Review - Katy Perry's "Teenage Dream"

While waiting in line to purchase the movie "The Band Wagon," starring Fred Astaire and Cyd Charisse, a CD on sale caught my eye, if only for one reason.

It was cotton candy scented.

The CD in question was "Teenage Dream," by the now infamous Katy Perry, singer of quite a few popular ditties, such as: "California Gurls," "Hot 'n' Cold," "Ur So Gay," and "I Kissed a Girl." Proper spelling and dubious song titles aside, Katy has made a name for herself as a major player in the pop music scene. With "Teenage Dream," her sophomore album, Katy proves that she's not a one-hit wonder.

The album's cover is a painting of Katy lying in cotton candy, and the rest of the packaging seems to follow that theme, with photographs of her with candy crowns and cupcake-wrapper dresses. The lyrics booklet is indeed cotton candy scented, and the themed photos continue inside.

The music itself is a mix of guilty-pleasure pop and soul-searching ballads. With "Teenage Dream," the title track, Katy provides a pop song that you want to sing along to, even with lyrics like "We can dance until we die/You and I/We'll be young forever!" The follow-up song, "Last Friday Night" is a dance-y ode to getting drunk on Friday. "Firework" is the quintessential inspirational pop ballad, complete with cheesy lyrics and a building beat. "Circle the Drain" tries to be an angst-filled rock song, but the music doesn't stand up to the surprisingly powerful lyrics. "E.T." is about a new lover so strange that everyone thinks he's an alien. It's as terrible as it sounds. "Who Am I Living For?" has an interesting sound, similar to that of Kerli, but the song itself is nothing exciting. The next song, "Pearl," is one of my favorite songs on the album, a pop ballad that tells the story of a girl struggling to keep her head afloat in an overpowering relationship. "Not Like The Movies," the final track on the album, is possibly the best, driven by piano, that showcases the fact that Katy does indeed have an excellent voice and songwriting skills.

All in all, "Teenage Dream" is an excellent example of pop music. It has its high points along with its low, but overall it is just fun, upbeat music, and definitely worth the $10 price tag (even if just for the cotton candy scented booklet).