'143' review: Katy Perry's latest has no soul or emotion – it's just a number

US singer Katy Perry performs on stage during the MTV Video Music Awards at UBS Arena in Elmont, New York, on September 11, 2024. — Photo by TIMOTHY A. CLARY / AFP

Katy Perry's new album title, 143, is code for "I love you", based on the number of letters in each word of the phrase. She may love us, but the album is more like 144 - I made mush.

Perry's first LP since 2020’s lackluster Smile is just as lackluster, an 11-track blur of thick electronic programming and simplistic lyrics. There's none of her past cheeky humour, virtually no personality. Even the title is filler.