When one thinks of Katy Perry, they usually picture her in colorful outfits and singing about boys and partying.

This is to be expected considering that her last album, “Teenage Dream,” was one of the most successful albums of all time and featured both of these topics.  The album was all about how her life is so fun that it seems just like the dreams she had as a teenager.  With the happy, fun nature of the album, it’s fitting that she was always dressed in colorful outfits.

However, “Teenage Dream” was released back in 2010.  It’s now 2013 and with a new year brings a new, darker Katy Perry, often with mixed results.  Because of her divorce with Russell Brand in late 2011, Katy no longer had that carefree spirit.  She is now wiser and more mature, and with this maturity comes a different sound to her music.

Her latest album, “Prism,” is a huge departure from her previous efforts.  Unlike “Teenage Dream,” there are very few carefree songs on the album.  This jump from carefree songs to deeper and more emotional songs is a little jarring for fans of Katy Perry.  While the songs aren’t necessarily bad (some are actually quite good like “Ghost”), the album tends to drag on in the latter half due to this change in tone.

While there are some carefree songs in “Prism,” they’re very hit or miss.  Songs like “Walking On Air” and “International Smile” are both fun songs that are all but guaranteed to get massive radio play thanks to their fun and smartly constructed sound.  Songs likes “Birthday” and “This Is How We Do” on the other hand, are completely laughable.  While the production is fine on both, the lyrics are silly, even for a pop song.

“Birthday” is more of a cliché than anything.  As a song about getting a boy in his “birthday suit,” it seems fun at first, but gets repetitive quickly.  “This Is How We Do” is just a joke.  It’s a wonder how the song even made it on to the album.  The song is supposed to be a fun, silly song about people partying all the time, but Katy comes off sounding out of her element and trying to be “cool.”  The words “straight stuntin’ like that” should never come out of Katy’s mouth, and yet she repeats it numerous times on the song.

This may seem like the album is a complete failure, but that isn’t the case.  When the album hits its high points (like with the smash hit “Roar”), it hits hard.  However when it hits its low points (“This Is How We Do”) it tends to outweigh the highlights.

Katy Perry can make great pop music, and songs on “Roar” show this.  At the end of the day though, “Prism” doesn’t hit all of the right notes like “Teenage Dream” does.  “Prism” is almost guaranteed to get massive radio play.  Ultimately though, the album is forgettable and almost seems like a speed bump on the way to her next album.  Here’s hoping that her next album brings back the magic of “Teenage Dream.”
Vevo/Official music video