I wanted to use my passion blog as a chance for me to be able to listen to new music and follow new paths. However, in order for me to familiarize myself with how I want to format these posts and what kinds of things I want to focus on, I chose for this first post to listen to Taylor Swift, an artist I am very familiar with.
I have listened to Taylor Swift since she released “Teardrops on My Guitar” and “Our Song” in 2006. My focus of this post is on her newest album that came out a few weeks ago called Lover. I have been listening to this album on repeat to hear her different messages and to feel nostalgia from her past sound from her other albums that I have loved to death.
(Lover Album Cover, 2019)
When I first saw the colorful cover of Lover, I instantly was taken back to 2010, when Swift released her Speak Now album, by far my favorite album. After listening to the songs on her new album, I still have this feeling and I can confidently “draft” songs from Lover onto Speak Now. I look at the tracklist of her new album and I think to myself, “which previous albums could this song belong on?” However, when I do this, I appreciate that while some sounds and some of her vocal and musical patterns are similar to some songs in the past, Swift has a new sound in this new album.
(Speak Now Album Cover, 2010)
Her other most recent album was Reputation and was released in 2017. This album was one of Swift’s more controversial album. She went from being the artist that will bash an ex-boyfriend for breaking up with her to being a hardcore, independent woman that just wanted loyalty. Her first single from this album “Look What You Made Me Do” proved that exactly. Much of this inspiration from this album grew from her controversy with Kanye West and Kim Kardashian that has been building up since MTV’s Video Music Awards in 2009 and finally blew up in 2016. This album was a completely different Swift than I was used to hearing: she stood up for herself, she showed everyone that she does not want the drama in her life, she proved to everyone that she can make the best, subtle attacks in all of her songs, and she can overcome any challenges that are thrown at her, like her one dollar settlement, and make the best of it to be a role model for her “Swifties” and other young girls.
After touring for Reputation, Swift disappeared for a while, a common trend for artists while they create new music. I was so excited to hear that she had new music coming out when I was browsing on social media one day. She released the first single from Lover, “ME! (featuring Bradon Urie of Panic! At the Disco).” To be truthful, I wasn’t a big fan of the song. I enjoyed the message, the music video was fun to watch and analyze (especially since she said there were a lot of easter eggs for her new album), but when the song comes up on my phone, I skip it most of the time. It isn’t a song that gives me any kind of feelings, which is what I enjoy from a good song.
“Lover” and “Paper Rings” are the two songs from the album that I have fallen in love with. “You Need to Calm Down” is an absolute bop and I will jam to it on any day to feel better and the music video is my favorite music video of all time (with all of the famous stars and messages in it). “Lover” and “Paper Rings” are the two songs that give me goosebumps and take me to a different place when I listen to them. I feel warmth and when I’m listening to her harmonies and her amazing resonance and playful tones in both songs, I can’t help but just be happy. “Cruel Summer” is climbing its way to being another one of my favorites, especially when I play the third verse over and over because of the buildup in the lyrics and in her voice, and then to just be let free into the chorus. That also gives me chills every time.
This album is a different Swift. She isn’t the carefree teenage country singer anymore. She isn’t the older, somewhat wiser, young adult who is realizing where she belongs anymore (not in country music). She isn’t the woman who is seeking a dependable man to be with and accepting the harsh realities of dating anymore. She isn’t the notorious break-up songwriter anymore. She isn’t the black lipstick, cutthroat artist anymore. Whoever this Taylor is now, is happy. She isn’t looking for love anymore, she has it. She is at peace with herself and she’s comfortable with who she is with and where she is at and she just wants to express that in this album.