Lady Gaga’s emergence from [momentary] reclusivity has begun. With today’s release of the video for her new single, “Applause,” the Gags is officially back. While we were iffy on the single when it leaked last week, the three-and-a-half minute vid, shot by Inez and Vinoodh (with makeup by Yadim and hair by Shay Ashual), has elevated the song to continuous repeat status. It's artsy, it's pop-y, it's bizarre.

Portraying everyone’s favorite pop eccentric as a few art-inspired heroines (including, but not limited to, a possibly morning-after-drug-binge- Andy-Warhol-silk-screen-Marilyn-Monroe and the scantily clad goddess in Botticelli's The Birth of Venus), the video shows her with a pretty, bare face and stocking cap; clown-colored smears; and a cropped platinum Swoosh and deep-berry lip (1:32). Oh, and as a golden goose. If this is a sign of what’s to come from Artpop, well, color us intrigued. You guys with us?