Audio By Carbonatix
Lady Gaga Better than:
American Airlines Center
March 14, 2011
“I am certain that Jesus must love EVERYBODY,” Gaga roared into her mic at American Airlines Center last night. “Jesus loves everybody.”
Gaga was preaching.
When news happens, Dallas Observer is there —
Your support strengthens our coverage.
We’re aiming to raise $30,000 by December 31, so we can continue covering what matters most to you. If the Dallas Observer matters to you, please take action and contribute today, so when news happens, our reporters can be there.
“I told you we were going to church tonight,” the scantily clad pop (sensation) purred into her mic, before introducing her half-nude, S&M attired guitarist, Michael. “I like Michael ’cause he likes girls from Texas.”
The girls in the audience squealed.
“I also like Michael because he likes boys from Texas,” she said, and the stadium roared.
Gaga then got down on the ground and slid her body under Michael’s legs, all the while panting heavily into the mic, grabbing his thigh and planting a kiss on his knee. An enormous statue of the eternal fountain, centrally located on stage, started to bleed: “Tonight, my religion is Texas.”
Synths filled the air, and Gaga crooned over top, all while shirtless dancers spun around on stage. Gaga launched into a lively and interactive version of “Alejandro” and the crowd sang every word along with her. The eternal fountain was now engulfed in flames, as Gaga bathed herself in the (hopefully faux) blood.
Indeed, Lady Gaga put on a sparkling show last night for the at packed house at American Airlines Center. With her over-the-top stage theatrics, imaginative costumes and expensive set designs, the pop star seamlessly transitioned between songs, dazzling her “little monsters” along the way.
And the pop star’s efforts to embrace the Dallas crowd were apparent — as she managed to work “Dallas” into her vocabulary a ton.
“Go ahead monsters, take my picture, I wanna be a Dallas star,” she shouted before strumming on her Casio keyboard/bass hybrid instrument.
Actually, Gaga played several different instruments last night — at one point sitting down at a grand piano to play a slowed down version of “Born This Way,” making it clear to the audience that she’s not your average rinky-dink pop star. No, she’s a multi-instrumentalist — and she has one hell of a set of pipes on her.
She’s got messages, too: The night was filled with uplifting motivational speeches and rants, saying everything from “I want you to leave loving yourself a little bit more when you walk out” to “This music industry sucks so much” to “I really don’t like the truth; I prefer a giant dose of bullshit any day.”
Only minutes later, she launched into a lengthy rant about never ever lip-syncing, ever, not at her concerts — not on TV, never. Also? How people should “never pay money to see some blonde bitch lip sync.”
She was all over the place — both in her rants, but also with her catalog. And she made sure she covered all the hits — one twice, even. She ended the night with a “Born This Way” encore.
After the vivacious performance, Gaga grabbed hands with her dancers, and they bowed together as the curtain fell.
Critic’s Notebook
Personal Bias: I’m definitely not one of Gaga’s “little monsters.” But at least now I know how to “put my paws up.”
By The Way: Gaga announced that she will no longer be playing just arena shows. “I will be playing shows wherever I want, for free,” she said. Which explains her pop-up show at the Round-Up Saloon late on Sunday night.
Random Note: There were a whole lot of children under the age of 10 at the American Airlines Center last night. I wonder if their parents knew how much profanity, junk-grabbing and blood-bathing was in store when they shelled out money for these tickets…
