The first time I saw Lady Gaga was in 2009, it was Glastonbury Festival and I took a chance on her based only off of the strength of Just Dance, and Poker Face. She played 3rd down on The Other Stage, behind the Ting TIngs no less (who have yet to achieve the same heights). I had no idea what to expect, but had heard about the berserk costumes, and that was enough for me, I was sold. From the moment the show began, to the moment it ended I was greeted with a circus of sound and sight. There was too much to see, and not enough time to see it. It was patently obvious that the size of the stage was holding her back, I thought anyone with the gall to make 4 costume changes in a 40 minute set is either an artistic genius, or a deranged madman, and fortunately the latter has been proven correct.

I had been in Vegas for 4 days before Gaga descended. Vegas is sin city by name, and sin city by nature, it stands head and shoulders above anywhere I have ever seen as the shadiest city on earth, drugs are plentiful and strip clubs are as common as corner shops, every vice flourishes and there is a constant sense that behind the facade is nothing but danger. Gaga herself is like a whirlwind with the ability to sweep up any city into a colourful, loud, and dazzling vortex. From the moment my last day in Vegas started Gaga fans were everywhere, and they could be spotted from a mile away. For many a Lady Gaga show is more than a simple concert, It’s a space where you can belong, regardless of gender, class, sexuality or any of the other metrics we are segregated by. This is all exhibited via the most spectacular costumes. Every single era of Gaga’s career is represented, from ladies dressed as the cover of The Fame and Artpop to men dressed as Judas and Heavy Metal Lovers. It’s less of an audience and more of a scrapbook of seven years of one womans message.

As time drew nearer the multi coloured rabble of Monsters took to the MGM Grand for the show. Upon walking through the gates and onto the arena floor I was greeted with the familiar warmth you only get from a Lady Gaga show, ArtRave is the name of the tour and you could feel it from the moment you enter, 30 minutes before even the first act was to take the stage the speakers were blasting out the most vicious of dance music. The entire space was already like a club floor with people moving and shaking from the ground to the top of the stands, clearly the more die hard fans had already flocked around one of 4 stage areas that would be used throughout the nights proceedings. The stage itself was awe inspiring, sprawling out from the main area to no less than 3 separate and smaller platforms. One of which had a piano moulded to look like something from the beginning of The Empire Strikes Back. A curtain obscured the main section of the stage, so not to spoil the surprise, and as 7:30 came, down went the lights, and a videotape played to signal the start of BabyMetal!

If you have never heard of BabyMetal, you have been missing out on the most polarising act this side of metal and J-pop, if you’re a fan of metal the instrumentals will be sure to tickle your fancy. It’s as brutal as the most heavy Meshuggah song, but the vocals… Well the vocals are the crooning of 3 teenage Japanese girls, in the most extremely J-poppy style imaginable, It’s like a ballet in Auschwitz. The video tape in the style of Star Wars displayed pictures of BabyMetal with Slayer and Metallica, and described how they were sent from some far flung planet to be heavy metal. Frankly it was so mental it was quite hard to discern any meaning from it, but before I knew it they band had made their way on stage and what followed was 30 minutes of brutal beatdowns, sweeping solos and oriental wailing. The biggest, and only song from the set I knew was of course Gimme Chocolate, to try and ascertain any meaning beyond face value, which is they want chocolate, but don’t want to put on any weight, would be a task. It’s exactly the message that should be spread in these times of great austerity, but jokes aside it’s easy to see why they have been booked to play on this tour, they are a band that has no natural fitting. A group of individuals who dared to be completely different. It fits perfectly with the Gaga ethos, judging by the reaction of the crowd they were loved by all, but in a bemused and confused sort of way. I personally thoroughly enjoyed it, there’s enough musicianship in the band to make them passable, and the aesthetic is so fucking barmy that you’ll never be left anything more than thoroughly entertained.

Second on was Lady Starlight, without Starlight you wouldn’t have Gaga, by this point she is a huge fan service to the Monsters who have been to multiple tours. This is immediately obvious the moment she walks out to a very vocal, adoring MGM Grand Arena. Dressed in a simple beige skirt suit she is the antithesis of the act she proceeds. Her job is simple, keep the crowd entertained before the main act starts, and this is done with an hour of minimalistic House music. She does a very good job of holding the massive audience using very little of the stage available to her, and that itself should be applauded. In truth no one is going away talking about how great Starlight was, it was just too minimalistic, but as a means to an end it really fits the bill. As soon as she leaves the stage, an atmosphere descends over the building. It’s as if the Queen is coming to the tea, you know, if the Queen was a 7ft giant Octopus that sings.

There’s always that moment at any gig where the lights go down before the person/people you came to see. It’s a feeling you only get at a concert, and there’s no way to describe it accurately. Regardless of whether it’s Pop, Metal, Hip Hop or any of the other colours of the musical rainbow, it always incurs the same reaction from anyone in attendance. The wall of noise in this case was ineffable, the whirlwind that had swept up Vegas was here, and she was ready to put on a performance. Even for Gaga, who has one of the most devoted fan basses of any touring artist today, launching immediately into 5 songs off of your new album is a brave move. Thats exactly what she did however, and the reaction was of course huge, opener Artpop got the biggest pop of the gaggle of opening songs, but the start of Just Dance certainly prompted the biggest reaction of the night so far. If you thought using new songs first was a bold choice, than the idea that she would take the three songs most instrumental in launching her career and mash them up in to a mix would be surely inconceivable. Smashing Just Dance/ Poker Face/ Telephone in about 5 minutes is an experience. The amount of singles sold between just those 3 songs is substantial, and yet they’re cast aside in favour of newer more meaningful material, in a time where label and sponsor pressure would push an artist to put their strongest foot first I salute her for sticking to her guns.

A solo acoustic version of Born This Way, as well as a solo performance of Dope were my personal highlights of the sets. Both songs, especially the former when framed in this way are incredible pieces of music, it goes to show that behind all the pantomime and pomp lies one woman with the most incredible and powerful voice. Judas and Alejandro also cause a near frenzy, in a night so full of hit singles it never ceased to amaze me just how much of a massive reaction each and every individual song got.

It simply wouldn’t be a Lady Gaga show if it didn’t have the most ludicrous outfits imaginable. The Sea Shell bikini with the Acoustic Flying V was quite neutered in its approach, whereas the Anime/Rave crossover outfit was a sight to behold. All in all there was 8 costumes over the course of the 90 minute set, each one as ridiculous as the next. The simple Chrome Dress was of course complimented with a Sea-horse shaped Keytar, and the startlingly elaborate Octopus outfit came tandem with a giant hand shaped throne which would ascend into the air, so that everyone could catch a glimpse of the madness. The final costume change interestingly enough came on stage, Gaga ripped off her wig, in what I assumed was some sort of a understandable breakdown, but actually turned out to be just another calculated move in a perfectly choreographed show. She then turned round and did her last change on stage. It was a smart idea and demonstrated to everyone just how much energy and planning goes into each and every aspect of this massive show.

Throughout the show she took time to interact with the fans, hoisting into the air one of a number of Pride flags that adorned the arena, as well as taking time to proudly display one of a number of gifts passed on to stage, including and but not limited to a blow up doll, Go figure. One of the most touching and natural moments of the show came towards the end when she plucked a letter from a fan in the crowd, and then proceeded to read it out on stage. The letter described how the writer had a hard time coming out and how the influence of Born This Way helped him, something that was probably ture of a number of the people in attendance that night, it also went on to describe how much he wanted to sit and drink tea with Gaga, an offer she accepted for after the show. What took me surprise, was how out of breath she was when addressing the crowd between songs, it should come as no surprise seeing how intense the performance is, the ability to sing and dance is not something we are born with, it take serious training, but when stars like Gaga and Beyonce make it seem so effortless it’s easy to forget how physically fit they have to be.

The end of the show was brought around with Bad Romance, Applause, Swine and for an encore, Gypsy. All four songs were expectedly brilliant with Applause and Bad Romance in particular being highlights of the more vibrant parts of the set, and as quickly as it had began, the set had ended. It left me with a sense of wonderment, and also the a feeling of fulfillment. It was oddly like seeing someone who you’ve followed for a number of years come full circle. This wasn’t a muddy second stage at a festival, this was her own space in which she has a chance to innovate and captivate, and this is exactly what she had done. It was time for the massive crowd that had all descended for one reason to disperse, safe in the knowledge that they had got their moneys worth. Mount Gaga had erupted, leaving a slain MGM Grand Garden Arena in her wake.