Katy Perry Has Been 'Spilling Out' Material For New Album



Katy Perry has already gone on record as saying that her new album will show the influence of artists like Ace of Base and the Cardigans, but now she appears to be tempering that goal a bit.

"Yeah, I guess the idea was to have, like, roller-skating music, like ['The Sign' by Ace of Base] or 'Lovefool' by the Cardigans. But actually, what I'm focusing on is the actual song and the story and having it say something, because then I can put the bells and whistles around it," she told MTV News Wednesday night at the Grammy nominations telecast in Los Angeles, where she picked up a Best Female Pop Vocal Performance nomination for "Hot n Cold." "But if I don't have the song, then I don't really have anything. I really want to continue to be able to make a record that ... I can make [another] 'Unplugged' with."

In recent months, Perry's been working with the likes of Weezer's Rivers Cuomo and frequent Rihanna collaborator Tricky Stewart on crafting the songs for the follow-up to her breakthrough One of the Boys album. And, so far, she's happy to report that things have been going swimmingly. But she doesn't want to say too much about the process, lest she jinx.

"I was in Las Vegas working with Tricky Stewart, who is amazing, and I'd been bottled up for about two years," she explained. "I haven't written on the road. I was focusing on the One of the Boys record and making that visual and touring, so all of that stuff that I've kind gathered has just been spilling out. And it's hard for me to talk about it, because I don't want to jinx it. ... I'm not usually one of those people but ... I'm like 'It's going to be great, but let's see.' "

Just when will she be ready to unveil some of her new songs? Seems like that's still a ways off. Perry's gunning for greatness on the new album, and you can't put a timetable on that.

"It's too premature, but I know that I really want to make a record that I can never make again. I didn't think I had it in me to get to this capacity, so what do I have to go to the next level, you know?" she said. "I'm really encouraged, and nobody's really stopping me or telling me what to do or say. ... I'm just kind of letting it all come out."