Album Review!!
1989 by Taylor Swift (2014)
I'd been meaning to listen to this album for quite some time now in one go, and I must say, it's definitely one of the better ones that queen T has graced us with. I listened to it on a moody afternoon, wind blowing, signs of rain in the sky, and I found myself quietly appreciating Taylor's voice, her words, the many personal highs and lows that we are but spectators of.
My favourite song would hands down be the third one- Style. It's just a perfect encapsulation of WHY Taylor is still around, and why she just continues to get bigger. When she goes crashing down, she does back each time, and for the foreseeable future, I don't see her going out of style.
Blank Space is of course, Taylor's attempt at "satirising" her own urban legend. Sure sis *winks* it's a parody. Also, throwback at all the annoying gals on my social media who posted their photos with the caption- "Darling, I'm a nightmare dressed like a daydream" NO BITCH STFU YOU JUST MADE YOURSELF A BIGGER NIGHTMARE AND I DID NOT KNOW THAT WAS TECHNICALLY POSSIBLE.
Also, I'd heard the Red album (2012) a couple of weeks back, and I personally thought it sucked. I had to force myself to listen to it all the way through, and it was only my deep love for the title song that kept me afloat, honestly. No wonder that it was this album that made me give up the Swiftie tag way back in the day. But 1989 is a glow-up for Taylor- it's something that I enjoyed listening to, and wouldn't mind going back to again and again. I have a feeling though, that most of the songs here sound better when listened to in the album sequence, than as stand-alones. I'm not complaining though, just an observation.
Despite being fond of this album though, I find Bad Blood seriously cringey, and yep, I'll probably be skipping it on future replays. Also, I can't believe Ryan Adams covered the album song-by-song?? As if it wasn't bad enough that he was abusive to Mandy Moore in their marriage, he also tried to revive his career using Taylor's clout? SHADE. BOI BYE.
The first song, Welcome to New York, was mostly an "eh" and it gave me little Red (2012) flashbacks. Out of the Woods is another song that I didn't particularly warm up to, but I guess it fits in well with the overall ambience of the album. All You Had to Do Was Stay was a pleasant surprise, and it reaffirmed 13-year old me's theory that the Taylor songs no one talks about are actually the most interesting ones. Shake it Off is sort of a guilty pleasure- I love it, I resonate with it, but to quote one of my favourite YouTubers, Todd in the Shadows (GO AND CHECK HIM OUT), what was the "THIS SICK BEAT" bit all about?? COME ON TAYLOR. COME ON.
I Wish You Would is definitely another track that I'll listen to outside of the album, and it made me think about the long journey Taylor has had, and how her observations about love and relationships have simultaneously changed over time, while still being almost tragically optimistic. And of course, I was about to start thinking about how my own perceptions of love and relationships have changed in all the years I have been listening to Taylor, but then Bad Blood came on, and well. Wildest Dreams however was classic T- melodramatic, and fantastically romantic, two things very few can execute well, that too rarely, but thankfully, T succeeds here. The next 4 songs were honestly GOOD- but also, nothing more than that.
However, the last song, Clean, has made its way to my memory and I will be giving it more listens soon. It was lowkey soothing, and really, the most appropriate song to end this album with. It elevated the entire experience of the album for me, and made it that much more memorable. So yeah. That's basically my review. Thanks Taylor. You really redeemed yourself with this one, didn't you? Can't wait to hear the alleged hot mess Reputation (2017) soon.
I'd been meaning to listen to this album for quite some time now in one go, and I must say, it's definitely one of the better ones that queen T has graced us with. I listened to it on a moody afternoon, wind blowing, signs of rain in the sky, and I found myself quietly appreciating Taylor's voice, her words, the many personal highs and lows that we are but spectators of.
My favourite song would hands down be the third one- Style. It's just a perfect encapsulation of WHY Taylor is still around, and why she just continues to get bigger. When she goes crashing down, she does back each time, and for the foreseeable future, I don't see her going out of style.
Blank Space is of course, Taylor's attempt at "satirising" her own urban legend. Sure sis *winks* it's a parody. Also, throwback at all the annoying gals on my social media who posted their photos with the caption- "Darling, I'm a nightmare dressed like a daydream" NO BITCH STFU YOU JUST MADE YOURSELF A BIGGER NIGHTMARE AND I DID NOT KNOW THAT WAS TECHNICALLY POSSIBLE.
Also, I'd heard the Red album (2012) a couple of weeks back, and I personally thought it sucked. I had to force myself to listen to it all the way through, and it was only my deep love for the title song that kept me afloat, honestly. No wonder that it was this album that made me give up the Swiftie tag way back in the day. But 1989 is a glow-up for Taylor- it's something that I enjoyed listening to, and wouldn't mind going back to again and again. I have a feeling though, that most of the songs here sound better when listened to in the album sequence, than as stand-alones. I'm not complaining though, just an observation.
Despite being fond of this album though, I find Bad Blood seriously cringey, and yep, I'll probably be skipping it on future replays. Also, I can't believe Ryan Adams covered the album song-by-song?? As if it wasn't bad enough that he was abusive to Mandy Moore in their marriage, he also tried to revive his career using Taylor's clout? SHADE. BOI BYE.
The first song, Welcome to New York, was mostly an "eh" and it gave me little Red (2012) flashbacks. Out of the Woods is another song that I didn't particularly warm up to, but I guess it fits in well with the overall ambience of the album. All You Had to Do Was Stay was a pleasant surprise, and it reaffirmed 13-year old me's theory that the Taylor songs no one talks about are actually the most interesting ones. Shake it Off is sort of a guilty pleasure- I love it, I resonate with it, but to quote one of my favourite YouTubers, Todd in the Shadows (GO AND CHECK HIM OUT), what was the "THIS SICK BEAT" bit all about?? COME ON TAYLOR. COME ON.
I Wish You Would is definitely another track that I'll listen to outside of the album, and it made me think about the long journey Taylor has had, and how her observations about love and relationships have simultaneously changed over time, while still being almost tragically optimistic. And of course, I was about to start thinking about how my own perceptions of love and relationships have changed in all the years I have been listening to Taylor, but then Bad Blood came on, and well. Wildest Dreams however was classic T- melodramatic, and fantastically romantic, two things very few can execute well, that too rarely, but thankfully, T succeeds here. The next 4 songs were honestly GOOD- but also, nothing more than that.
However, the last song, Clean, has made its way to my memory and I will be giving it more listens soon. It was lowkey soothing, and really, the most appropriate song to end this album with. It elevated the entire experience of the album for me, and made it that much more memorable. So yeah. That's basically my review. Thanks Taylor. You really redeemed yourself with this one, didn't you? Can't wait to hear the alleged hot mess Reputation (2017) soon.
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