Posted by Katherine St Asaph on 09/19/2011 at 4:09 PM Reviews

The Popdust Files: Porcelain Black

When we listed Porcelain Black among pop culture’s panoply of next Lady Gagas, we weren’t being entirely serious. Yes, she’s dyed her hair blonde and black in the same places Gaga did. Yes, RedOne discovered and presumably still endorses her. But she was also endorsed by Lil Wayne and drops Marilyn Manson references as readily as she mentions Britney. You can probably see where we’re going with this. Or you can hear it, below, thanks to an overeager RedOne (the deal: if he leaks it, Porcelain’s fanbase will presumably tweet the feathers out of it, and Mephistopheles is probably also involved):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lOUEv6lnDQA

The Prophet Blog said of the single: “‘Naughty Naughty’ actually sounds like one of RedOne’s crappy Born This Way submissions that Lady GaGa rejected in favor of ‘Judas’.” They’re not far off. RedOne sets the track stomping; the synths subside only briefly, and the percussion never lets up. Only a (probably synthesized) electric guitar and the grit in Porcelain’s voice–enough to scrape out a cross between a scream, choking and an extended glottal stop by the bridge–let on that this is supposed to somehow rock, or at least rock enough to justify past track “This Is What Rock N Roll Looks Like.”

For the youngs out there, rock ‘n’ roll does not look like this, nor is transgression or badassery best expressed by lines like “I’m definitely no angel, but I’m not that evil / I’m just addicted to beautiful people.” When Porcelain Black sings about being naughty, it’s quick and graceful; when she sings about losing control, the reverb’s meticulous and the autotune sleek and flawless. All this makes “Naughty Naughty” seem weirdly transitional, the awkward midpoint between grittier rock and shinier Gaga. When she picks one or the other, this’ll instantly be obsolete.

POPDUST SAYS:
[starreview tpl=16]