Katy Perry : MTV Unplugged

I'll be the first to change the station when Katy Perry's "Thinking of You" comes on the radio, but when it comes to an MTV Unplugged I'll give any artist a second listen. What I always liked about the Unplugged series was that all the pretense was stripped away from the music. Loud guitars, electronic blips, and studio effects were all thrown out the window for these performances. In order to sound good, you had to sound good.

With all the fluff stripped away, Katy Perry, comes off like a smooth jazz singer with a unique set of songs and a fresh perspective not heard during an unplugged since..er, I can't remember. The version of "Thinking of You" doesn't make me want to kick in my car stereo, so by my ears it's a vast improvement. I wont go out and by a proper studio album by her anytime soon, but this performance does show her greater potential. It's a small step towards being an artist rather than just a performer. The one thing that fuckin' irks me about the album... the abrupt crowd fade-ins/outs. It really screws with the "performance" feel of the whole thing. By doing this they've diminished what could have been a concert experience into nothing more than a compilation of standout tracks.

Though I don't care for her studio work, I do love the irony of her Christian upbringing being tossed out the window with her first hit being "I Kissed a Girl". Her mother, a preacher, considered it "shameful and disgusting." because it promoted lesbianism or whatever. Good job supporting & encouraging your kids, dumbass. Props to Perry though for having the courage to overcome the imposed ideas of her religious family/community. Sometimes you don't fit in for a reason, and one shouldn't be shunned for that.