Judas Review

Let's be honest, going by this, Gaga clearly failed Religious Education. It doesn't really matter all that much, though.

On first listen, it's a bit of a jumble. A deceptively joyous choir of "oh-oh-oh I'm in love with Judas" opens the song, quickly giving way to the "sledge hammering of beats" we've been promised for so long. The verses are pretty dark, which seems at odds with the euphoric upbeat chorus that follows. Then there's the "middle 8" which feels pretty subdued by Lady Gaga's standards, which is followed by it all going crazy. Like all good Gaga singles, there's a hook of random syllables, this time opting for the slightly more logical than usual "Ju-das-Juda-a-a, Ju-das-Juda-a-a, Ju-das-Juda-a-a, Judas-Gaga".

Honestly, I was a tad disappointed. First 'Born This Way', and now this.

So, I went about my business for the day. And I found myself singing the chorus without meaning to. So I listened to it again. And yes, it was still everything I described above. But it started to slot into place. Gaga's chucked a lot at us here, but it all has a reason. There's a dead-pan humour to the lyrics, such as "Love is like a brick, you can build a house or sink a dead body", that suggest she's not taking it all as seriously as one might think.

After the overly-preachy 'Born This Way', it's nice to see Gaga cutting loose a bit more. Like 'Bad Romance' before it, she takes heartbeat and betrayal, and remixes them for the dancefloor.

Despite the title, don't take the religious references too seriously. They're a metaphor obviously, but she doesn't hit us over the head with them. She's leaving that for the beats to do.