Taylor Swift just dropped her 10th studio album ‘Midnights’ including a second 3 AM release. Swift has constantly been releasing new albums since 2020, including “Folklore,” “Evermore,” and re-recordings of her previous albums “Red (Taylor’s Version),” and “Fearless (Taylor’s Version).” She has now released over 100 songs since 2020.
Fans rushed to listen to the new album but the music streaming platform, Spotify, crashed.
Music is undoubtedly subjective, and not every person likes the same sound. But I think Taylor released another soul-catching album, which is incredible, considering she’s released multiple albums quickly. I’m not mad about it though! ‘Midnights’ returns us to pop Taylor, who we haven’t seen in quite some time. Her pop sound has t-swift elements , but we can hear how her pop style has grown, developed, and changed. ‘Midnights’ is a much softer and slow style of Taylor’s pop sound. It’s not as high-energy or in your face as ‘Blank Space’.
The question everyone is thinking; Is ‘Midnights’ good or bad?
I’ve heard fellow Swifties say they enjoyed her album but were slightly disappointed. However, these Swifties added they have high expectations, which could be why they didn’t feel blown away by the album. Other fans have come to Taylor’s defense:
And other Tweets were simply comedic.
Even the Teletubbies gave ‘Midnights’ a shoutout!
Here is my review after listening to the album. My favorite song on the album is the very first you’ll hear, Lavender Haze. Lavender Haze is currently the #1 streamed song from ‘Midnights’.
Lavender Haze
I found this song vibey. The lyrics reminded me of her song ‘Delicate.’ Her snare drum, kick drum, and lower-pitch bridges were like French butter on bread to me.
Anti-Hero
Giving us a music video to start this song brought me energy and instantly sounded like a bop. It seems Taylor was expressing her self-disdain and struggles during the earlier period of her career when she was continuously under the media’s scrutiny. “And I’m a monster on the hill,” she sings. Taylor even mentions her judgment from her vocalization on equality and politics. “Did you hear my covert narcissism lightly disguised as altruism. Like some kind of congressman”.
Labyrinth
This song gave me chills by its instrumental moments and overall beauty. Taylor sings mostly in falsetto with a full sound under her breath. She sings, “You know how much I hate that everybody just expects me to bounce back, just like that”. Is this an illusion to society thinking after all her media trauma and hatred that because she’s a star it’s expected of her to get over it? Taylor is a human as well. Her song continues about falling in love. “Love and life can be confusing, like a maze, a labyrinth”. I recommend listening to this song with your best headphones and go on a walk during the night.
Questions
Is she singing about Harry Styles? Swift sings mysteriously about someone, but who? Swift lovers have ‘questioned’ (see what I did there?) when Swift sings, “I remember,” coming in the first verse of the song. These are the same words Taylor used to start her song ‘Out of the woods” from her album ‘1989’. She used this line in a track about her ex-lover, Harry Styles.
Ultimately, the conclusion that Midnights is good or bad is up to the listener. I give it a thumbs up. I think we can all agree at the end of the day that Swift crushes is an artist and songwriter. She takes risks and plays around with different sounds, and it seems she’s indeed walked into her authentic-self doing what she wants when she wants. It appears there’s no rules with her writing and production. It’s refreshing.
I’m a huge Taylor Swift lover and I can’t wait to see what else she produces. Her lyrics slap.
(photo by Beth Garrabrant)
What do you think? Pop bop or not? Is ‘Midnights’ your cup of tea? Let me know your thoughts and favorite tracks in the comments.
Taylor Swift’s ‘Midnights’ can be streamed across all major music platforms. Listen to the full album playlist below:
Midnights Track List: