...And I Liked It

Katy Perry "MTV Unplugged" (9.5/10) Available 11.17.09

Ever since Jr. High I have preferred live music over its studio brethren. The reasons are as follows:

1. Live music is mostly acoustic when recorded by artists.

2. It shows off their voices without electronic manipulation.

3. The emotion and lyrics of a song are brought the the forefront.

4. You can tell if people are full of crap, or actually are as good as they sound on their studio albums.

Thankfully, Katy Perry transferred all four of those things onto her new live CD. Since I obtained a leaked audio version, I cannot review the accompanying music videos, but I'm sure it's even more powerful (I mean, look at that kick-ass dress! Eat your heart out, Gaga). Perry has always been a tour de force for me: she has great lyrics (Mannequin, unfortunately not featured on this album), strong melodies (Thinking of You), and a knack for interesting arrangements (I Kissed a Girl, Waking Up in Vegas). In my mind, she's more original than, say, Lady Gaga (double punch!) will ever be.

MTV Unplugged kicks off with a jazzy rendition of "I Kissed a Girl," which proves to be a much more suitable atmosphere for it's (actually pretty saucy) lyricism. It then goes into one of my favorite songs from Katy, "Ur So Gay." It's politically incorrect, it's brilliant, and it's completely her own. No one has gone after the fey straighties, and, quite frankly, it was time. It doesn't really tear that much away from the original, so it sounds just like a grittier copy. Which is fine, no one said she had to reinvent the reinvention of the wheel.

With her two most recognizably "offensive" songs done, Perry moves on to "Hackensack," a cover of a Fountains of Wayne single. Apart from her weird phrasing of the title, the song fits right into her wheelhouse of quirky "story" numbers. The melody is decidedly unlike her, but again, no one said she had to totally re-do it. Then comes my favorite Perry track off of her debut album, "Thinking of You." The beauty of this song is unparalleled by much else in the pop community today, and the emotion Katy displays (particularly on the chorus) makes the whole environment that she creates buzz with longing.

I was surprised by the next track, "Lost," because it's a fairly unpopular mid-album song on "One of the Boys." Probably the weakest of the seven, it still shimmers with her gorgeous voice. Even though it is not strong in the lyric or structure department, the way Katy stretches her vocals makes it clear that this is one of her more personal songs.

"Waking Up in Vegas" provides a little break from the gloom with a fun, frolic-filled version of the original. Like "Ur So Gay," it's not so much a different arrangement as it is just a stripped-down copy. This sets up for easily the best song on the disc, the wondrous "Brick by Brick." This show-stopping number kicks the crap out of the listener as Perry begs her lover to open up to her. If there is anything to download from the album, THIS. IS. IT.

Download this: Brick by Brick, Hackensack, Thinking of You, I Kissed a Girl