Having Lady Gaga’s “ARTPOP” and Katy Perry’s “PRISM” come out only a month apart begs for a comparison between the two.

I mean, they’re both “queens of pop,” they both sell out arenas, and they both top the charts with everything they do. Not to mention, both of their album names are in all-caps, as though they wanted to be compared. So here it goes:

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“PRISM” 

The most noticeable thing about Katy Perry’s new album is she hasn’t changed much. Perry is known for her “girl next door” pop and doesn’t stray far from that.

That’s not to suggest she needs to. Her success is based on her clean vocals with, despite her dating habits, innocent teenaged flair.  And she seemingly knows that.

The singer really shines in songs like the hit single “Roar” and the dance-infused “This Is How We Do.”

However, the singer strays a little with the club hip-hop tinged “Dark Horse” and (almost) Far East sounding “Legendary Lovers.” With the latter, she plays to the theme by mentioning elements of Hinduism with “karma” and her “third eye.”

Perry clearly won the battle of the singles. “Roar” has been on the radio for months now and has yet to get old. The album on the other hand is more of the same from KP.

★★☆☆☆

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“ARTPOP” 

Lady Gaga is known for her extreme, envelope-pushing antics. From playing in nearly nothing for the MTV Video Music Awards to playing in (literally) nothing for a London crowd last month, Gaga is not afraid to upset the status quo while upsetting your grandma.

It’s antics like these that drew comparisons with Madonna. But as weird becomes the norm for Gaga, she has to up the oddity album after album. In this album, 5 years after her acclaimed debut, she’s become almost a caricature of her former self.

The album has a general dance vibe venturing into dub step (“Aura”), hip-hop (“Jewels N’ Drugs”), and rock (“MANiCURE”). The one thing that stays consistent is the overtly sexual themes.

“Dope” and “Gypsy” stand out as the anchors to the album. Although they’re toward the end, they may have saved the album with simple piano descending into dance pop. “Dope” features singer/songwriter brokenness only Gaga could pull off.

As if acknowledging her single was far from a standout, Gaga buried “Applause” in the very back of the album. Perhaps this was to give herself a round of applause for her work…

★★★☆☆

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THE VERDICT

Neither of these albums are standouts for their respective artists. Nor will they be hailed as “album of the year.” But they will sell.

Lady Gaga takes the win by a hair simply due to her oddity. Katy Perry is good at what she does, but should consider mixing it up to keep listeners from yawning.

All in all, pop music could be compared to genre literature. No one will ever hail “Twilight” as a masterful piece of literature, but it was never created for that title in the first place. In the same way, neither of these albums will change the face of pop music. But they don’t need to in order to be successful.