Release Date: October 27th, 2023
Nice to meet you, where you been?
Review: Was this album a 10 back in 2014? Not for me at least. You see, I grew to love Taylor during the Fearless era, and with Speak Now, and Red, there were increasingly more pop moments and less country. And I felt like she was chasing trends rather than being true to herself. Like on Speak Now, you can hear pop punk elements. And with Red, you heard dubstep. And so back in 2014, I felt betrayed that this girl who would wear diary entries in her songs, was making synth pop.
My original reaction to "Shake it off" was "what the hell is this?" But over time, once that opening beat hits, it does its job. Yeah, the lyrics are elementary and kind of embarrassing if you listed it as your favorite, but it's not suppose to be emotional. it's a "idgaf" type of song.
"Blank Space" "Style" and "Out of the Woods" are top tier. They've always have been. The opening track was never a favorite, but it has this glittery "new" feel to it that I never minded it. "All You Had To Do Was Stay," "I Wish You Would," and "How You Get The Girl" all had this adrenaline rushing quality to them. It's enjoyable, but also felt automatic. Thinking back, this was after Tegan and Sara had released "Hearthrob" and Chvrches released "The Bones of What You Believe." Those records changed my opinion on synth pop so even thought I enjoyed track 5, 7, and 10, I felt anyone could have made those songs, despite how enjoyable it was.
"Bad Blood" is an interesting case because I always though it was catchy and had a good beat. Lyrically, um, "band-aids don't fix bullet holes" always felt cheesy, but at least it made sense. I didn't follow the happenings of who this song is about, but people calling this the worst TS song is baffling to me. I don't sing along to the chorus, but in my head, i love shouting out to "hey!"
Depending on your mood, "Wildest Dreams" can sound really dreamy or really slow. I always liked it, but with so many back to back bangers, it does slow the pace. The last song, "Clean" was one of my earliest stand out when the album was still on my bad side. I just like the way it starts and the instrumental melody felt like a clock. Plus, because of the title, you think about showering or washing right? But her imagery of "downing" in water is the only way for her to be clean. like whoa.
There are two songs that held me back from thinking this was a 10, "This Love" and "I Know Places." Both are fine now, but I never liked the "i-i-i-i" part. For the bonus tracks, "Wonderland" felt too fairytale to me, "You Are In Love" is a slowburner. and "New Romantic" is one of the most overrated songs in the TS community. Yeah, it's fast paced, but I don't think it's deserving to be one of her national anthems.
as for the From the Vault tracks, they are all good. I'm not sure if they sound like 1989. The best one is "Is It Over Now?" which could be a midnight cut. I love that "oh lord" part and the "is it over now" climax reminds me of the climax of out of the woods. So that was cool.
as for the re-recordings, I think she did a masterful job of making it sound identical. I was really worried because for Speak Now, there was something missing. This version is superior.
Summary: Let's give this album its flowers. I don't think it's a perfect album, but lord knows I still listen to this album.
Favorite Songs:
Blank Space, Style, Out of the Woods
Rating: 10/10
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