Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
BY BIANCA BILLONI, STAFF WRITER
I can not confidently call myself a Swiftie, but I can definitely say I’m a fan of Taylor Swift’s music. When I saw she was releasing a new album, I got excited for sure, but it’s not something I was necessarily counting down the days and hours to. However, after listening to “Midnights” for the past 24 hours on repeat, I can confidently say this is up there in my top three favorite albums of hers. From the electronic/synth pop sound to the poetic lyricism to the incredible instrumentals, this album is a must listen. Don’t just take my word for it though. Take the fact that Swift is the first artist to have one of her songs in every single top 10 slot for the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Not to mention, every song from the album, bonus tracks included, is within the top 50 songs on the list.
As Swift said in her announcement for the album, “This is a collection of music written in the middle of the night, a journey through terrors and sweet dreams.” Each of the songs explores a different memory, experience or itching thought she has had from love to the world’s perception of her to what she thinks of her nemeses.
The opening song “Lavender Haze” has to be my favorite, and it’s the perfect way to introduce the album. It immediately lets the listener know this album will be different from “Folklore” and “Evermore.” The electronic instrumental ambience was enough to draw me in, but the topic of the song really made me jam out to this one. Swift just wants to live her life as a female celebrity without having to live up to any societal expectations for herself or her relationship.
Another fan favorite is “Anti-Hero,” a song about being your own worst enemy or somewhat of a self-fulfilling prophecy. I’m absolutely obsessed with the rhyme scheme of the pre-chorus in this one. The lack of pauses between the lines reminds me so much of some of my favorite poetry, so this part of the song especially resonated with me. “Question…?” is one I personally really enjoyed for the phrasing as well. This one also made good use of cutting out most of the empty space between the lines, but what I really liked was that this one felt like a conversation. I think we’ve all gone through a situation where we wanted closure, but never got it, so we had the conversation with ourselves imagining exactly how it would’ve gone.
A few others I feel are worth mentioning: “Snow On The Beach” (feat. Lana Del Rey) I really enjoyed because I felt it was reminiscent of Folklore. The use of metaphors and similes in this song was very strong as well. “Midnight Rain” made fun use of shifting Swift’s voice in the chorus and “Bejeweled” was such a fun anthem for those out there who feel misused by the person they’re having a situation-ship with. From the powerful and intense use of repetition in “Labyrinth” to the more lighthearted and fun repetition in “Karma” to the very intentional phrasing of the closing song “Mastermind,” this album has a song for everyone. And don’t forget about the seven bonus tracks. I really loved “Bigger Than The Whole Sky” purely for the lyrics, but I’ll leave all the deciding of favorites up to you. I wish I could talk about every song, but unfortunately there is not enough words for that. So please, give this album a listen if you haven’t already to hear all the songs for yourself.
