp3: Lady Gaga – Bad Romance (Starsmith Remix) [alt]
mp3: Lady Gaga – LoveGame (Space Cowboy Remix) [alt]

There was an interesting array of presenters including a ranting Zooey Deschanel, legendary Cyndi Lauper and Leighton Meester, Mary Louise Parker, 3OH!3 dressed like Lady Gaga, will.i.am in a snuggie, a drunk? Pete Wentz, and Janelle Monae channeling a robotic Grace Jones.

Friendly Fires post-Ninjasonik derailed interview

The day before the awards show we chatted with Friendly Fires at their Fred Perry party at SPiN NYC and they mentioned hoping that they didn’t get Kanye’d at the show. Well that didn’t exactly happen, but they DID get Ninjasonik‘d during their interview with Matt Pinfield which was totally derailed. Hilarious! Check out our pictures below and keep a look out for the broadcast of the show. Until then enjoy this video I snapped of the epic set by Dead Weather!

Dead Weather at the MTV Woodie Awards Originally uploaded by TLC Blog

More pictures can be seen HERE.

MP3: Matt & Kim – Daylight (Troublemaker Remix feat. De La Soul) or zShare
MP3: The Dead Weather – Treat Me Like Your Mother (Diplo Remix) or zShare

MP3: Lady GaGa – LoveGame (Robots to Mars Remix) or zShare

We’re looking forward to seeing this extravagant “electro pop-opera,” full tour dates can be seen HERE. The expanded debut The Fame will be released as The Fame Monster on November 23rd!

Tour Dates:

New York: January 20th & 21 at Radio City Music Hall [Tickets]
London: February 26 & 27 at 02 Arena. [Tickets]

MP3: Lady Gaga – Paparazzi (Stuart Price Remix) or  zShare

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Let’s just hope she keeps up this much more subdued image or at least keeps it in the context of performance art. Kudos for putting on a damn good show and deciding to tour sans Kanye.

MP3: Lady Gaga – Poker Face (Dave Aude Remix Dub) or zShare

Along with a new video, Lady Gaga is also Rolling Stone’s covergirl and got remix royalty treatment for Paparazzi by one of my favorite producers Stuart Price as well as The Filthy Dukes.

MP3: Lady Gaga – Paparazzi (Stuart Price Remix) or zShare

MP3: Lady Gaga – Paparazzi (The Filthy Dukes Remix) or zShare