Katy Perry - Mannequin (Acoustic)

"If the past is the problem, my future could solve them baby.."

Was Katy Perry destined to be an Indie artist or the eventual pop chart hit maker that she is?

This solo acoustic performance at South By Southwest (SXSW) was recorded before she made "I Kissed A Girl" the 7 week straight number 1 chart topping hit of the summer. As much as I liked that perfect pop hit, I wonder what would have otherwise become of the aspiring artist we see in the video below, seemingly able to meld the vulnerable confessional yeans of the 70's singer-songwriters, with the raspy cries of of the alternative 90's Riot Rrrrls.

I discovered this performance in seven hundred and twenty progressive scanned lines of high definition video, which only magnified the surprise and shock in retrospect. This even looks like the Katy we have all come to know over the summer, right down to the long eyelashes and short pink dress. One would have to admit this is a passionate heartfelt performance, and with a full command of the acoustic guitar and a yearning expressive voice. Although the song was rerecorded for her album "One Of The Boys" in more of a produced version, I prefer this version much better. I am more able to feel the words that speak of a woman wishing a man could even rise to the level of being a real boy, just to understand he is not a man..not the man he really could be.

The more I investigate the varied past of Katy Perry, the more I ponder - Indie or Pop? I discovered this pop song "Broken", and a video recorded with the behind-the-scenes hit making team The Matrix, with the The Matrix unveiled as co-performers..

And as many already know.. before the "Pop or Indie" question for Katy, she originally emerged in the industry under the Hudson surname as a christian artist. (albiet christian songs with titles such as "Spit..") I hope the success of having kissed a girl does not forever detract from the potential of a possibly multi-level talent that this performance promises and hints at...

Katy Perry – I Kissed A Girl

"The taste of her cherry chapstick.."

First up for this new site is the song of the summer.. A song I had a chance to read about, before actually choosing to play for the first time..

This was the week I was researching music blogs to see if I wanted to make a blog of my own. (for all the music prior to this blog, see my “previous favorites” playlist on YouTube..) I had already seen and liked the Katy Perry video for Ur So Gay with funny lyrics and video about a metrosexual man. But in this song there was a buzz everywhere and a mild fuss about how she herself had “kissed a girl..”

In this day and age and culture I was a little surprised there was any controversy about such a song topic. After all 13 years ago, I used to see a song with the same title on MTV’s 120 Minutes every week. [Jill Sobule – “I Kissed A Girl”]

Playing the song for the very first time, I was drawn in by the gaze of her pretty eyes and the seductive and familiar Gary Glitter drum rhythm. [Gary Glitter – “Rock N’ Roll Part 2”] But it wasn’t until the throbbing electro bass groove of the chorus came in, that I was hooked..

In fact, that chorus reminded me of what I liked about a certain song.. [Goldfrapp – “Train” *adult advisory!*] There seems to be an equal amount of girls surrounding the singers in a sexy, fun all-female party vibe, although Katy’s video looks almost PG-13 in comparison to Alison’s.. Katy’s video has as many obvious trappings of naughty/sexy that can fit into one video - Including petting a pussy-cat and eating cherries..

Since the song is getting a lot of attention, she has been called homophobic or exposed for her previous career as a christian singer. Beyond all that, however overexposed this song gets, I love this song as a prime example of a modern pop song. I will never get sick of it and will enjoy it for what it is - even taking into account it may have been artificially created in the pop labs, co-written as it was with the infamous musical chemists of Dr Luke, Max Martin, and the fabulous Cathy Dennis.