BY Jon Dolan | October 16, 2013
Katy Perry’s 2010 album, Teenage Dream, was such a massive blockbuster that we’ve had to wait three years for the follow-up where she reveals the multifaceted artist behind the fun pop sheen. And Prism is as prismatic as all get-out: There’s the Blakean feline of “Roar,” the trap-rap interlocutor of “Dark Horse” (featuring Juicy J of Three 6 Mafia), the jet-set gal pal of “International Smile.” On “Ghost,” she lances the boil on her soul that is Russell Brand. On “This Is How We Do,” she’s a liberated weekday warrior, going from all-night parties with the boys to “Japaneezy” nail appointments to kamikaze Mariah karaoke. It’s amazing she was able to cram all this Katy onto one album.
Some of Teenage Dream’s sunny effervescence remains intact here (“Time to bring out the big balloons,” she promises on the lush disco shwanger “Birthday”). But Perry and her longtime collaborators Dr. Luke and Max Martin often go for a darker, moodier intimacy à la high-end Swedish divas Robyn and Lykke Li. Songs like “Legendary Lovers” and “Unconditionally” set stark revelations to torrential Euro splendor. Perry has always done a great job of letting us know she’s in on the joke of pop stardom. Sadly, she doesn’t always bring that same sense of humor and self-awareness to the joke of pop-star introspection. The album’s raft of ripe-lotus ballads is larded with Alanis-ian poesy she can’t pull off: “I thank my sister for keeping my head above the water/When the truth was like swallowing sand,” she sings on “By the Grace of God.” A California girl should know that there are better things to do at the beach.
The importance and popularity of music is at an all-time high, thanks to companies like Apple and Google who have pioneered the use of digital infrastructure to deliver content directly to a range of devices. In an effort to promote music downloads and give back, Google is offering Prism by Katy Perry as a free-of-charge download.
If you happen to be an adoring, screaming, hysterical and all-knowing fan of Katy Perry then the chances are that you already own a copy of Prism. After all, it was released in October last year, and any true fan purchases new content immediately, right? If you’re one of the pop star’s part-time fan, or simply one who prefers to passively listen to her music on TV or radio stations rather than part with hard-earned cash to legitimately buy the album outright, then Google’s musical generosity could be the perfect offer for you to sink your Android owning teeth into.
Prism was initially released by Miss Perry and Capitol Records in October last year. The record features 13 tracks that exist to take the listener on a musical journey, encountering a number of varying emotions on the way. Nausea is an emotion, right? Still, if inventive pop music is your thing then tracks such as “Dark Horse”, “This Is How We Do”, “By The Grace of God” and “Walking On Air” all feature on the album and are included as part of Google’s generosity. As a comparison, both Apple’s iTunes Store and Amazon are currently offering the same album for download at a one-off purchase cost of $7.99. Free seems an absolute bargain by comparison.