Wynter Gordon should be considered as one of the most exciting new-wave dance acts from the last decade. She proves this statement, never failing to charm a listener for a second, on her With The Music I Die –  EP, a chemically approved combination of European big-beat dance production, sticky-sweet pop poetics, and a voice that was born to live on the dance floor. “Till Death” should be placed as the 2012′s “ten minutes ’till midnight” song as it kindly mirrors statements on how music is the coolest drug around and how dancing should be one of the last things we do before we die. New blood producer Tom Neville entrances a hands-up-in-the-air pop grime that ceases to be aggressively simple in the dance production, apart from when Gordon’s murky vocals have a tempting drop before each chorus, when we hear “Till death do we party, with the music I die.”

If you really want a retro throwback to the heyday of 80′s floor-shakers and early 90′s alternative dance, you just get Swedish House Mafia member Axwelll to deliver a little number for ya!  When was the last time, you heard the term “shabang” in a dance record? “Buy My Love” is straight fun, energizing jaunty xylophone snaps, and 80′s style electro synths with a warble of “oohs” that never want to stop, don’t crackle and do nothing but pop. In the chorus, Gordon’s cartoony melodious jubilee may animate images of her rolling her eyes and batting her eyelashes while fearlessly playing the role as a gold digger at the local diner in the year 1985. “Give me shoes! Give me roses! Give me romance!” The xylophones dominate the track  as Gordon politely performs a roar of profound vocals in the bridge.

“Don’t Stop Me” captivates a sound that is a  pathway of nebulous house balancing over streaks of plucked electronica piano and a spectrum of sun soaked beams. “Uhhh! You want it, You’ve done it now!” she guiltily admits –a “your love!” vocal-pant that re-appears throughout the chorus and easily recalls the early 2000s era of bubble gum effects found in  Dream, Christina Aguilera and Jessica Simpson production. The Middle 8 shuts it down when she swiftly gets through a final verse where she counts in full swagger  “5, 6, 7,8.. You going to make it home late!” building up to a beat drop leading to a bundle of vocal stutters declaring this is almost the end.

“Empire Of The Sun” takes us back to the beginning pre-evolved Giorgio Moroder house music in the 80′s. ‘Still Getting Younger” has Gordon crying about a summer romance that grows to become more and alive day-by-day. “Don’t want no other baby, I got you covered, our love is growing and getting younger” as the choral piece glides into an extraterrestrial sounding chime that feels light years away, this frizzy pin point is the EP’s biggest share.

When The Sun Goes Down is a musical succession showcasing Gomez’s progression and how she has grown into a mature, respectable pop artist who can still manage to have the youngster candy-floss sass of an ex-Disney princess.

“Love You Like A Love Song” accelerates into full speed with icy Rock Mafia dubstep wobbles that spotlight during a a swift chorus claiming of being so in love with a lover, that you want to replay the highlights of the love, like clicking play on a CD player. Gomez’s metamorphosis comes to form in the middle 8 where her lush vocals ride the wave of a dreamy faux-trance moment. “No one compares, you stand alone to every record I own.”

Toby Gad’s 80s video-game synths are lavish with confident retro tunage. A constant brag about Selena’s new boy between verses is both silly and cute: “My new boy he’s got more swagger than you.. My new boy used to be a model,” holding over unborn R&B inspired verses/vocals. Writer Pixie Lott’s delicate touch on a bundle of crystal-clear “Woah-oh-ohs” in “Bang Bang Bang”‘s chorus is both necessary and charismatic.

“Who Says” is acoustic and polished, but yet another “I <3  ME” anthem. It’s a track to listen to when you’re facing a breezy summer day filled with troubled looks or self-esteem issues. “Who says you can’t be in movies, listen to, listen to me, who says you can’t past the test” is a cry of hope to troubled youth, on top of a sparkly chime as the end approaches makes it less sappy and more empowering and, well, believable.

“We Own The Night” is paired with Toby G’s composition of simplified guitar, modified piano, and a singing drum that reminisces of 2001′s Top 40. The track is a calming celebration of spending good times with good friends, putting our day-to-day problems aside, and becoming an A.I. addition of ourselves as the night starts to appear. “Do whatever, be whoever we like, We sleep when we die! Don’t worry about nothing, we own the night!” It’s a husky serenade glimmering over the starry main moment. The cryptic robots spewing words back and forth during the last chorus before the song climbs to its apex turns things around last minute and rubs off an electronic certainty.

The Dreamlab produced “Hit The Lights” is touch-and-go. A drum that is being forced to move in the same direction and that same ol’ flashing-fire synth with lyrics that are surprisingly witty. The song presumes that we have a second chance at something we’ve missed out on by converting the energy and losing our regrets on the dance-floor.. “It’s a mad mad world, got to make an escape..” The oblivious shouting in the chorus is tasteless, though, and the lack of ear-striking production puts the lyrics to waste.

Mega pop connoisseur Greg Kurstin’s odyssey “Whiplash” is rancid, hypnotic, and mysterious in the sense that the sounds are playing a game of hide-and-go-seek on a back lit dance floor. With its provoking ambiance, Gomez could’ve possibly recorded it above the pit of a volcano. At times, the song emulates the actual voyeuristic feeling of someone watching you. The pre-chorus is completely berserk, rapidly spoken with British accents, and purrs transitions into a chorus that sincerely bleeds pop: “I’m so in love I think I’m going to crash again! Whiplash-lash-lash,” chants of vocal repetition, space-house “la la la la’s” and cheerleader chants of “Whiplash” makes this track the albums keeper.

The catch to all of this? “Whiplash” was co-written by Britney Spears, the original sex-kitten school girl who clearly cut the song before Gomez, as there is no way Selena could do such a spot-on signature Britney vocal impersonation, with whispers, croons, and audible lip smacks, unless SGo spent her childhood singing along to In The Zone with a brush as the microphone.

Stefan Abingdon produced pop-sass  in “When The Sun Goes Down”.  Gleamed up with a so-effing-hip ode to Steve Jobs, (“I checked my iphone.. Let me see whats going on!”) Selena preludes to the party-starter chorus where her vocals are nothing but comfortable as she excitingly speed-sings, “The party doesn’t start till the sung goes down!” The track reprises the familiar effects of robots chatting in-verse, as well as cheerleader chants.

“My Dilemma” is a straight 80s-inspired disco dilemma where Gomez complains about being attached to someone who is nothing but bad for her. The fizzle of a bubbly pop-punk rasp in unison with The Knack’s immortal rhythm invention “M-m-m-m-y”. “Dilemma” is a listenable, but ultimately open-and-shut pop track, filler for the album.

Selena is Katy Perry’s dress-up doll on “That’s More Like It”, an oddly out of place feminist song that could be a perspective on gender roles in a relationship. “Make me dinner, bring it to me, that’s more like it!,” she thwacks with an invisible wink on top of the laid back Billy Steinberg jitterbug.

Penultimately, “Outlaw” is a hazy motion upon airy rave characteristics that squander over Gomez’s dark howl disclosing a modern day Casanova who’s dying inside — “The next girl who leaves gets smaller in your rear view mirror.”

The finale is “The Middle Of No Where” a techno love confessional matched with a 80s arena-ready chorus that could be drifted away due to an unlevelled bass line that can’t decide if it’s going to shut up and let Selena own the final track, or not, on When The Sun Goes Down.

Alex Kazemi: You started producing music  during  the glory days of late 90s and early 2000s pop… Mya, Enrique, Marc Anthony, Beck… Latin pop, a bit. Do you feel that in 2005-2008 pop music took a switch from that pure-bubble gum pop, (Jessica Simpson, Britney, Spice Girls, N*SYNC) to a more electronic-techno based sound? Possibly music that fell into the genres of Dance, Techno and House in the 90s, could be considered what mainstream pop is like today?

Fernando Garibay:  Yes, but actually before that I was putting out techno/house records. I was developing a bit of a name for myself doing underground records when I started getting calls from labels asking me to remix some pop stuff. Inadvertently, pop music was going through a bit of a Latin invasion at the time, which happened to coincide with my goal of proving to my Mexican family that I could actually succeed at this. I knew they wouldn’t know who Beck or Mya were, but they sure as hell know who Enrique Iglesias was. After the Latin invasion, I felt pop music migrated to a more urban phase in American pop radio and definitely a more electronic direction in the U.K. I liked both so my remixes and productions where directly inspired by a hybrid of those two elements.

Kazemi: How do you feel about the birth of millennium pop? N*SYNC, Spice Girls, what is known as “Classic Britney”, does that extravagant-pop  songwriting/production stand out to you today?

Fernando: I grew up in South Central LA; there was nothing about Millennium pop I could relate to. All we listened to growing up in the hood was anything by Dr. Dre, hard techno records from Europe like Prodigy, and believe or not New Wave records from the likes of Depeche Mode and Duran Duran. I heard subtle Dr. Dre influences in the Max Martin productions of Britney and N*SYNC, which did perk my ears up. I am grateful we got great artists like Justin and Britney out of that period. Justin is always incredible, and everyone, including myself looks forward to the records he makes.

Kazemi: You were part of that pop-wave in a way, working with Mya as I mentioned before, remixed Ashlee Simpson and of-course Paris Hilton . Do you ever look back at how different the industry was then, such as how people were buying CDs or how music videos were religiously played on MTV? Do you think it was a healthier state, and easier to make music? [laughs] Do you understand the genius of “Stars Are Blind” in retrospect? It’s an amazing pop record; such a summer-reggae pop tune.

Fernando: Thank you. Well I always loved reggae, especially when paired with the imagery of paradise. That’s why I named my studio Paradise, by the way. I loved how British artists like The Police and Culture Club were infusing reggae with pop music in the 80s so I felt that I could attempt the bridge that gap again. Hence why “Star’s Are Blind” was born. It was originally written for Gwen Stefani, but as it turns out she decided not to release an album at that point in time. Next, I played it to Paris Hilton whom I met through mutual friends and that was it. To be honest with you, I do very much miss the album cover as an art form and the excitement of buying a CD, especially one that I worked on. But on the flip side, I do enjoy the convenience of my iTunes library. I try not to think of the former music industry too much, it’s kind of heart breaking. We had budgets back then, to make records and to develop artists. Even though I was still struggling to compete with multi-million dollar earning producers at the time, there was that optimism that you could possible write songs that could potentially change your life financially. In order to do that now, you need to be a lot more innovative, and you have to definitely work much harder in comparison. Funny, at the time I thought I couldn’t work any harder.

Kazemi: I  could not agree more about the art form of buying a physical CD, the excitement was some type of natural high. In 2008, you worked with Britney Spears on “Amnesia,” which is very Britney, by the way. How did you come up with the concept?

Fernando: It was one of those songs that my songwriting friend Kasey Livingston and I came up with one evening after she asked me how my weekend was. My response was “I can’t remember,” her response, “that good huh? Amnesia.” As soon as I finished it, I sent it over to Teresa Labarbera Whites (Britney’s A&R) who asked for a record for Britney. She played it for her and we cut it two weeks later. That’s how I’ve always worked. I approach all my music as if I were scoring a movie about myself. I guess I have always seen music that way, as a soundtrack to my life… and hopefully everyone else’s.

Kazemi:When did “Quicksand” come up? Did you call GaGa up for some help? Was this around when you first got to know each other and were writing for other artists?

Fernando: “Quicksand” was one of the first songs Gaga and I wrote. We started working together right after she had just finished The Fame album with Red One. Gaga and I were both artists at Interscope and Jimmy Iovine had asked me to meet up with her at my studio. That same night in came a blonde girl in her underwear who would eventually  change my life. Her and I were going through a bit of heartbreak in our lives and I was playing this piano motif right as she walked into my studio for the first time and she just started writing, “baby, because you and me are sinking like quicksand.”

Kazemi:  I think basically after that, it was all up-hill! The second public Gaga-Fernando collaboration was “Dance In The Dark” off The Fame Monster, the concept behind the lyrics puts us in the eyes of someone who has sex in the dark and is ashamed on their body. But then again, someone else could interoperate it in a whole different way. Are these songs intentionally supposed to be puzzle pieces?

Fernando: It’s interesting how Gaga’s songs are very open for interpretation yet very specific. That is her true talent. It relates to everyone. It tells her story and your story all at the same time. And she is successful because it’s real, it is who she is, and it is who we are at times.

Kazemi: Do you like the CeCe Peniston mix of “Dance In The Dark” from The Monster Ball Tour? Did you have to approve it before it became the introduction to the concert?

Fernando: That was an edit for The Monster Ball. It’s perfect, approved!

Kazemi: Why didn’t “No Way” make The Fame Monster? How do you feel about the whole leak culture spreading different information and often leaving everyone confused? Was it ever finished?

Fernando: Gaga is holding onto “No Way” at moment and saving it for something special. No, that was a demo that leaked, unfortunately. Leaks are not my favorite thing in the world. It’s like showing the world a sketch of a painting for people to judge as the masterpiece.

Kazemi: When did the Born This Way sessions begin? Was it a particular night? Did GaGa just call you up and ask to work on the second album or was it more complicated?

Fernando: It was more like she called me and said “I have this song I just wrote and I want to play it for you.” Two hours later I was on a flight to Australia. She’s super spontaneous like that; I just go with the flow and try to capture every moment of her creativity to tape, so to speak. I guess you can say that’s how my role of Music Supervisor for the Born This Way album came to fruition. Before I knew it I was traveling the world producing the album with her.

Kazemi: You wrote most of the record on the road, right?

Fernando: That is correct. The whole album was done on the road. From the American leg, to the European leg, and back… we recorded it all along in a bus with a purpose-built studio in it. We recorded with laptops backstage in her dressing room, in her hotel room, you name it. That’s how we were able to get it done in the middle of a worldwide tour.

Kazemi: Could you explain how your writing/creative process coincides with her many influences/inspirations? Do they go hand in hand? You co-wrote almost every song on the album.

Fernando: Well most of the time she’d come in with completed songs, so my job was to facilitate in executing her vision. Sometimes she heard a song in various forms, i.e. a rock version, a techno version, a full electro version, so we had to do many revisions of a song to get to a point that made sense for her. I’ll never forget the way she would describe the way she wanted her records to be like… sometimes she would dance it out for us, other times she’d describe an emotion or give us a visual, and many times she would flat out program the parts. Insane, right? Who does that?

Kazemi: [laughs] Only GaGa, only GaGa!  When you released “Born This Way” a lot of “in the know” publications named it as a carbon copy of Madonna’s “Express Yourself”.  Did it just end up sounding like that? Do you have anything to address?  It is a common-found disco chord progression though, if we put all of the passé “comparisons” bullshit to the side.

Fernando: We take any comparisons to Madonna as a compliment. We are all big fans of her. One of my favorite songs is “La Isla Bonita.”

Kazemi: [laughs] In the studio, what is   a natural session like with GaGa? How does a song like “Marry The Night” happen?

Fernando: “Marry The Night” was inspired by two things. For her, it is her metaphoric husband that is New York; for me, I was just trying to outdo the feeling I got when I first saw “Dance In The Dark” performed live as the opening number for the Monster Ball. It was the look on the audiences’ faces the minute that intro started; it was like I saw her for the first time and she was bigger than life. I felt like the audience was going to church, as if they were having a religious experience. I just kept hearing church bells in my head. It’s strange how her and I were so on the same page; upon hearing the track she instantly made to correlation with it being ceremonious and still dark. She looked at me, pointed, and sang, “I’m going to marry the night, I won’t give up on my life…”

Kazemi: Was “Marry The Night” an experiment at all?   I’ve noticed the mix  of 80s hair-band based choruses over massive pop beats pattern throughout the album worked out really well; was this intentional or unintentional?

Fernando: It was no experiment; she knew exactly what the vision was. That never wavered.

Kazemi: The obscure melodies overpower some of the huge pop production at times through the record; would you agree?

I wouldn’t say it’s the obscure melodies, I would say it’s the power of her songwriting that stands out. And that right there is what a good production should be; it should highlight the song, not the tricks. Anyone with Ableton and a laptop can do tricks; the magic is in the song… that’s where it counts. The rest is fashion, and we do have a good fashion sense I think.

Kazemi: Was it a strange feeling knowing that you were producing an album that was self-proclaimingly aimed as the album of the decade? Did that add any pressure to the job?

Fernando: Pressure? No pressure! It’s not like… I was asked to be responsible for executing the vision of the most influential woman on the planet… All joking aside, once I was over the initial shock of being asked to oversee the album, I quickly got into soldier mode and committed to a mindset that we were not going to fail, no matter what.

Kazemi: [laughs] “Heavy Metal Lover” is, without a doubt, the production highlight on the album. The rave essence of it, the manic vocal shreds, and all the smutty talk makes it an incredible pop track. If “Heavy Metal Lover” were to get on the radio, it would change the state of pop music and open a lot of doors for Top40 artists. Would you say that you and GaGa have created control with pop music, changing it for the better?

Fernando: Wow, you think so! I’m flattered!, but I really think a lot of the songs on this album could potentially have that power, from “Marry The Night” to “Bloody Mary” to “Americano.”

Kazemi: I honestly do believe that..When GaGa cut “Heavy Metal Lover” were you like, “whoa… what have I done? Did I really just make that?” Does she inspire you to make productions like you’ve never before?

Fernando: I just go for it! She would expect nothing less.

Kazemi: I’m sure other artists other than GaGa want to work with you. .

Fernando: Yeah.

Kazemi: You are always going to be a  bit more involved with GaGa. How do you create balance? Will an outside artist be getting a more toned down product? Are those productions only as amazing as they are because you and Gaga have such incredible chemistry?

Fernando: I’m passionate about every record I do with whatever artist I work with. I try to take myself and my biases out of the equation for the sake of the artist’s vision I’m working with. I’ll go as far or hard as an artist would like me to go; I see myself as a catalyst for their artistry. Gaga is a producer; I make records with her, and that’s why our records will always sound like Gaga records. She’s not part of the equation, she is the equation.

All to think it was something “new and fresh,” well, kids, it is something we’ve all heard before, reconstructed and rebuilt, with strange melodies that overpower the scourging beats that may mend one’s mind. Born This Way contradicts itself: it is an album that is layered with repetitive mantras of self-empowerment, with every track stereotyping and capitalizing on different points of views on certain people based on looks, attitude and full on demeanor. Should we not give this album the light of day because of the contradiction? Could we stop right there and say, “I’m legitimately born this way, I don’t need a record to yell at me and tell me who I am, I know who I am. I’m not listening to this.” Wrong. Many rely on pop music, pop culture, and a prolific role model who rocks a mean meat dress to tell them who they are. This album could be curated for the kids of the Y2K generation who need someone to talk to, a leader who mirrors the image of a god who understands the angst and abuse that being a teenager entails. Whether keyboard slamming or being spit on at school, the social commentary in this album is necessary and applicable to everything that is wrong in this generation. A celebration of freaks, misfits, self-proclaimed losers, and being allowed to dress however you want. Born This Way circumscribes the temporary feelings one could have experienced at The Monster Ball and has turned them into an album of fourteen tracks, a motel where you can relax (since hotels are too proper,) forget everything, and turn on the music.

Born This Way reaches full throttle instantaneously thanks to “Marry The Night,” a millennial hymn overflowing with an 80s glam-metal “Pour Some Sugar On Me” chorus where GaGa announces she is “going to marry the night!” on top of   Garibay’s strumming bassline. Church bells prove to work in a pop song, along with contrasting magnified pop beats with common-found metal chants. “Marry The Night” essentially portrays the overcoming of a bad day by taking advantage of a pub during the AM with your boots, a leather jacket, and whiskey.

“Born This Way,” the album’s title track and first single, contains lyrics as cheesy as really, really good nachos, but if you look past the talk-speak breakdown where she rhymes “chola” and “descent”, the “stop and look in the mirror and love yourself” lyrics could empower anyone over the age of twelve. In regard to her constant comparisons, the chorus is a set in stone chord progression found in many house songs from the early 90’s Cece-Peniston, En Vogue era.

I don’t know if American history classes teach about Marilyn Monroe’s promiscuous adventures with John F. Kennedy but if they ever want to add that to the History Twelve curriculum, teachers might just be able to play   “Government Hooker.” GaGa howls like a werewolf before a droned, fast paced, lipstick smacking, electro number begins to slash. “I’m going to drink my tears and cry,” the lady confesses during the main section, involving her take on the self-infliction hookers get as a result of putting their souls and bodies out in the world. Vocal mockery of reoccurring, faux JFK samples loop all throughout out the song, showing his male dominance demanding Lolita Gaga/Monroe to “get down, get on the ground.” The production rubs off as insecure and aggressive, successfully coinciding with the lyrics. The hi-fi synths build up ferociously, as lyrics flash back and forth, i.e., “I want to fuck a Government Hooker, stop fucking me, Government Hooker,” ending with a laugh from Kennedy and a moan from Monroe.

Ace of Base inspired? Wrong. Abba inspired? Wrong. Aqua inspired? Right! The sounds of “Judas” are so inspired by Euro bubblegum dance that while singing along to the helium induced chorus, you might mistake them with one or two lines with “Barbie Girl” lyrics. The millennium pop-tart noise that RedOne has correctly brought back is brilliant, paired with lyrics about glorifying the evil dude who betrayed Jesus in the Bible and making him sound like a lame ex-boyfriend. “I’m still in love with Judas baby!” Well, duh.

The Hispanic, festive tune that is “Americano” has a soprano chorus that makes you want to get up and circle dance drunkenly. But come on, it’s GaGa. We have to have a little bit of controversy; it can never be that simple. The verses play out like a theatrical drama with foreigh subtitles you’re watching in a Madrid-based hotel, but then the two girls start making out and you realize that it is about two lipstick lesbian lovers who met in the East of L.A. and decide to get married. “I don’t speak your Jesus Cristo” which is basically saying, “I disagree with American politics and God.”

Every kid who pretends to, or is actually going against the grain, has times in their lives when they wear a piece of clothing that their guardians don’t agree with, while all excited to wear their outfit. “Go upstairs and change! Brush your hair.” I guess GaGa decided to write a whole song that could be universally related to kids who have been told to go brush their hair by a parent. The ridiculous saxophones in “Hair” should be decreased, but the song is sung with a sense of power. RedOne layering “Free as my hair-er-er-er” during a vocal spit-up of robotics over strident guitars played at early 90s industrial speed balance out some of the aggressively flamboyant lyrics. “I just want a lot of friends, so they invite me to their parties,” GaGa dictates, while having a Baby Spice squeak that could be looked at as nothing but innocent. “Hair” is for the kids who deserve to feel free and need to put the self-consciousness aside.

In this continuation of red light district dance, GaGa dry heaves feminist blabber in “Scheiße” upon a ludicrous streak of synths and an uproar of club-adjusted disco bass. A million pre-choruses and hooks jump from lingual meltdowns to croons about the womanly views of all the bullshit men put girls through. “I wish I could dance upon a single prayer, I wish I could be strong without someone there!” During the highlighted climax, GaGa’s vocals are roboticized with stutters of her speaking to herself back and forth, “I don’t speak German… but I wish I could.”

The folklore tale of the mirror terror that is “Bloody Mary” was mused into a pop song by yours truly. “Bloody Mary” awakens a gothic tone upon of a humdrum husk of a direct take on why a poisonous lover should stay away. “I won’t cry for you, see. You’re still going to be Bloody Mary.” Near the end-split, a horror-film moan feeds the ghostly beat as it is being pulled back and forth; the avant-garde production is undeniable.

A stadium vibe evokes itself in “Bad Kids,” where GaGa’s intro screams homage to all of the misfits who should never stop being proud of their flaws. “Don’t be insecure if your heart is pure, you’re still good to me if you’re a bad kid baby!”  a tooth rotting chorus that will soon be known as signature GaGa ear candy. The verses revolve around a freeing concept that repeats “I am’s,” “I’m a degenerate,” to “I’m a brat, I’m a selfish punk,” above electronic-vitals and tough guitar trims, claiming to release the truths of the mechanism behind teens that are known as “Bad Kids” to your typical Christian neighbors.

A ceremony of unicorns and jubilee, for heaven’s sake, “High Way Unicorn (Road To Love)” is the worst song on the album. It is a screwy electronic piece that mutters about Satan, cha-chas, and flags in bras. This song suggests that it will take you out of reality, to “another place”, the so-called “Highway Road To Love”. Possibly this was an attempt at making a mystical “Eye Of The Tiger” or “Don’t Stop Believin’,” but neither of those melodies would’ve worked with lyrics about Unicorns. Silly, GaGa!

Ravers get your red/blue 3-D glasses, a candy-necklace, and be prepared to cuddle-puddle. “Heavy Metal Lover” is a charming rave-core composition, par example; “I want your whisky mouth all over my Blonde south”. It’s an oddly perfect production between super-cyber vocal shreds and x-rated pony talk that seems to be an ironic redemption of the previous fail on talking about unicorns. The sounds actually favor sweet euphoria as the noise illuminates an acidic retch of cloudy-space shatter.

The record’s constant hard guitar, scuzzy synths, and head banging main-bits theme smoothly comes to an end in “Electric Chapel,” which features an organ colliding with a throb of raucous guitar. The term the song is named after could be seen as another word for the club as she preludes lip-service from beginning to end that can only happen after-hours at a certain location. Another classic glam metal chirp is shrieked when she demands to “Follow me, don’t just be a holy fool.”

Ecstatic, clean, and classic while she pours her heart out, GaGa probably wrote one the best songs of her career in fifteen minutes from drinking a bit of beer and the convenience of having a piano nearby. Every moment in “Yoü and I” seems to be monumental: the electro hint of drum and bass, the simple piano, and an epic rock guitar solo. Hey, does anyone have a lighter? The hailing-from-Nebraska lover lament makes us remember why we all fell in love with GaGa in the first place, due to that memorable, unplugged, stadium-ready voice.

A big beat, the use of Clarence Clemons notable saxophone, and Fernando Garibay’s essence-of-jazz inspired house production, “The Edge Of Glory” is white, stunning and romantic lyrics tell of being at the edge of life with our loved ones. The song ends off the album accordingly.

Now, let’s address the elephant in the room: Did GaGa, as she claimed to a crowd in Poland, really gives us the best album of the decade? Well…

I wouldn’t be surprised if “Judas” was the boy, she unintentionally taught us about on 2009′s “Dance In The Dark.”  A sequel, if you will?

Alex Kazemi: Are you in texas right now? SXSW?

Ellie Goulding: Yeah, I am.

Kazemi: Have you put together your Coachella set list yet?

Ellie: We kind of got a setlist, an idea of what we are going to do. God, that seems ages away!

Kazemi: Are you excited to perform for the majority of the american hipster community and passionate music fans, lots of people fly out around all the world for Coachella.

Ellie: Yeah! There is a little bit of pressure but I have quite a bit of experience playing festivals in the US and the UK, I am excited and hopefully it will go really well. If people like it, they like it.. If not, it doesn’t really matter that much.

Kazemi: It is good to not get sad over those things. So, you re-released your album in the UK entitled Bright Lights. The track “Home” has more of an intense folk tone, more then any of your other folk tracks. While “Animal,” Lights” and “Human” could be considered as your most pop orientated tracks to date. Were these songs written around the Lights sessions with Starsmith or was it the kind of situation where you intentionally went to the studio and wrote new songs for the re-release?

Ellie: There were two songs that didn’t get put on the original album and then we realized they were good songs that people needed to hear, it was a good balance of new and old really. I did “Home” in France with Fred Falke who is a really amazing remixer. I went back to london and did “Human” and “Animal” with Starsmith. “Little Dreams” and “Believe Me” were written and originally suppose to be on Lights.

Kazemi: Was it intentional to show off the more folk/pop sound on Bright Lights that isn’t found on Lights or did things just happen that way?

Ellie: It’s just how it worked out, it was rather nice that happened. We wanted to release new songs, my album is still around and it has been out for over a year. It has been really fun and good. I just felt lucky, that I was able to give my fans new songs. I knew, they wanted to hear new stuff.

Kazemi: Would you agree that “Under The Sheets” is the hit?

Ellie: I’d like to think so, it was very innocent when it got released, I had just got signed and Starsmith posted this really cute, dorky video on YouTube. “Under The Sheets” wasn’t meant to be popular but it ended up getting really popular with remixes from Chiddy Bang, Jakwob. We are really pleased with how it went considering it was built to be a introduction/setup song or whatever.

Kazemi: I remember in 2009 when your MySpace first went up and “Starry Eyed” was the hip/pop gem of the summer, what is “Starry Eyed” about?

Ellie: It is about being in a euphoric state without being under the influence of anything, a innocence high from loving music. I wanted to make a fun dance song, that for once wasn’t about something really emotional. I wanted “Starry Eyed” to be one of my first songs out there.

Kazemi: Is it weird to know, that some of your songs were once the “OMG, I know this song but you don’t know and it isn’t even charted on Hypem yet.” People take their Music, blogosphere subcultures way too seriously.

Ellie: Yes! I feel a lot of people discover me in different ways, I’m in this stage in the U.K where I am not cool anymore.

Kazemi: It’s because everyone in the U.K get over things sickeningly fast, I think it is rather crazy.

Ellie: I think its not that, it’s just not cool to post an Ellie Goulding song anymore but then again, someone will blog a remix, thinking to themselves “I have to post this remix!” There have been so many remixes, they all go to number one on Hype Machine. I seem to be the remix girl.

Kazemi: [laughs] Starry Eyed has been “Dubstepped” like a thousand times.

Ellie: [laughs] Yes! It is so funny.

Kazemi: Do you think, you will play with Dubstep at one point on your second album.

Ellie: Ah! Maybe! It is definitely something I love! There is definitely a lot of Dubstep going on in the U.K, very huge.

Kazemi: And in America with the Britney song..

Ellie: Yeah… [laughs]

Kazemi: How does your U.S single strategy differ to your U.K single strategy?

Ellie: I honestly don’t know if it does. Except maybe that “Your Song” is being released in America. “Your Song” was kind of an unexpected thing, that wasn’t suppose to happen then it did. I don’t know how much it is going to differ really, I haven’t surely decided on what the single is going to be yet.

Kazemi: You have a non-stop collaboration with Starsmith, I understand you both understand each other musically because it reflects in the music but for Album 2, will you explore more and work with other producers?

Ellie: Oh! Definitely! The second album is going to be about finding someone else that I can have that kind of bond with, I kind of want to give myself a challenge, I don’t want to go through that easy route. I’m going to try hard to find someone else like Starsmith that I can relate to.

Kazemi: You worked with Fraser. T smith on Lights, did you guys cut anything other then “Your Biggest Mistake.”

Ellie: No, we didn’t actually! Maybe, I will try doing something with him again. I kind of want to find someone who is underground maybe.

Kazemi: Ah! Basically how you and Starsmith blew up together.

Ellie: Exactly. I don’t know what this means but the second album is going to be a bit more pure. I am really into big epic Piano songs at the moment, I have been listening to Beach House, Warpaint. Who knows, what is going to happen.

Kazemi: [Laughs] Are you honestly going for an emo sound or by that, do you mean that the undertones are a bit more dark in the lyricism?

Ellie: Did you read that somewhere?

Kazemi: Yes, everyone on Pop Justice is freaking out. You freaked everyone out.

Ellie: [Laughs] What I meant by that is that it is going to literally be more emotional, I don’t think anyone uses it in that context.

Kazemi: You could probably do the rock thing but later on, album four or three! Your voice would suit in a way, quirky!

Ellie: Oh! No, no no..

Kazemi: Phew!

Ellie: I was a bit weirded out when I read that too, it just means the album is going to be a bit more dark.

Kazemi: Will you expand the folk sound heard on “Home” and contrast it with the dark lyrics you are aiming for?

Ellie: There you go, you just made my album for me.

Kazemi: I cracked the code.

Ellie: I’m going to do that.

Kazemi: Is there any mystique in some of the songs you’ve written and that are on the two records, obviously when you listen to “The Writer” you can tell that it is deep but are there any more anthemic songs like “Lights” , that could also be considered meaningful but the meaning covered up with a big beat?

Ellie: Definitely, if you think of the oldest kind of dance tunes.. [Ellie starts singing "Finally" by CeCe Peniston] or “You’ve Got The Love” “Hide Away” “Right On Time.” Old old anthems, that people can dance to in the club but if you listen to the lyrics, they are really dark and deep.

Kazemi: Do you think there will be a 90s feel on album two, the 90s have basically come back to life. It is more then just a trend now.

Ellie: I don’t think I will go back to a certain era but like I said I’ve been listening to bands like Warpaint, The National. I’m liking the Piano and guitar feel.

Kazemi: Catpower? PJ Harvey?

Ellie: I love PJ Harvey, I haven’t got a chance to listen to her new record. I listened to some previews, very pleased. I’m very excited to hear the album, in its entirety.

Kazemi: PJ’s “Stories From The City, Stories From The Sea” from 2001 is incredible.

Ellie: It is amazing.

Kazemi: Where did the folk inspiration come from, have you have been a fan of Folk music growing up or has your voice always fit the acoustic/folk sound naturally.

Ellie: I have always liked Folk music, it depends on how you define Folk really. There are some people that I listen to that would probably be in the Folk bracket. When I was in University, it was a big time for me discovering music, Midlake, Sufjan Stevens, Bon Iver, Noah and The Whale… Lots of inspiring and quality music.

Kazemi: I guess there might be a Lyyke Li feel on album two, if you cite Bon Iver as one of the influences.

Ellie: I like Lykke Li.. People compare her to Bon Iver? I don’t get that, I don’t understand that comparison.

Kazemi: It is just a common instinct, they performed a song called “Dance, Dance, Dance” together and i guess the video went viral and the unknown comparison blew up from there.

Ellie: Weird. Well, I haven’t really committed to the second album massively yet. When this whole American tour is done, I will begin album two.

Kazemi: It takes time. Did you enjoy playing the hook-girl part with Tinie on “Wonder Woman.”

Ellie: I loved it, I was very lucky to do that. It was a different pop experience for me, working with Tinie was awesome.

Kazemi: One day, would you ever take a peek into the super-pop world and work with producers like Bloodshy & Avant, Paul Epworth, Greg Kurstin? Or is it simply “not your thing.” Maybe even outside writing.

Ellie: Honestly, I’m not going to rule out a song for being mainstream or too obscure, I am just going to see what happens.

Kazemi: I liked your Rihanna cover and I know she commented on it, if you were in the studio with her for a full day writing, what do you think the song would end up being about?

Ellie: I am a massive Rihanna fan, who knows what would come out of it. Pop music crazy!

Kazemi: When you are sitting in the studio and your writing a song, how do you know if it ends up being pop or folk? Do you just figure it out at the end? Are they intentionally written to fit a certain genre.

Ellie: Never intentional, always organic. It is the bonus at the end when it sounds like a pop song.

Kazemi: October will fit the self-made Dark/Folk genre we talked about, maybe you should release the sophomore album then?

Ellie: I will bare that in mind.