Review Summary: "Witness" is a fantastic voyage of the artpop creator's most intimate collection
With Katy Perry, it truly comes down to the power of her voice. Perry’s distinctive songwriting and performing style -- a glitterous, soaring-for-air, that instantly stamps her efforts with an perfect uniqueness -- is the one important element that cannot be replicated, dramatically setting her apart from other well-intentioned pop gigants.
And on "Witness", her forth studio release, Katy Perry enters her voice, inner streigh and emotional side front and center, dispensing with the formality of electronic instruments in favor of candy-pop tunes.
Collaborating with an army of acclaimed producers and vocalists, Perry strips away mainstream sounds in favor of eternally experimental electronic beats, and employs the talents of Skip Marley, Migos and Nicki Minaj. R&B chanteuse Sia to assist her in fashioning an album almost entirely built from the larynx up.
And it works beautifully.
Where Perry’s prior releases were assembled around a particular mood or theme, "Witness" peels away layers of meaning in an attempt to define the core of pure sound -- a celebration of human expression, independent of synthetic devices. This isn't that radical a concept but, as with any pop creation, the American songstress manages to take an uncomplicated idea and project it through her distinct worldview.
"Witness' strongest moments resist making literal sense in favor of building a spiraling cathedral of interlocking synths and multitracked voice solos. The intense, hammering force of “Into Me You See,” complete with pulsing back vocal effects, is a powerful example, as is “Save as Draft,” which reinterprets DJ Mustard’s piano-based rumination, with startling results. Jack Garratt’s weighty activism position introduces the somnambulistically restless “Power". The celebratory “Bon Appétit" is a showcase for the formidable retro-school faux-synth of LaTour.
"Chained to the Rhythm” offers the most unambiguous lyrics (“Break down the walls to connect, inspire / Up in your high place, liars / Time is ticking for the empire”) and adds substantive weight to the overall cycle, as does the more politically-slanted, though slightly less impressive, “Hey Hey Hey.”
The chirping, skitter-beat-driven “Pendulum” is the most conventional-sounding song on the album, primarily thanks to its straightforward chorus. But it lacks the left-of-center, magical quality inherent to the bulk of Perry’s lyrics. The backing gospel vocal is wonderful, though, reinforcing the album's overriding conceit.
Perry's great achievement with "Witness" is in taking a big risk for safe pop game, self-imposed limitation and managing to craft a full-bodied, multilayered work from such a basic production tool.
