You described it perfectly, I think. Even on my second listen I could tell how people weren't really paying attention to the album. It's pathetic that they make careers out of that.
ARTPOP is a little repetitive, but the dance beat that forms the basis for about half the songs does slay a bit. The album strikes me as a sort of sequel to The Fame—dealing with many of the same themes, but now from the prospective of a star rather than someone striving to be one. If nothing else, it's very listenable and certainly a step up from Born This Way (though I'm not sure there are any songs as immediately great as "Highway Unicorn").
