Katy Perry

The Year in Film: Top 10 Movies of 2012

Ke$ha's Warrior: A First Listen

A quick scan of the titles on Ke$ha's second album means it better be her pop masterpiece -- nothing looks as hilarious or striking as "D.I.N.O.S.A.U.R." or "Party at a Rich Dude's House." But even those of us who wanted to love her found that debut fucking annoying. I was finally converted by the f ... More >>

Happy Halloween! Now Here's 5 Singers You Shouldn't Dress Up As

It's that magical time of year once again, where the entire nation leaves the house looking ridiculous on purpose! Yay! Occasionally, Halloween costumes based on musicians border on genius -- like Sum 41's Deryck Whibley and his girlfriend Ari Cooper hitting a party a few days ago dressed like Deryc ... More >>

G.O.O.D. Music's Cruel Summer: A First Listen

Kanye West has officially become the bad guy, people. He's rich, he's rude, he's entitled, he's a rock 'n' roll legend who's awaiting a legit artistic backlash any year now, and he's also a smart businessperson. After Taylor Swift-gate and record sales of his third Pazz & Jop-winning "masterpiece" f ... More >>

2012 MTV Video Music Awards: The 10 Lost Categories

The MTV Video Music Awards is an annual occasion for thrill and intrigue. An arena for a slutty young Madonna to writhe around the ground in a wedding dress, or even for a slutty old Madonna to French kiss a couple of aging pop tartlets. A place for pyro and pasties and grand interruptions -- I'mma ... More >>

Singers: Here's How to Advertise Your Celebrity Perfume

These days, everybody and their back-up dancers has a fragrance out, as if the ability to sing also comes with innate perfumier abilities. For those of you considering a career in pop mega-stardom -- and, therefore, the fragrance business -- here are some tips on how to sell that all-but-inevitable ... More >>

Top Five Ways (Almost) Every Music Fan Is a Hypocrite

Hypocrisy is as essential a part of the human condition as shit and TV reruns. Our capacity for saying one thing and doing another is stupendous: Find a full, unredacted record, and we bet you'd find examples of self-contradiction even in the otherwise pristinely principled life of Ghandi. Even Moth ... More >>

"Katy Perry: Part of Me": Meet the Real Gurl

Hypocrisy is as essential a part of the human condition as shit and TV reruns. Our capacity for saying one thing and doing another is stupendous: Find a full, unredacted record, and we bet you'd find examples of self-contradiction even in the otherwise pristinely principled life of Ghandi. Even Moth ... More >>

Summer Guide: Choosing the Season's Best Music Festivals

Hypocrisy is as essential a part of the human condition as shit and TV reruns. Our capacity for saying one thing and doing another is stupendous: Find a full, unredacted record, and we bet you'd find examples of self-contradiction even in the otherwise pristinely principled life of Ghandi. Even Moth ... More >>

"Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted": Sensory Overload

Hypocrisy is as essential a part of the human condition as shit and TV reruns. Our capacity for saying one thing and doing another is stupendous: Find a full, unredacted record, and we bet you'd find examples of self-contradiction even in the otherwise pristinely principled life of Ghandi. Even Moth ... More >>

Guardian-Examiner Headlines We'd Like to Read

We're thinking the same thing most readers are about this potential union between the historically conservative Examiner and the left-leaning Bay Guardian ... what the hell?We can only imagine what kind of headlines we might get out of this seemingly incompatible marriage. What happens when you ... More >>

Fucked Up vs. Katy Perry: The Top Five Most Offensive Videos That Glamorize War

Fucked Up's gloriously unhinged frontman Damian "Pink Eyes" Abraham got all righteous on Katy Perry's ass this week after apparently viewing the video for her "Part of Me" single. First he Tweeted: "Seeing Katy Perry as a soldier in the video for 'Part of Me' really makes me think that we need to st ... More >>

Weekend Parties: Tiger & Woods at the W Hotel, DJ Skeet Skeet at Blow Up, and More

Well, it's almost the weekend, and it's time to start figuring out what there is to do. At this point, you've probably heard all about the massive (and controversial) rave scheduled for this Saturday at the Oracle Arena, so we won't mention it. Instead, we've prepared a shortlist of four sure-fire e ... More >>

The Top Five Most Heinous Pop Songs of 2011

Yesterday, we gave you our votes for the top five pop songs of 2011. But to be perfectly honest, in our look back over the last 12 months, we found far more pop moments that made us want to rip our own ears off than ones that made us want to dance like small children. Here are the worst abominations ... More >>

Katy Perry Plays the Everyday Sweet Treat at Oracle Arena

Christopher VictorioKaty Perry at Oracle Arena last night.​ Katy Perry Monday, Nov. 21, 2011 Oracle Arena Better than: Cavities. Katy Perry is a piece of candy. Or perhaps a cupcake. She's a short, sweet, delicious treat that you can have every day, or at least on a fairly regular basis. She ... More >>

Friday: Katy Perry Brings "Candyland" to Life at HP Pavilion (Photos)

Katy Perry at HP Pavilion on Friday night.​ Katy Perry Friday, Aug. 12, 2011 HP Pavilion So you thought "Candyland" was just a theme for Katy Perry's "California Gurls" video, eh? Nope -- turns out it's kind of the overriding influence for the pop princess' live show. Intrepid photographer Je ... More >>

The Summer Anthem: Does It Get Better or Worse with Age?

​We pop music critics are wired in such a way that articulating a love for Aja and Scott Walker is significantly less difficult than articulating the love for the person we share a toothbrush with. We're a revolting phylum, I know. However, one notable exception is Rolling Stone editor Rob Sh ... More >>

Sizzle & Fizzle: Highs and Lows from the Last Week in S.F. Music

​We pop music critics are wired in such a way that articulating a love for Aja and Scott Walker is significantly less difficult than articulating the love for the person we share a toothbrush with. We're a revolting phylum, I know. However, one notable exception is Rolling Stone editor Rob Sh ... More >>

The Foo Fighters and Their Hilarious Ice Preferences Are Coming to Oakland This Fall

The world's foremost connoisseurs of beverage ice.​ We can honestly say that, until a few moments ago, we never gave any thought to the shape of the ice cubes in our drinks, much less the company that made the machine that created them. The peak of our lifetime's worth of ice-related contempla ... More >>

A B & the Sea's "In the Sunshine" Makes a Bid for Local Song of the Summer

​ Last summer, A B & the Sea covered Katy Perry's "California Gurls." This year, the S.F. indie outfit apparently decided to write its own summer jam. And thanks to production by local dance-pop maven Wallpaper, theirs manages to pair the crisp catchiness of a radio-ready single with the band' ... More >>

Gayngs at the Independent: Sexier (and Obviously Weirder) Than Your Prom

Gayngs at the Independent​Gayngs White Hinterland June 1, 2011 @ The Independent Better than: Your actual prom, including the hotel room after-party Picture a prom night in the early 1990s, in a glittering hall with a live band that plays soulful, heart-thumping music, cajoling the entirety of t ... More >>

Sizzle & Fizzle: Highs and Lows from the Last Week in S.F. Music

Gayngs at the Independent​Gayngs White Hinterland June 1, 2011 @ The Independent Better than: Your actual prom, including the hotel room after-party Picture a prom night in the early 1990s, in a glittering hall with a live band that plays soulful, heart-thumping music, cajoling the entirety of t ... More >>

The 5 Most Ridiculous Things Katy Perry Needs to Play Live

​ The Smoking Gun yesterday leaked excerpts from Katy Perry's 45-page 2011 tour rider -- the legal document that spells out all the things promoters need to provide in order for her to play live. The document includes dressing room decor requests, organic, dried, and frozen fruits (she is a " ... More >>

Metallica Fans More Likely to 'Do It' on a First Date, Dumb Survey Says

"Nice to meet you. Wanna do it?"​Surprise! Metallica and Nirvana fans are more likely to have sex on a first date, while those who like Coldplay and Adele are the least likely to go all the way.Those are the findings of a not-entirely-scientific survey by online dating site Tastebuds, which matche ... More >>

The Grammys Remove 31 Award Categories, Remain Utterly Irrational

A totem of absurdity​You might think it irrational, pointless, and shallow to waste one's energy getting upset about music awards shows, but last February's Grammy Awards filled us with such bubbling rage, we almost threw the cat at the TV. It wasn't Cee-Lo's chicken outfit that did it. It was ... More >>

Out with the Kids: Sushi at ICHI

Alex HochmanWho cares if she'll never earn an athletic scholarship? She eats shrimp heads, dammit!​In my twisted little food-obsessed world, my daughters' sushi-eating exploits are just as important, if not more, than their academic achievements or athletic prowess. Your son scored two goals t ... More >>

Bouncer: Switching Off Reason at Olive's Happy Hour

Alex HochmanWho cares if she'll never earn an athletic scholarship? She eats shrimp heads, dammit!​In my twisted little food-obsessed world, my daughters' sushi-eating exploits are just as important, if not more, than their academic achievements or athletic prowess. Your son scored two goals t ... More >>

Bouncer Ponders Pharmaceutical Escapes at Olive's Happy Hour

​The best bars in S.F. don't have to try too hard. Olive is small and artfully arrayed, like a hipster Munchkin. Bright, abstract paintings line the walls. The proprietor has put a lot of DIY love into the place, and made sure to hire friendly staffers. No fewer than three of them approached me wh ... More >>

The 2011 Grammys, A Timeline: Lady Gaga's Boob Armor, Who Is Lady Antebellum, and What the Hell is Cee-Lo Wearing?

In which we sit through three and a half hours of Grammys twaddle, so you don't have to: 8:01 p.m.: Show opens with an Aretha Franklin montage. Okay... 8:03 p.m.: Christina Aguilera, Jennifer Hudson, Florence Welch, Yolanda Adams, and Martina McBride perform "Natural Woman" together, then take i ... More >>

The Grammys Are Coming. Here's a Drinking Game to Get You Through Them

​Yes, the Grammys are nothing more than a promo summit for what remains of our broken conglomerate record labels of yore. Columbia, EMI, Warner Bros., Capitol, Atlantic, Interscope, et al. like to believe they still hold some influence over the masses, and as long as we can sit here comfortably an ... More >>

Google Doesn't Want to Help You Steal Music Anymore

via Modernhumorist.com​In an effort to deter the masses from pirating music and movies, Google has blocked certain terms related to media piracy from their instant search and autocomplete, including words like Bittorrent, uTorrent, RapidShare, and Megaupload -- all of which are Internet tools and ... More >>

The Billboard Social 50 Proves Internet Fame Can Only Get You So Far

Bieber: Fame via YouTube​In early December, Billboard launched a new chart called The Social 50. It factors in all the times an artist is mentioned across various social media outlets and ranks them accordingly. When I heard about this, I was expecting to see a mix of both big name artists and a ... More >>

Sizzle & Fizzle: Highs and lows from the last several weeks in S.F. music.

Bieber: Fame via YouTube​In early December, Billboard launched a new chart called The Social 50. It factors in all the times an artist is mentioned across various social media outlets and ranks them accordingly. When I heard about this, I was expecting to see a mix of both big name artists and a ... More >>

Welcome to the Music Industry, 2011: Records Don't Sell, Touring Can Make Bank, and Major Labels Are (Mostly) Useless

​For whatever reason, today seems to be the day that the music industry reminds us that it's still in total upheaval. Soundscan tells us that relatively few people actually bought music in 2010, unless they were fans of Eminem and Katy Perry. Dave Matthews spent the last 10 years collecting $500 ... More >>

A Postcard from the Future

Or, how 2011 was the year everything changed in music.

DJ Earworm Slams 2010's Pop Hits Into One Frankenstein of a Song

​If you really hate yourself, have the world's worst music taste, or are just morbidly curious how it's possible to mix together Billboard's top 25 songs into one coherent track, you'll probably wanna give DJ Earworm's "United State of Pop 2010 (Don't Stop The Pop)" a listen.

Friends of Friends Taps Shlohmo for a Healthy Dose of 'Pretty Boy Swag'

​L.A. label Friends of Friends has quietly been rising over the last couple of years as a notable player in the experimental electronic scene. Now, just in time for the holidays, it's dropped Pop Massacre, a new label comp featuring interpretations of wonderfully low- and middlebrow pop from a hi ... More >>

The Top 8 Songs To Listen To While Punching Yourself in the Face

​Dear everyone, it looks like we owe you all a huge apology. There we were last week, thinking that having a sense of humor about the fact that we live on a gigantic fault line was infinitely better than stressing ourselves out to the point of constant anxiety about the next Big One. But then our ... More >>

Best Coast Gives Voice to Real California Girls at Great American Music Hall

​Best Coast Sonny and the Sunsets October 26, 2010 @ Great American Music Hall Better than: The Philadelphia Phillies, California Phillies being of the undeniable, unforgettable, fine, fresh, fierce sort. Call Best Coast's Bethany Cosentino the anti-Katy Perry, or rather t ... More >>

The Top Six Weirdest Musical Appearances on Sesame Street

Last week, Katy Perry's cleavage got her appearance on Sesame Street canceled, due to a barrage of complaints from parents who saw the leaked clip on YouTube before it had a chance to air. We personally can't see what all the fuss is about, since Katy's breasticles looked pretty well contained to us ... More >>

Big Mouth Strikes Again

Last week, Katy Perry's cleavage got her appearance on Sesame Street canceled, due to a barrage of complaints from parents who saw the leaked clip on YouTube before it had a chance to air. We personally can't see what all the fuss is about, since Katy's breasticles looked pretty well contained to us ... More >>

Watch A B & the Sea Discuss 'California Gurls' Cover, Busking Experience at All Shook Down

Moments after sunny San Francisco indie-pop quartet A B & the Sea came offstage at Sunday's All Shook Down Music Festival, we caught up with singer-guitarist Koley O'Brien for a quick chat. As the Sunday hordes roved Grant Street, Koley told us about the band's days busking on Market Street, its ... More >>

Free MP3:A B & the Sea Cover Katy Perry's 'California Gurls'

A B & The Sea performing at the All Shook Down Music Festival​In our video interview at Sunday's All Shook Down Music Festival, A B & the Sea singer-guitarist Koley O'Brien broke the news that his impressive indie-pop outfit has put together a cover of Katy Perry's "Califorina Gurls". Leav ... More >>

Phoenix crafts the season’s perfect hits

A B & The Sea performing at the All Shook Down Music Festival​In our video interview at Sunday's All Shook Down Music Festival, A B & the Sea singer-guitarist Koley O'Brien broke the news that his impressive indie-pop outfit has put together a cover of Katy Perry's "Califorina Gurls". Leav ... More >>

The Lady GaGa backlash begins here

A B & The Sea performing at the All Shook Down Music Festival​In our video interview at Sunday's All Shook Down Music Festival, A B & the Sea singer-guitarist Koley O'Brien broke the news that his impressive indie-pop outfit has put together a cover of Katy Perry's "Califorina Gurls". Leav ... More >>

Eight Steps to a Better 2009

A B & The Sea performing at the All Shook Down Music Festival​In our video interview at Sunday's All Shook Down Music Festival, A B & the Sea singer-guitarist Koley O'Brien broke the news that his impressive indie-pop outfit has put together a cover of Katy Perry's "Califorina Gurls". Leav ... More >>

Hitsville: The Year in Music, by the Numbers

By Randall Roberts You don't need a half-wit music critic to tell you it's been a remarkable year for America, one historians will be discussing and researching for centuries to come. War, financial collapse, politics, technology: All have been dinner-table topics for many Americans. Racial barrier ... More >>

The Worst Lyrics of 2008: NCAA-Style Showdown

And now it's time for the "I love you like a fat kid loves cake" memorial Worst Lyrics of 2008, March Madness-style tournament, this year a terrifying mélange of appalling oral-sex requests, bargain-bin philosophies, grammatical atrocities, and cringe-inducing pillow talk. To elevate the drama, I p ... More >>

The Worst Lyrics of 2008

And now it's time for the "I love you like a fat kid loves cake" memorial Worst Lyrics of 2008, March Madness-style tournament, this year a terrifying mélange of appalling oral-sex requests, bargain-bin philosophies, grammatical atrocities, and cringe-inducing pillow talk. To elevate the drama, I p ... More >>

The Year in Music: 2008's Top Ten Pop Songs

By Annie ZaleskiPop music often gets a bad rap for being disposable or vapid, and in many cases that's true. (Katy Perry, Danity Kane and the Pussycat Dolls, step right up!) But every year, a few irresistible bits of innovative ear candy rocket up the charts and seep into our subconscious. The foll ... More >>