Under normal circumstances, an image-conscious pop
tart like Katy Perry would earn a modicum of respect for co-writing her debut
album, but One Of The Boys suggests that she should have gone with the
hired-gun mentality of her post-Britney peers. At least then Perry could
deflect some of the blame for sophomore-creative-writing-course-caliber lyrics
like "You change your mind like a girl changes clothes / Yeah, you PMS like a
bitch, I would know." Such calculated sass might be endearing to the
MySpace-addled generation the 23-year-old Perry is obviously courting, but
those who have outgrown their training bras (and who don't idolize
celebrity-gossip maggot and Perry's number-one cheerleader, Perez Hilton) will
be hard-pressed to find much to enjoy on Boys. While undeniably catchy,
the hyper-produced songs have a familiar radio-ready quality that becomes
infuriatingly mind-numbing over time, and Perry's vocals sound like a
less-soulful Kelly Clarkson at best, a drunken, spurned sorority girl at worst.
Any redeeming camp value that could be begrudgingly afforded to songs like "Mannequin"
("You're not a man, you're just a mannequin") is overruled by the sense that
Perry intends for her lyrics to be empowering and insightful, rendering her
carefully honed in-your-face-ness completely fangless. Only the silly, slinky
kiss-off to an effeminate boyfriend, "Ur So Gay," comes even remotely close to
hitting the mark, mostly because it seems like Perry is, for once, actually in
on the joke.
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