‘Mayhem Requiem’ review: Lady Gaga turns pop melodrama into high art

Lady Gaga has killed her Gothic “Mayhem” persona.

With her new “Mayhem Requiem” live album and concert film from Apple Music, released Thursday, May 14, the pop superstar has produced a sumptuous memorial, with songs from her original 2025 studio album reimagined in new arrangements and rawer vocals from a performance recorded at Los Angeles’ Wiltern Theatre in January. 

But in classic Gaga fashion, there’s also an intimacy and romance to be found amidst the darker orchestrations, ruined Cathedral set and grand high-witch costumes that would make Morticia Addams envious. 

Seeing it on the big screen during its one-night engagement at AMC Theaters on Thursday further reinforced the feeling of a special occasion. 

Paying their respects at the Metreon were Gaga’s Little Monster fans in full regalia, many lip-synching the words with Mother Monster and a few throwing vogue arms in their seats. For all the grunge and industrial tinges to the music, this was a morbidly upbeat mass that put the “fun” in funeral.

At the end of the 2025 “Mayhem Ball” tour concerts, which I reviewed when it stopped at San Francisco’s Chase Center, Gaga burned down the show’s opera house set onscreen as she sang her 2009 hit “Bad Romance.” In a night full of production values that matched the Broadway level of showmanship of “The Phantom of the Opera,” it was an intriguing gesture that led fans to speculate that whatever came next would be a more stripped-down presentation. 

While “Mayhem Requiem” is less epic, it’s hardly minimalist. As Gaga struts the theatrical wreckage onstage in her widow’s weeds, mourning becomes her exquisitely, and her emotion is made for the close-up scrutiny of the concert film.  

The show opens with an energetic rendition of “Disease,” but scales back significantly with a haunting piano version of “Abracadabra.” Turning the dance hit into a ballad momentarily gives it a Kate Bush aura before Gaga amps things back up. 

As with any Gaga outing, we need to take a moment of silence for the costumes (in a good way). 

The risk with any pop star going Gothic is either repeating territory already tread by other artists or looking like a clearance rack at aughts mall favorite Hot Topic. 

But the costumes for “Mayhem Requiem,” curated by stylist Sandra Amador, are a masterclass in how to go for dark glamour without looking like a Tim Burton film character.

Among the designers Amador selected pieces from are 3-D construction master Iris van Herpen, sculptural technician Robert Wun, historically avant garde house Schiaparelli, the experimental Maison Margiela and even archival Givenchy from the 1990s, designed by Gaga’s late friend Alexander McQueen. 

The tricorn hat and beaded veil Gaga sports in the opening scene will no doubt inspire a million drag and clubkid looks. Likewise, a fishtail gown surrounded by swirls of black organza had a Victorian drama straight from a John Singer Sargent portrait. 

Thankfully, all the black is balanced by bombshell blond wigs like a pinup Ophelia. While they probably looked spectacular in person, too, the level of craft and detail on pieces — like an encompassing cowl dress that seems to swallow Gaga — are meant to be seen on screen.

While there is a fair amount of reinvention in the music, the overall tone remains rooted in the material’s operatic darkness. Among the reinterpretations are “Zombieboy” as a more 1980s synth-centric number and “How Bad Do You Want Me?” recast as a rock track, while “Lovedrug” is tinged with electronica.

But what’s always most exciting about any live performance is hearing if an artist can let loose vocally. Gaga has always had a great instrument, and the new versions of the songs allow her voice to soar. “Shadow of Man” and  “The Beast” are fine showcases for her power, while her performance of “Blade of Grass” is not only impressive vocally but is delivered with the depth of an actress.

“Mayhem Requiem” is laid to rest with Gaga’s Bruno Mars duet “Die With A Smile,” performed solo in a dance-friendly mid-tempo arrangement. As the lights flash around Gaga in her cyberpunk final ensemble, she looks like a next-generation Borg queen, singing the last rites for this period in her career. 

Both the concert film and album are imaginative reinventions of the material. The project will no doubt appeal to live music fans and those who remember the era of “MTV Unplugged” performances and special HBO concert broadcasts. 

Réquiem ætérnam dona eis, Gaga, et lux perpétua lúceat eis.