Project Description

KATY PERRY

@ Perth Arena

24/07/18

(Live Review)

Reviewer: Melanie D Griffiths

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According to Katy Perry as she addressed a crowd of 16,000 people at the Perth Arena, “After 90 shows we decided to finish strong in Australia”, and she’s off to to good start, if that means giving a show that bubbles over with so much hyper coloured staging and costumes that it could truly be described as a visual spectacular. Katy Perry does not believe in ‘less is more’.

The popstar has built an image that curates from whatever teeters on the knife edge of pop culture and memes, yet this is where Perry finds herself in a difficult position. During the lovely acoustic rendition of Wide Awake, Perry sat atop a planet, playing guitar whilst gliding above the audience and between the other interstellar planets that hung around the Arena. Perry is literally stuck between different worlds. Between being a pop Pied Piper with her young Kitty Kats, to trying to present self aware music, yet reverting back to a goofy persona, but then in another instance trying to portray herself as some Aphrodite.

The stage show and costuming were out of this world but whilst it may have been a delight to her younger fans, it was hard to follow the narrative of what was going on. Patent leather clad dancers with TV sets on their heads, a couple of giant flamingoes and a wasp that stalked about on stage mixed with fireworks, blow up eyeballs, a gigantic lion’s head, oversized basketballs, a huge pair of gold dice and Perry in the middle of all it. Every song came on strong with an theatrical interstellar and 80s vaporwave aesthetic.

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Behind all of that, there were some solid songs, they were just not from her latest release Witness. Her delivery of bass rumbler Dark Horse and Hot N Cold showed why she is a star, as was the grimey E.T and even Teenage Dream (which is as perfect a pop song you can get) still managed to elevate even after being reworked with an electro beat.

Perry herself looked like a meal, resplendent in some dazzling costumes. Her interactions with the audience whilst a little hokey were generally charming. And whilst there have been barbs that Perry can’t sing live, that’s absolutely not true; her voice was strong and brilliant, it was just some of the songs that let her down. Her most notable hit from Witness, Chained To The Rhythm, failed to get the recognition it deserved, and by song’s end Perry shouted “Wake up!” as a call to… consciousness I guess? But the sentiment was lost on a crowd consisting of a lot of parents and children.

The crowd whilst polite were restrained strangely even in the VIP area, however it’s a tough ask to pump up all fans, parents, and children especially, when you start close to 9.20pm. Perry tried to amp up the energy but faltered the momentum with intermittent breaks. Left Shark, the viral sensation from her time at the 2015 Superbowl, was brought out to reenact with Perry the Hearts And Souls scene from 80s movie Big. Then later during Swish Swish, she paused the song to bring on Perth Dad, Wade to toss balls into an oversized basketball net for several minutes.

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Her Witness album was touted as Perry getting back to true self, but as an audience we don’t know who that is. She attempts to be all things to all people with the concert coming off like a sugar rush but whilst there was of razzle dazzle, there seemed to be a lack of heart in the performance. Her two massive inspirational hits Roar and Firework should have been the one-two punch needed to turn it all around but instead they felt like a run through.

For her younger fans it might be a fun time, but for those fans who have been with her since she released One Of The Boys 10 years ago they may need a sense of growth and evolution in Perry. The songstress at one point said, “I’m not like other popstars” that much is clear, she’s a veteran in the pop landscape and should embrace that. Next time round Perry might be better served to strip it all back, and show us the real artist that she believes she is.

3 stars

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Connect with KATY PERRY @ OneBigLink

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Melanie Griffiths

Melanie Griffiths is a well known and experienced music writer and reviewer based in Perth, Western Australia. An avid supporter of live music and the ongoing enrichment of a vibrant Perth scene, Mel also lends her talents to freelance writing for other publications and clients. Her fate was sealed when as an eight year old she popped her Mum’s cassette of Beatles For Sale into her car stereo and ever since music has fuelled her passions. Mel’s also available for other projects and everything else in between via www.melaniedgriffiths.com.