Katy Perry’s first solo single in two years, “Never Really Over,” finds the pop singer struggling with residual ambivalence over a former flame. “Two years and just like that, my head still takes me back,” she belts in her signature bellow. Co-produced by Zedd, who previously collaborated with Perry on the DJ’s simmering electro-pop single “365” earlier this year, the infectious “Never Really Over” is a bright midtempo pop track that wouldn’t sound out of place on 2013’s Prism. And that’s probably by design.
Despite the strength of its lead single, “Chained to the Rhythm,” Perry’s 2017 album Witness fizzled on the charts, selling a fraction of its three multi-platinum predecessors. So it wouldn’t be a stretch to say that a lot is riding on “Never Really Over,” the title of which could—depending on how the song is received—double as a bold statement of purpose or tragic irony.
From the sound of a ticking clock to marching-band percussion, time is a clever recurring motif throughout “Never Really Over.” If Perry looked to the future on Witness, she mines the past for the music video for this track. But rather than revert to the retro, brunette bombshell look of her most commercially fertile eras, Perry opts for a long, wavy strawberry-blond coif and a ’70s-inspired boho-chic aesthetic here.
Shot in Malibu, the video takes place inside a gated compound where Perry enrolls in a cult-like retreat for the brokenhearted. She her fellow romance recoverees dance merrily in a sun-kissed field and partake in cupping, acupuncture, and other forms of alternative medicine—“I guess I should try hypnotherapy/I’ve got to rewire my brain,” Perry sings—culminating in a cheeky ayahuasca-style ceremony in which the participants drink their own tears.
Directed by Philippa Price, “Never Really Lover” is a playful and imaginative portrayal of love’s intoxicating spell and the absurd lengths some of us will go to exorcise ourselves of it. The clip is ripe for repeat viewings and filled with New Age symbolism, including the compound’s yin-yang-inspired logo and enough triangle imagery to keep illuminati conspiracy theorists occupied at least until Perry serves up her next visual feast.
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