Katy Perry
Witness

Ok, here I am risking my career with even a review of the latest endeavor by Katy Perry, actually from a year ago now, since our super-hot Californian decided to focus on other things, licking the wounds from the flop of Witness, the album of the "transition" to maturity that few understood, or perhaps few cared since, indeed, one of the singer's great driving forces is her appearance, while the artistic value is more a topic of discussion for those who haven't yet reached puberty. OGGHEY. On DeBaser I had to create the album page—annamobbene—and the singer's synopsis made me laugh for ten minutes: "Until she decides to go into porn my vote will remain 1". Got it? Let's hope. In short, Perry creates fairly conscious pop garbage, considering that a singer with a Christian-gospel-country base wouldn't go far, considering that she will be throttled by countless producers telling her what to do, and considering she is hot, and like all beautiful artists, it would be quite foolish not to capitalize a little.

But that was yesterday, the Teenage Dream, the candy and the milk shot from the tits, today past thirty the circus crisis begins to be seen, maybe it's even too late to go into porn, the old style no longer works, and it's time to reset everything. This is more or less the concept of the album, which was also accompanied by an unprecedented marketing stunt, with very short hair and a livestream reality show much like Big Brother, but all centered on Katy and the 72 hours of her fantastic life. A kaleidoscopic stew with surprising tones, among mystical crises (of dubious authenticity) in front of the analyst, to makeup sessions, to politically charged dinners, since we know the artist is very active in this respect (an openly anti-Trump). Oh but Omega, you really broke the rocket, are we talking about this record or not? Yes, yes, I liked it. For me it's the best album by Katy Perry, certainly overproduced by the inevitable band of the trendiest sound masters, but much less stupid than all the stuff churned out in ten years by the tall girl from Santa Barbara—we're far from I Kiss the Girl—and with a sincerity in the lyrics almost embarrassing; even if everything was fake (but do we care?) it's an intriguing concept for the album. Then there's a lot of electronics this time, and you know Omega likes it. THE ALBUM, DAMN IT. It begins with the title track, where Katy would like a witness for the journey she is about to embark on, a perfect mid-time pop song, a lot of finger snaps and ice slowly melting, a well-defined refrain and a finale with a whistle. Alright. Hey Hey Hey indulges in fairly trendy Trap sounds, rumors say Sia participated, but it resolves with an unconvincing refrain. Equally forgettable Roulette, although I liked the 80s Mixage atmosphere. Swish Swish is the prank of the album, a fun and colorful track where Perry suggests nibbling on poop cookies to those who dislike her, it seems to be an anti-bullying song, but the more malicious refer to an alleged feud with Taylor Swift. We don't care, but the track is strong, dominated by the mythical 90s synth of Robin S, dance beat and rap in the bridge of the very expensive Nicki Minaj. Power shows that our friend can sing, even if suffocated by infernal samples, percussion, and sax. Noteworthy is the black note in her voice.

Miss You More is the infamous slow dance, the terrible slow song that however I must say is very beautiful and engaging, it talks about regrets & recalls towards an ex, what it could have been etc., a scenario compatible for all, and a truly beautiful and heartfelt refrain. A textbook ballad, seriously. Chained to the Rhythm is the political piece of the album, with more or less (less) veiled references to the recent American elections and the inevitable nigga rap for the special, in this case, Skip Marley takes the stage and I must say he stays in his own lane, not annoying. The song? I like the initial arrangement more, very disco dance, the refrain doesn't fully convince me but the closure is worth noting, with that "It goes on, and on, and on" from the choirs that makes you think. Tsunami is a terribly sexy song, one of the best, very electronic-lounge, beautiful research on the bassline, muffled atmospheres, and a languid Perry singing as if she wanted to make love for a week straight, guaranteed effect. Bon Appetit is still danceable and cheerful, with non-implicit sexual references, mischievous parallels with food and the inevitable featuring, this time by Migos. Very nice and with a super rhythmic finale, fantastic sounds, again with a strong call to the nineties, you can tell there are people with talent behind it. Also beautiful is Pendulum, which sings about the relativity of existence with a compelling gospel style. Obviously, you expect any moment the field invasion of big black women with powerful vocal cords, raised arms, and an outburst of thankyoulordthankyou, which promptly happens. Great song, WELL DONE KATY WELL DONE.

In short, it may have been a flop and perhaps the tombstone of Perry's career as a singer (but let's also hope not, there's much more unpleasant people around), but I do recommend giving this Witness a listen. It is an interesting manifesto of Peter Pan syndrome and the conflicts in the need to adapt to new realities. Really not bad.