On Katy Perry

(This post could go hand-in-hand with my thoughts on Zooey Deschanel since they are, essentially, the same person.)

I liked Katy Perry in the I Kissed A Girl era, when her voice was still a bit husky and she still had something about her. Then Teenage Dream came along and she started shooting whipped cream out of her nipples. 

If anything, the performance at the Grammy’s made me more irritated than I already was. Her performance was weak, and the only bit that caught my interest in the slightest was when I actually thought her mic had broken and her dancers had dropped her.

I don’t know why certain artists think award shows are a pedestal on which they can call out their exes (I don’t want to properly name-drop Taylor Swift in case she devotes her 852nd ‘I hate men’ album at me). The Grammy’s are an appreciation of music, not an opportunity to lash out about your divorce. I don’t understand why she sang a total of 3 lines of E.T  and moved onto Part of Me when she’s had five number ones on Teenage Dream. FIVE. 

(Can I just remind everyone of Circle the Drain please? And we got Part of Me instead?!)

Second 'Song of the Week'

Diet Mountain Dew (Album version) - Lana Del Rey

(Original post with audio is here)

A belated second song of the week, alongside Beck’s remix of Feist’s ‘How Come You Never Go There’.

Initially I was only fascinated by the media buzz surrounding Lana Del Rey (I posted about her SNL performance here) rather than paying much attention to the artist herself. And then I listened to Born to Die and it changed my mind (along with the minds of every other music blogger/reviewer, it seems.)

Some tracks get a bit tiresome, yes - I don’t have much time for Carmen or Million Dollar Man, but I wouldn’t say I dislike them. My enjoyment of this album reminds me of my obsession with Florence’s Ceremonials a few months ago, in that every week seems to present a new favourite song I’d previously overlooked.

Which brings me to Diet Mountain Dew. This was the track which seemed to be most heavily criticised, but those critics mustn’t have listened long enough for the hook at the start of each verse (Let’s take Jesus off the dashboard/Got enough on his mind), which makes for several repeats.

My favourite thing about this one is that it veers between her catchier tracks, like National Anthem, and the deeper feel of Born to Die and Radio. See what you think.

Song(s) of the Week

How Come You Never Go There (Beck Remix) - Feist


(Original post with audio is here)

This is one of two favourite songs from this past week. I’m not sure exactly when this remix appeared, but it’s good enough to have me listening to How Come on repeat all over again. 

It’s a shame Feist doesn’t get as much recognition as she deserves, but that’s probably due to criticisms that her range is quite limited. I can understand that - after all, there are only so many songs you can enjoy before the up-and-down vocal starts to grate. I’d recommend the original version of this song too, but Beck’s remix gives it more of a kick.