【搬运】【译】NME杂志评Katy Perry专辑《Witness》

搬运自：微信公众号【评论搬一堆】（在原文基础上添加了英语原文与排版调整） 

翻译：Lynn Liu

校正：BigFudge

原网址：https://www.nme.com/reviews/katy-perry-album-witness-review-2085416

Katy Perry is a changed woman. Well, kinda. For her fourth album under the Perry name – let’s pretend her god-bothering 2001 debut ‘Katy Hudson’ never happened, eh? – she’s attempting to bring a little more meaning to her music. Speaking about the album earlier this year, she proudly stated: “I think it’s definitely a new era for me. I call it an era of purposeful pop.”

水果姐总是在不断地尝试着“改头换面”。《Witness》是她以水果姐（Katy Perry）的艺名发行的第四张专辑（我们假装2001年水果姐没有以Katy Hudson的身份出那张基督专辑，好吗？）她试图让自己的音乐更有内涵。谈到年初的这张专辑，她自豪地说道：“这肯定是我艺术创作的新时代，我称之为有社会意义的流行音乐纪元。”

The all-new ‘woke’ Katy isn’t just about giving you decent things to dance to on a Friday night or up-tempo fluff for your gym playlist. Instead, she’s pushing the sleek, chart-friendly empowerment of ‘Roar’ and ‘Firework’ even further, into socially aware electropop territory, like ‘The Fame’ period Lady Gaga doing an evening class at SOAS.

全新“觉醒”的水果姐不仅能在周五晚上为你提供跳舞的BGM，或是给你的运动歌单增添节奏的快感。她还将“Roar”和“Firework”中利于打榜的励志风格越推越远，呈现出了一张充满社会责任感的电子流行专辑，这个结果有点像在“The Fame”时期的鳖鳖（Lady GaGa）在伦敦大学教晚课一样（你懂得）。

First single ‘Chained To The Rhythm’ nailed the diva-with-a-discourse vibe, fusing an intensely catchy chorus with lyrics that muse on apathy and ignorance. ‘Bigger Than Me’ might not be as big a belter, but her heart’s still in the right place as she muses on her placein the world over icy, shimmering synths: “If I’m not evolving / I’m just another robot / Taking up oxygen.”

专辑的第一首单曲“Chained to The Rhythm”，将歌手叙事的氛围与极其抓耳的和声融合，歌词充满了冷漠和无知。“Bigger Than Me”可能不是一首嘹亮的歌，却充满了内心的平静：她在深思她在世界中的位置，在冰冷而闪烁的合成音色的衬托下，唱到“If I’m not evolving / I’m just another robot / Taking up oxygen.”

The compelling ‘Hey Hey Hey’ sees Katy dressing up Lorde’s languid, spacious sound, adding some serious girl power – “Because I’m feminine and soft / but I’m still a boss” – and using the kind of retro-meets-trashy Americana imagery Lana Del Rey would be proud of, calling herself “Marilyn Monroe in a monster truck”.

在这首吸引人的“Hey  Hey  Hey”中，我们可以看到水果姐的唱腔仿佛Lorde附体一样，慵懒却跨度广大，加入一些女权呼声——“Because I’m feminine and soft / but I’m still a boss”；她还使用了打雷姐（Lana Del Rey）常有的这种复古而颓废的美国意象，自称为“怪兽卡车中的玛丽莲·梦露(Marilyn Monroe in a monster truck)”。

Calling in Nicki Minaj’s fast and furious flow for the Fatboy Slim-sampling ‘Swish Swish’, meanwhile, is something of a master stroke, turning a good song into a great one. The high-end guests continue with ‘Bon appétit’, which features Migos and sees Katy dropping the personal politics to sing about the glory of shagging. And why not? Sure, ‘Witness’ isn’t about subtlety, but if you’re going to deliver important messages about female autonomy to a young audience, it’s surely better to shout than whisper.

同时，她与麻辣鸡（Nicki Minaj）合作的这首快歌 “Swish Swish”（采样于 Fatboy Slim’s “Star 69” ），处理得非常巧妙，把一首好歌变成了另一首好歌。在与新晋嘻哈三人组Migos推出的“Bon appétit”中，凯蒂暂时摒弃了个人政治立场，唱出了一首性的赞歌。有什么理由不这样做呢？诚然，《Witness》传递的讯息并不含蓄；但如果你要向年轻听众传达关于女性自主的重要信息，大声呐喊肯定比窃窃私语好。