I don't understand, what's going on with Taylor and Matt trash being a couple? Could you explain to me?
nothing is really going on at the moment tbh, cuz they broke up a pretty long while ago, but the issue is the album (if that's what you're referring to) and taylor swift herself.
[will add sources and more stuff when I find the links and if I realise I missed something out, cuz this is a general thing based off of memory]
Context: dating history
Basically she and matty had been friends for a few years (there are rumors of them hooking up ig in 1989 era maybe, but I don't really care enough to believe shit like that). Apparently he had also been pining for her (according to stuff he said in interviews and tweets) for years, but again, you can still chalk it up to rumors if you wanna.
The thing is that post her breakup with joe alwyn, she started dating him (in like april I think) [there had been dating rumors of them since 2014 tho, and again in March 2023] and the fandom kinda got divided.
Here is the link to their entire timeline
Context: what matty healy did
Matty healy (you prolly know this) is basically racist, sexist, antisemitic, homophobic and God knows what else I have missed out or not been aware of. He did shit like doing the nazi gesture on stage, mocking asian accents, tastelessly making fun of ice spice on her race and bodyshaming her, laughing and basically confirming that he watches violent rape porn of black women on a site that is known to be highly problematic and force their actors (gender neutral) to do things they dont consent to (there was also an actress who was assaulted or something but im not informed on it). Even when he was called out on stuff like this, he accused people (who were poc, btw) of overreacting.
Context: taylor and activism
Taylor had also, in the past (lover era, and miss Americana the doc) had talked about how she had been too quiet about political issues and politics itself for too long, that she understands her influence and power in society, and that she "needs to be on the right side of history" and even specifics such as that she thinks it's spineless to go on stage and say "happy pride month" and not acknowledge the political oppression that queers in USA were facing (something about a bill or the republican party idk man I'm not american, i dont remember but i did research when i watched the doc tho). She has claimed she was gonna be clear about where she stands (many republicans had considered her to be one, and many thought she's conservative or something, but she was always quiet about it, until the lover era). However, she just stopped that activism after the lover era, and went back to being quiet on where she stands (I've seen many swifties refer to the lover era as the activism era) and hasn't spoken about anything substantial really. She did some things like post a black square with 13 hearts during blm, and stuff that every celeb who wasn't openly a pos did, but that's kinda it. Even as a self proclaimed feminist, she didn't speak up on issues such as roe v wade, or about an issue regarding drag queens despite having them in yntcd, or talking about trans/queer rights until she was in a blue state (im not an American, I just like to keep up a little with stuff in usa cuz it's always up in my face sadly, and thus i cant be specific, but anyways, correct me if I'm wrong, or if I missed something).
So even after saying she'll be vocal, she was just... not. And that's basically her on politics or giving a shit about minority communities.
Context: Fandom's reaction
Swifties were extremely disappointed that taylor CHOSE to associate with a man like this, and there were fans calling her out, and she received backlash, too.
Most of these swifties were poc (myself included) and they felt hurt that an artist that they not just supported and developed such a deep connection with, but also financially supported for years, would have such disregard for them. Not just was she dating him, but she kept saying things such as "I have never been happier in all aspects of my life" or saying "I love you" or "uk who you are" in romantic songs on the tour, which was just adding insult to injury. She also did a collab with ice spice (which was completely out of nowhere, and the collab itself seemed badly made and rushed), which fans and others speculated to be a pr cover up for the fact that matty healy had mocked her (many ppl also believed that it was too quick for it to be a pr cover tho).
Now, in the fandom, when poc swifties were calling her out on dating mh, (mostly) white swifties started harassing poc swifties for doing so, or saying that they are hindering with her happiness or some bs about it being "just a fling" (again, myself included). They said it's the same as seeing a friend get out of a long-term relationship and make bad dating choices, and poc swifties should let it go (as if taylor is our close personal friend). In a mostly white fandom, poc swifties felt alienated and sidelined.
Ofc, taylor never addressed any of this backlash, and after she broke up with him, there were articles saying that sources say (which mostly means her pr team atp) that her breakup had nothing to do with his controversies or behavior.
The album release (lyrics, references and reaction)
Now, with the release of ttpd, contrary to what most of the fandom believed, most of the songs on both the albums are believed to be (and heavily hinted on) about matty healy. These include 4 songs- "ttpd", "but daddy I love him", "I can fix him (no really I can)", and "guilty as sin?"
Ttpd, the title track, talks about mh being "a tattooed golden retriever" (wtf) and about him love-bombing her, and her pining after him, thinking about marriage and shit. But daddy I love him and I can fix him, are basically that no one supported her dating decision and she's claiming that she loves him oh so goddamn much, but more importantly, her talking about her fans' reactions. Specifically, describing her poc fans to be "vipers" and "judgemental creeps" who hate her and them being hurt as "bitching and moaning", and basically took the side of the (white) fans who defended her, indirectly. She described his racist bs as "crazy" and said shit like she could "handle a dangerous man." She also has another song, "Guilty as sin?" and while I genuinely don't give a fuck about what she chooses to do in her private life, unless it is problematic, it is about her fantasizing about being with that racist man while being in a long term relationship with joe alwyn. She sings about how she wants him and wants to be with him... in multiple ways, iykyk. Again, out of context, I love this song so much, but that doesn't erase the context, right?
She also has a song "I hate it here" where she says the following lines:
"My friends used to play a game where
We would pick a decade
We wished we could live in instead of this
I'd say the 1830s but without all the racists and getting married off for the highest bid"
And while there are many reasons why this line by itself is racist (romantisization of a time that was extremely shitty to many communities, most of which she is not a part of, showing herself to be "oh look I'm so woke I still remember the bad things even when I romanticize bad eras in history" which is something you expect from an ignorant white high schooler maybe, not a 34 y/o billionaire who claims to be well-read, etc.) but taylor swift herself saying these is adding insult to injury cuz she has shown time and time again she has no problem with racism (she kept quiet when antonia gentry, a black actress, received hate and racist threats by swifties because of a line BY NETFLIX that taylor didn't like, and she shouldn't ofc, but it wasn't the actress' fault), or associating herself with them (matty healy, for example). It is hypocritical to write something like that after writing an album about pining after a man and his "dangerousness," which is just bigotry. Way to romanticise racism, sexism, and antisemitism, taylor.
Even now, after listening to the album, she clearly doesn't like mh anymore, NOT because of his actions, but because he broke her heart, showing that she still enables and is okay with everything he did.
And that's kind of it (ig) about her and matty healy. I'm not really sure exactly which part you wanted to know, so this is just a gist of it all. Hope it helps :)
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tw opinions. if you like a song that i don't or vice versa or you don't agree with a comment i made, good for you! get it off your chest, get it off my desk!
fortnight
One of Taylor’s weaker openers, it’s a nice song, not much going on though
the production is boppy, not much going on once again
Interesting how Taylor sees her muse as living a good life without her and a nice domestic scene with his wife watering flowers but for her, her husband is cheating on her, implying she thinks she will never be happy, maybe because of how this relationship went or her general perception of relationships and her experiences with them. That is my interpretation of the song.
The outro with post and taylor's harmonies SLAPS
Like I said, this song feels a bit lacking of substance both thematically and technically, it doesn't do it for me, i don't hate listening to it, i just don't love it.
i think it might be a song that grows on me over time but it won't ever be a fave for me.
i also think in light of the music video, it's lost some of its spark for me, as that music video made no sense to me. i don't think it deserved to be a single.
the tortured poets department
“You left your typerwriter at my apartment, straight from the tortured poets department” implying that this thing of which she is now part had been introduced to her by the muse
The muse has probably compared them to poets like Dylan Thomas and Patti Smith and probably romanticised their relationship into the work of a tortured poet, but that’s not real life.
Taylor brings back to reality that now because of his self sabotage that brought both of them down in this relationship, he has lost the one who will decode him, hold him, know him
the above are just little analyses i like making as i listen to the song, they have nothing to do about whether i like the song or not, it's just me trying to make sense of it. you'll see that a lot.
i do not like the charlie puth line. at all. why is it there?
also don't like the tattooed golden retriever line, the image of a tattooed golden retriever is terrifying.
i was so off-guard about the namedropping in this song, sorry i had no idea who dylan thomas or patti smith were.
this song is trying too hard to be poetic, i think (which one could argue is the whole point of this song), but it doesn't stand out much to me. the themes are interesting though.
this is a pretty weak title track, personally. i feel like it doesn't encapsulate the essence of the album (which i am confused about tbh, ttpd has a lot of aesthetics going on for itself). it has nothing on little fearless and evermore.
my boy only breaks his favourite toys
so we all thought this song would be pretty petty, but i honestly don't think it is extremely so. there's a sort of pity for the muse, that the breaking of his 'favourite toys' is a form of self sabotage and that they could've had it all.
i love how it starts so defeated, "oh here we go again", which i think is in reference to the muse's self sabotage ruining her life
it also feels a bit reflective and nostalgic of the fact that it wasn't all bad, which i quite liked. i liked the contrast of feelings.
"once i fix me, he's gonna miss me" is a devastating line btw
so is "he saw forever so he smashed it up"
song is a bop, i like the lyricism, overall i enjoy this song :)
down bad
i enjoy the cunty synth here ahaha. for all the jokes the fandom makes about jack fucking around with the synth while taylor sings the most soulcrushing lyrics, it is so real especially for this song.
taylor has never sounded so good while swearing. "fuck it if i can't have us" is such an earworm.
i feel like this is the most petty song in the album, mainly because of the "teenage petulance" in the lyrics
the callback to new romantics in the bridge is so insane, i noticed it immediately.
the production is so mystical and giving space alien vibes, i enjoy it.
so long, london
the intro is giving big ben bells and/or wedding bells
the fast beat vs the slow melodies is such an interesting juxtaposition (to my lit teacher, i hope i used this word right XD). i think it really highlights the conflicting feelings this song explores ("i'm just mad as hell 'cause i loved this place") and also how taylor isn't able to keep up with how quickly the relationship is dying (the production) and she's still sifting through her feelings to find acceptance (the melody)
"how much sad did you think i had" something something "how long can we be a sad song" something something "don't want no other shade of blue but you"
the bridge is just the most devastating strike to my heart
"you sacrificed us to the gods of your bluest days" is one of my favourite lyrics on this album
track 5 is track 5ing
this song is a masterpiece, i genuinely love it so much
but daddy i love him
get this song out of my face, i hate it so much. blocked on spotify.
why did taylor have to waste good lyricism and production on such an awful premise and "fuck you" to her fans dishing valid criticism of her association with matty?
the baby line is hilarious though, because i did indeed fall for it the first time
like you can talk about taylor's agency all you want but everyone knows what the implications of this song are and i feel hurt and offended that this is the attitude both taylor and some swifties are taking.
"the most judgemental creeps" um, is this fucking play about us?
fresh out the slammer
her voice sounds beautiful in this
love the country twang in the production
it's giving getaway car thematically
i think it's interesting to see this song so soon after so long, london, where she says she was "going down with [the ship]" but she was literally dreaming about running into the arms of another man and was "[doing her] time". like ok girl!
vibey song but not for me. i don't have much to say on this.
florida!!!
IMMEDIATE FAVE, i had claimed this since day 1 and i was so right
cunty production, i can tell florence had a lot of influence. no more synths! bring out the drums!
at first, i had no idea what was happening in this song, but when taylor talked about it being about reinventing yourself, it made a lot more sense to me and i love that interpretation, it rings so true.
can i be honest and say that i thought it said "arms" not "home", like that doesn't even make sense 😭
florence's verse fucking slays, my only gripe is that her voice in the verse is kinda quiet compared to the instrumental. could've used some better mixing here.
"me and my ghosts had a hell of a time" is a banger of a line
the bridge is immaculate, has been in my head since i first listened to it.
this song is amazing, there is nothing like it, pure perfection. top song on the album.
guilty as sin?
obsessed with the beat
hedge maze = labyrinth = the mind, idk i just loved that connection
we have reached the ovulation song lmao
did you know it took me so long to realise the chorus was talking about masturbation? like i knew the song was horny, but i didn't realise it was THAT horny.
i think i called this a mature, sadder false god in my notes. that uncertain, sensual, desiring tone is probably what motivated that connection in my head.
WHAT IF HE'S WRITTEN MINE ON MY UPPER THIGH ONLY IN MY MIIIIIND
the bridge is so beautiful, i am a sucker for religious imagery.
overall i'm obsessed, beat good, lyricism good, i love it
who's afraid of little old me?
now i know this is the fan favourite, and i understand why. it gives an eery, angry vibe, and i also enjoy it. to some extent.
namely, the part i enjoy most is the circus imagery, i liked how she leaned into the circus animal metaphor to depict her struggles in fame and her relationships. it's like a badly behaved circus animal about to be put down absolutely losing it and raging about its plight, which i enjoy as a means of storytelling and expressing emotion. i also enjoy it as a callback to mirrorball and what happens when the mirrorball finally has had enough of shattering in a million pieces and performing for a largely uncaring crowd.
... which is why i don't like the asylum lyric. to me, it doesn't add in anything significant thematically when the rest of the song hardly has similar strains of discussion. not to mention the ableist overtones and trivialisation of the asylum experience but i just don't like this lyric. it weakens the premise of the song.
the production is also off in some places, it feels muted and underwhelming compared to the premise of the song.
it's an okay song, i 100% like the acoustic demo better that she came out with recently. some changes in production and the omission of that asylum lyric would put it higher up for me.
i can fix him (no really i can)
good thing this song is short because she couldn't fix him at all and i don't like this song.
"the jokes that he told across the bar were revolting and far too loud" euphemism for bigoted, taylor?
production is boring, the melody is also pretty boring. the lyrics are good, but not enough to save the song, in my humble opinion (it is after all my review here)
"good boy, that's right" taylor GET UP
the 'woah maybe i can't' is funny though, i'll give her that
loml
slayed, devoured, left no crumbs, left me emotionally devastated
the lyricism is absolutely beautiful, the sadness is tangible
the first time i listened to this, i was on the train, and i was so emotional, it was the perfect music to stare out the window to.
the impressionist painting line is also absolutely brilliant, took me out when i heard it. one of the best lyrics on the album.
the bridge and outro are the reasons i need therapy, destroyed me
loss of my life theorists won but at what cost.
i think some of taylor's simplest songs melodically have some of the most beautiful prose and emotional connection, i think she needs to tap into that more.
10/10 no notes.
i can do it with a broken heart
extreme whiplash hearing this after loml. similar whiplash to what taylor felt, i think, going on tour after such a heartbreak
someone pointed out that the almost metronomic beat and the faint counting in the background is like what taylor hears in her in-ear monitor on tour and i think that's really cool.
obsessed with this song so much
it has been stuck in my head since i first heard it
i never expected this to be the cuntiest song on the album but i am not disappointed at all.
"i cry a lot but i am so productive" is so mecore if i was actually productive
the ad libs at the end are also perfect
is it just me or can i hear crowd noises in the background?? am i imagining this??
i'm afraid the fandom is gravely misunderstanding this song. some are saying that taylor hates us because we were "shouting 'more!' " when she was feeling like this. some are saying that she doesn't resent us at all and that this song absolves us completely. those are both two extremes and my interpretation lies somewhere in the middle. this is not a callout to fans but also some factions of the fandom were (or are) being assholes demanding reputation tv and double albums all the time. acknowledge the nuance.
10/10 obsessed, fave song after florida!!!
the smallest man who ever lived
this song is good.
bridge of all time, indeed, she went OFF
the verses feel a bit meh to me but i love the chorus.
"you didn't measure up in any measure of a man" HAHA TAYLOR IT TOOK ME A SECOND TO GET THE DOUBLE ENTENDRE
this song is indeed petty, but it also feels defeated to me? like taylor just sounds tired of it all and quite hurt, that's what i got from it.
i also love the performance of this song on the eras tour. she is marching with an army and they keep taking hits throughout the song, until she eventually falls at the end. something something "the great war" something something "fighting with only your army, frontlines, don't you ignore me", etc.
the alchemy
i feel a little let down by this song? because from the name, i assumed this song would be using the concept of alchemy being a medieval science of turning things into gold or finding a universal cure as a metaphor for a broken/dying relationship.
also i don't understand how this is meant to be a love song, sounds really sad to me? like almost defeatist in terms of how the relationship.
why am i being bombarded by football metaphors?
i mean, it sort of plays on the idea of alchemy being a sort of magical transformation, but to me, it just feels like a synonym for chemistry.
" 'cause the sign on your heart says it's still reserved for me" is a cute lyric though.
it's quite formulaic as a song and there's not much going on for me. anyway.
clara bow
i really enjoy the concept of this song being the torch of fame being passed onto different women, from clara bow to stevie nicks to taylor swift to whoever's next.
once again, it's quite simple melodically, but this is where she shines! the typewriter while she was writing this must have been on fire!!
i also love how it plays on the concept of being put onto a pedestal as a famous woman and how you're only appealing until people decide you're not
"it's hell on earth to be heavenly" is such a perfect lyric.
the namedrop of herself GAGGED me on first listen, i was amazed.
it's a perfect closer to the first half, putting everything into the perspective of her fame and passing the torch onto something else because society has decided out with old, in with the new.
the black dog
the thing about the location settings makes me so ill, he didn't even think to turn it off for her. they probably shared locations to make sure they could check up on each other, and it was still on. it is such a tiny thing but so devastating.
the buildup on "old habits die screaming" ohhhhh this is amazing
the best laid plans... hoax...
"i still miss the smoke" people are making parallels to daylight but my first thought was lavender haze, like missing the lavender haze, you know?
the priest lyric is so devastating if you think about the fact that taylor thought she'd be meeting a priest about this relationship for a different, happier reason...
obsessed with this song, it's so beautiful.
the quietness of the verses and the loudness of the chorus, i am genuinely entranced, it is cinema.
imgonnagetyouback
do not ask me to compare this song with olivia rodrigo's "get him back", they're both on different levels thematically and tonally even though they use the same double entendre.
what narcotics did she put in this bridge XD
so boppy, and sensual, i adore it
i remember going on a long search for the literary device that is present in "i hear the whispers in your eyes", decided it was antithesis with the help of my followers. not at all relevant, but wanted to add it.
the albatross
i can make a lot of parallels to peace with this song.
it's so eery and mythical, i love it, treats taylor like a fable, an urban legend.
aaron dessner is a fucking legend, i am loving the production on the anthology
my folkmore girlie self is loving the anthology for real
i love the bait and switch to "fake news", exposing these rumours for simply that, and saying that she's not the dangerous one, the "jackals rais[ing] their hackles" are.
i am always a sucker for when taylor changes from third person to first person narration, it's so important to me. bait-and-switch, you are everything to me.
10/10 no notes.
chloe or sam or sophia or marcus
heartbreakingly beautiful. just a general melancholy around the breaking down of a relationship and is so so perfect.
the hologram lyric is not about cheating at all. the relationship is long gone, this is taylor envisioning her muse in a new relationship but she isn't there, hence the hologram. i've seen some people say it was about cheating, that interpretation doesn't make sense to me.
"you turned me into an idea of sorts" -> "the idea you had of me, who was she?"
random thought, but the lyricism on the anthology is so much better and natural as compared to the first half. i enjoy the bops on the first half but it also suffers from trying too much to be poetic (i think i said this about the title track especially). there are so many overloaded lyrical runs and random references that leave me confused and overwhelmed. the anthology however feels so much more quintessentially taylor.
don't have much to say on the song itself, i quite like it.
how did it end?
the intro literally makes me ascend!!
i really love how this song investigates and criticises the inherent curiosity people have around big news like a breakup, constantly probing for details.
once again, the simpler songs contain the best lyricism and melodies!!
this song both explains and expresses confusion about the end of the relationship, so i love the paradoxical nature of that.
"we learn the right steps to different dances" is such a devastating line and i think sums up the end of many relationships so succinctly.
the second chorus is giving right where you left me: "did you ever hear about the girl who got frozen?" etc.
THE BRIDGE, TAYLOR HOW DO YOU DO IT
the d-y-i-n-g part is just so devastating. taylor uses the themes of death and haunting so well on this album.
i know i've said this like 10 times, but this is just so so beautiful.
so high school
the guitar in the background is giving hits different, it hits different when it's you!!
despite the happy tone and lyrics, i do feel the sad, anxious undertone, the key example being the marry, kiss, or kill me part (the echoed "kill me", "it's just a game but really")
the aristotle and grand theft auto line has been used countlessly to shit on taylor's songwriting, and personally, i don't like this line. just doesn't hit right for me. however, i think it's unfair to pick cringe lyrics and ignore all the beautiful, meaningful ones to shit on taylor.
i do love the imagery with high school games like truth or dare and spin the bottle, really cements the "so high school" of it all.
this song is okay to me, it feels too american for me to enjoy it more lmao.
i hate it here
i love the poet and finance guy line at the beginning, it expresses a sort of desperation to get to know this person, to uncover their insecurities, deepest secrets, and love them anyway. it may also be introspective of taylor herself, idk.
calling comfort a construct is so quietly sad. convincing yourself since you've never had it, it can't be real because it's better than being cursed or doomed to never have it (see the prophecy)
this song is so escapist, but also so cynical about the escapism, it clearly isn't a preferred option, like it's not just escaping into childhood and nostalgia for the sake of it, it's because the real world fucking sucks.
the chorus slays, and is quite relatable.
the use of the word "precocious" is so interesting to me. she used it also in "but daddy i love him" if i remember correctly. like she resonates a lot with the feeling of being stunted in childhood or having seemed to never grow up -> "i have this thing where i get older but just never wiser" -> "i never grew up, it's getting so old" -> "i hit my peak at seven", idk i find it an interesting recurring theme in taylor's discography.
the 1830s line, and just that entire first half of the verse. i know why it's there, i know what it's doing, i know it's not meant to be taken seriously. still i don't like it. it also feels weird that she is calling out racism as a staple of the 1830s or whatever when she has shown us she is perfectly fine with dating a racist. you can say i'm being overdramatic. you can say i don't get it. idc. i try to ignore this part because this is a very good song and i love its themes and production.
"nostalgia is a mind's trick" i really love this because the entire song is so nostalgic for childhood and escapism but then she's like "actually nostalgia sucks" or it's not what it seems. no, the past would not have been better.
production feels like seven. themes quite different however (thematically, it would be robin, i think.)
the bridge combats the cynicism of the second verse which is so interesting to me. i love how opposing views on nostalgia and escapism are presented, the nuance is there.
the bridge is so mecore, i feel it in my bones.
thanK you aIMee
i really enjoy the small town as a microcosm for the giant music industry and reducing kim to a bully in this analogy.
this song is so cathartic for me, i really enjoy it in the lens of a friendship breakup.
she's so funny in this song "and so i changed your name and any real defining clues" while clearly spelling out her name in the song title.
the bridge fucking slays, likely thing for taylor to do.
it's such a breath of fresh air to have such a cathartic moment in an album that's largely dealing with huge emotions in huge ways, it's so interesting here as an addition to the anthology.
i look in people's windows
it's such a beautiful song and it's criminal how short it is
her voice sounds heavenly, i love how breathy it is.
it's giving "the outside" which is why i love it so much, i think
i think this not only works as a song grieving the end of a relationship but expressing the feeling of being left out in a current one; i definitely relate to it in that sense.
"does it feel alright not to know me?" is so so heartwrenching, i cannot do this
the prophecy
i am a sucker for mythology references so i'm already drawn in with the title.
once again, the song itself sounds so beautiful.
"i got cursed like eve got bitten" except she didn't get bitten?? the curse came after she ate the forbidden fruit?? i'm a bit confused here
WAIT NVM IT'S THE FACT THAT SHE DIDN'T GET BITTEN THAT'S THE WHOLE POINT OF THE SIMILE, HEAR ME OUT
saying something so factually incorrect and comparing it to her own experience implies that the latter is ALSO incorrect. she didn't "get cursed", she cursed herself!! which also defies the notion of "the prophecy", ohhhhhh i find this so interesting.
i think the notion of "a greater woman" or "a lesser woman" speaks to the expectations placed around women in relationships, they mustn't appear too desperate for love because that's undesirable but if they are nonchalant, they are also undesirable, it is worth exploring in terms of this song.
this song is so so sad and sadly so so relatable, i definitely find some comfort and resonance in this and it makes me really sad :(
i love the references to mythology and folklore made here, "the pricked hand" very obviously referencing sleeping beauty.
i always love it when taylor repeats the first verse at the end of a song, i think it speaks to the cyclical, circular nature of this specific feeling, that no matter how much she begs and pleads, "the prophecy" will never change.
cassandra
another mythology reference!!!
this being after "the prophecy" is so so deliberate, godssss
the piano is giving "mad woman", which i think is so fitting
"so they killed cassandra first 'cause she feared the worst" that's not actually why cassandra was killed in mythology but go off queen
"they say what doesn't kill you makes you aware" is an unreal run
that being said, i love it when taylor takes common sayings and aphorisms and gives them a twist. she does it a lot in this album, one of my favourite examples being "old habits die screaming" as a twist on "old habits die hard"
"blood's thick but nothin' like a payroll" i am hooked completely oml
10/10 no notes
peter
more folklore references, let's go!!!!
this song is so hauntingly beautiful, the lyricism is so poetic and flows perfectly, genuinely this is what i love about taylor
as a folklore girlie, i am WINNING with the anthology
i can't get over the "jet stream" line here vs "jet stream" in "call it what you want" 🫠
once again, a bridge that fucking slays, how does she keep doing it
it's so interesting how taylor grapples with the concept of childhood and precociousness in this album with so many mentions and callbacks to childhood and feeling stunted as a child and now, it really is an ode to "you're stuck at the age you became famous" (which is sad in many aspects but also problematic in others)
the chorus is also just so perfect, everything about this song is perfect.
the bolter
obsessed does not even cover it
what a banger start to a song
the chorus reminds me a lot of "illicit affairs", i think, interesting connections can be made there
"as she was leaving, it felt like breathing" as in a sigh of relief that it's over, but also she does it so often it is quite literally as quotidian and simple as "breathing"
i love taylor's tendencies to make songs in the third person narrative voice, i think her best storytelling comes out like this.
"there's escape in escaping"- i think this is sort of a commentary on how the identity of "the bolter" is like a coping/defense mechanism to ensure that she doesn't get hurt in a relationship, in that there is an escape from her insecurities, her worries, and the eminent pain she will face in the relationship by quite literally escaping.
but there's also often the bait and switch ("then it was bought by me", "i'm the albatross, i swept in at the rescue") but i find it so interesting that this song does not do that, if only i can make a meaningful analysis there, but my running theory is that she deliberately chooses to distance herself from the identity of "the bolter", bc while she does dote on this character and is rather affectionate in how she tells the story, she doesn't feel like attaching herself to it, in that maybe it's an identity she no longer wants to hold or that, like she frequently says, she doesn't believe these songs or stories are about her anymore and that they take on new meaning..
anyway i am loving this song, 10/10
robin
WHY IS NO ONE TALKING ABOUT THIS SONG, IT'S SO BEAUTIFUL
it's so sweet how she is consoling the child, ensuring them that they should enjoy this time they have now, and that they will be kept safe from their future.
but it's so sad in that regard, like, "we don't wanna hurt you so we're not telling you how this will pan out to protect your childhood innocence".
this once again cements my preoccupation with taylor's discussions around childhood and youth, she mentions frequently how that was taken away from her too soon and how she has felt "precocious" because of it. it's so important to understand and this song should NOT be overlooked.
i really like it.
the manuscript
this song is so heartbreaking, i want to punch the wall
i never thought about the fact how doing the atw short film would have rekindled these old memories and feelings, and this song is surely a direct result of that. not surprising, in hindsight, but it still compelled me when i first heard it.
once again, youth being taken too soon!! precociousness!!
someone needs to take the word "precocious" away from me
"but the story isn't mine anymore" HHHHHHHHH THIS IS THE WHOLE POINT
very nice song, beautiful closer to the anthology and the entire album as a whole, "these stories used to be about me but now they're about you".
overall thoughts
i hate to say it, but i think this album is in a desperate need of editing; there's so much going on, most of which is compelling and worth exploring, but everything is disjunct with each other and i know this work is meant to feel messy, don't start with me there, but it shouldn't be messy to the point where it's confusing and overwhelming. there are so many concepts and metaphors that are so intriguing and clearly important in taylor's music but the final products of those become half-baked in mediocre production or mixing. this album feels rushed and is soaked with questionable decisions. for example, i think "i can do it with a broken heart" should have been a single and title track because i think it's such a central part of her experiences recently and clearly something permeating the rest of this collection, and how she learns to move on and cope in light of heartbreak. there are several moments where the lyricism of the album feels overwhelming and overcompensating, as in trying too hard to contain meaning. the best lyrical moments on this album are seamless and subtle, and very prosodic as well. taylor tried to deviate from that formula quite a bit and it didn't always work out for the best in this album. she is not as adept at throwing in conversational lyrics as her peers, her strength is in prose and storytelling. the production is also getting a bit old, it's very sonically cohesive, almost to the point of it being boring, and i think taylor needs to get a bit more experimental sonically, and also ensure that the melody and production work together in more different ways, and that maybe the melody is not relying on the production but vice versa. the album is certainly not all lows, but the lows are particularly lower than in other instances of her discography.
that being said, the highs on this album are absolutely breathtaking. the majority of the anthology and quite a few songs on this album captured me instantly. this album is quite mellow, and could have benefitted from another bop or two, but the ones we received were astounding!! this album also had some really strong lyricism, especially in the anthology, and it was so intriguing seeing the many metaphors and situations she used to express her feelings. her storytelling in particular really shone in this album in songs like "the albatross", "the bolter", "clara bow", "cassandra", "the manuscript" among others. i love the themes and ideas that taylor explored in this album, and overall the premises really compelled me.
in terms of rankings, i've separated the two halves. the first half (ttpd) is second-last and the second half (the anthology) is 8th out of 12 (not 11 because ttpd is split in two).
if you've read this far, congratulations, have a treat of your choice. please be mindful and respect my opinion, thanks!
No because you bitches aren’t listening to her. She left the glitter gel pens in the Midnights room!! Watch the video!!! You sound so stupid! “Omg, my fave rn is So High School/The Alchemy/Guilty As Sin?/ etc!! love a glitter gel pen song!!!” WRONG! She left the glitter pen songs in midnights! There isn’t a single one on TTPD!! Idc if it’s good ass throwing music, I agree! Shake your ass! But it is a RUSE and it is NOT a glitter gel pen song I stg !!
⭐️Now that I have listened through TTPD 6 times, I have reached my magic number where I usually can process an album. Review time⭐️
Review sorted by sections: 2 reasons this is not my usual cup of tea, musicality, lyrics, overall thoughts
I think every Taylor Swift album is good. This is a good album. This is not an album I would ever listen to if it were not by Taylor Swift. The "not my usual cup of tea" comes from the dark emotions and the sound.
The dark emotions are ugly as they are supposed to be. I know us tumblrinas love our high horse and "fake fans never saw Taylor as human" okay but I think I have but also I have an idealized version of everyone in my mind. It's hard to hear Taylor be happy at the time about being with problematic people or partaking in not ideal behavior. This is not what I want to hear from my older sister bestie figure
Musically not much is happening here? Slow tempo. Hard beat. Some synthetic sound as Taylor talk sings to some melody that consists of 2 notes. What happened to actually creating a musical experience with a melody😭😭😭 this is my biggest gripe with Taylor from folklore and on. She sacrifices musicality, and it's only getting worse.
These two combined means Taylor is painting a picture I don't like but isn't even giving me songs that are traditionally fun to listen to. I will say this album feels like an extension of Midnights but the chillness of folklore/evermore. It feels familiar to me. Thank you aimee, Robin, and the manuscript definitely scream sleepless nights looking at her past. The non midnights rejects feel like catharsis songs. Taylor had them in her head and had to release them (thus why they may sound lazy or alike). I love a long album (rip the Lover haters), but I wish there was more differentiation than Taylor's music becoming a chill synthpop melting pot. That's not why I signed on to being a swiftie. I signed on because I love her musicality. That's no longer what she is delivering.
⭐️Musicality⭐️
I feel like Taylor can do whatever she wants at this point and she has enough fans that will eat it up. But like any market, you make changes and you lose customers and gain different customers. She is not going to change to maintain her old fans. That being said, I know SO many people who listened to Taylor and love her country music but don't listen to her pop. I agree with them her country was better. It was so much more musicality focused!!! It was about writing songs that were enjoyable to listen to! And now for the fandoms "this is so satisfying to listen to" we get synth beats with a singular synthetic background instrument. (This is a jack antonoff hate blog btw.) This isn't why I am here!! I have been clear about that from folklore on I was here for the music not some chill song that has poetic lyrics. I might be the only one here for those reasons but I still hear hints of that insane musicality in her songs and I am invested in Taylor personally. That being said:
⭐️Lyrics⭐️
The lyrics are obviously carrying the album. I enjoy debut and would not say that about debut. But it's the truth for ttpd. Lyrics are not why i became a fan but they are what made me invested. The reviews complaining about the album tend to point to the lyrics as nonsense but I think they were very purposeful. But to go back to me being invested in Taylor herself, I WANT to know what the lyrics are about. This "don't paternity test the lyrics" business combined with lack of traditional bops or fun songs (I can do it with a broken heart excluded of course) is SUCH a boring perspective from someone who is invested in Taylor and what happened to her. Yeah yeah she doesn't want us judging her and choosing what's best for her a la who's afraid of little old me and but daddy I love him. However, if I am not here for Taylor personally and I am not here for the musical sound, why am I here? Nostalgia of what once was?
⭐️Closing Thoughts⭐️
Overall, this album is good but stagnant. On a 1-10 scale, I would rate most songs between 4 and 6 with a couple 8's. Midnights was a more dynamic version of this album and was 3-7 with a couple 10's. Debut through lover was the full 1-10 scale. I feel like we are melting towards an average of "good enough". Lyrically Taylor writes poetry. I am not a poet. I am a nosy girl who likes Taylor's melodies. I enjoy the album. Taylor can never disappoint me. Every album my standards for her drop. I will fight anyone who dislikes her. TTPD was not written for me and I get it. But I feel conflicted not being all adoration on the adoration and praise fandom website.
cuz wtf was that. (also providing my two cents that no one gives a shit about)
Is the promotion in the room with us?
Not going to lie, this part pissed me off. As a post evermore release swiftie, the first album release I got was midnights. And while the promotion for midnights wasn't astoundingly genius, the track list release (midnights mayhem with me) was smart. Everyday, there would be chaos all over social media of taylor taking out a number and releasing the track name. The excitement over YOYOK was to die for. But after reaching peak fame, girlie just decided shit wasn't necessary anymore. Absolutely no promotion for ttpd, except a few lyrics that provided no context (or excitement) whatsoever. That, and the very non subtle "hinting" of some big reveal of what went down between her and joe, by making some playlists, that not only ruined the perspective of many of her fans and the relationship they had with her previous songs, but ALSO. THE ALBUM HAD BARELY ANYTHING ABOUT JOE. (Not that i personally care about what happened, but it was so unnecessary to center the ONLY promotion done around someone who was barely a part of the album). Swifties went on the internet to harass joe alwyn (and his female coworkers) who might as well be called a special mention on a matty healy album. Why even do all that then? We will never know.
Confusion?
taylor released 31 songs, and while a double album theory coming true would be a dream come true for any swiftie, it just... wasn't. Out of 31 songs, barely 10 stood out. Some of it just didn't make sense, in any way. "Why is this on the album?" "This sounds like a midnights vault track." "No issues, maybe this is just a skip. I'll listen to the next. Oh wait nvm. Um." Like girl what. It just feels like a giant vault album of synth pop music.
Also, it's called the tortured poets department. There is barely anything poetic or tortured about the album aesthetic. Except maybe it's torturing me, but I'm as much of a poet as she is, which basically means I'm not one.
The album just feels so different than the other albums, in the sense that they followed an aesthetic, a certain style of music and lyrics, and created some sort of story. This one just feels like she wrote many songs and put them all on an album, picked whatever track name seemed interesting enough as the album name, and called it a day. Some of the songs are gems, some create a confusion as to why they are on this album, and some just make you cringe- or atleast go "wtf". Which is fine, but if not even half the songs fall under the first category out of 30 songs, then it's a problem.
These were written by... taylor?
The lyrics omfg. I'm not going to be one of those ppl who go around saying that the lyrics sounded like an emo middle schooler (I've heard this take) BUT again, some songs have lyrics that make you question how taylor, someone who wrote the albums folklore and evermore, and many great songs like would've, could've, should've, story of us, all too well, fearless, white horse, dbatc, daylight, red... I could keep going tbh, produced...this.
It was very weird to listen to the words "tattooed golden retriever" from someone who wrote "handsome, you're a mansion with a view" (also who the FUCK is calling matty healy that??)
A very important part of taylor's music is how it is focused on the lyrics. The music itself isn't the most special, or different, in most of her songs, but what makes them (and her) special is her songwriting. However, from her songwriting going from commonly used phrases and idioms to make them tell a story, use a wide range of vocabulary, heavily using personification, allusion, transferred epithet, and a few other figures of speech that she uses in her songs to make elements such as colours, for example, tell a story, in a way it seemed effortless and fit perfectly, to this... now it feels like she's trying to do that, but that's it. She's TRYING, and it's not yielding results, and seems more like a try hard "poet" rather than... whatever she was going for. The songs are filled with self-satisfied "clever" metaphors that are being reused and recycled over and over. This is not what ppl meant when they asked you to be more environmentally friendly, taylor.
Final thoughts I guess?
While the songs are basically only an empty shell of something that taylor used to make, the album isn't all bad. Some of the songs do sound good and go well with taylor's voice (aaron dessner, the fucking legend you are) and are quite enjoyable, if not as memorable as her other songs.
There are songs such as the prophecy, clara bow, so long, london, loml, guilty as sin?, etc., that really do come through and honestly I really like them.
I do feel that the album can grow on people, but it's just... not the best. Like she says so much, and not to quote taylor swift, but genuinely the only thing in my head right now is "the more you say, the less I know".
Overall, the album is fine, but not in taylor swift standards. It's just... not bad, with some exceptions.
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Hello followers and Swifties! I just posted my music review on TTPD on my blog. I hope you check it out and if you do, let me know what you think. Also, it would be nice if you subscribe and check out my other posts!
This seems a little bit like a tongue-in-cheek song where the narrator is making fun of her lover for taking himself, and her, too seriously. She states that he left his typewriter at her apartment ahd then proceeds to say things she never said at the time, like who uses typewriters anyway?
She goes on to acknowledge that her lover is in self-sabotage mode and indicates that this is something that has happened before, but she still loves them (I've seen this episode and still loved the show).
She questions who will hold him now or know him like she does if he just goes and sabotages what they've got. She reminds him not to take himself so seriously and they are nowhere close to the likes of Dylan Thomas and Patti Smith, and they are not at the Chelsea Hotel, they're just modern idiots.
The Chelsea Hotel is known for having affordable accommodation and this permitted a myriad of groundbreaking artists to frequent there and work on their craft, such as Dylan Thomas and Patti Smith. The former was a poet and writer, the latter being a singer-songwriter, poet, painter, and author.
The song progresses with the narrator discussing how her lover is high and they're having silly conversations and make declarations that artists like Charlie Puth should be bigger than they are. Having a generally good time together.
The narrator continues to say that her lover is once again in a bad place, but she says she chose to be in this tumultuous relationship and she's sticking around, once again going back into the chorus and questioning who will hold him or know him the way she does, then saying nobody would. The response of 'nobody would' indicates some frustration towards her lover.
The bridge tells us about a specific moment where the narrator's lover tells their friend that he would kill himself if she ever left him (speculated to be Lucy Dacus), and she reciprocates this feeling because she had told Jack (that is, her producer and friend, Jack Antonoff). This exchange is foreboding because while these are probably just a way to express and hyperbolise the intensity of their love, it is a toxic approach to it.
However, she does acknowledge that they're crazy for it, but everyone they know understands and think they're a good match (because they're both crazy).
She then gives us a glimpse into the love-bombing that she talks about in the prologue. The narrator's lover is telling her that he will commit to her; at dinner, you take my ring off my middle finger // and put it on the one people put wedding rings on // and that's the closest I've come to my heart exploding.
This lyric is layered, she talks about how this moment is the closest she has ever come to being married and being this intensely in love. If you are a well-versed Swiftian (I heard someone call us this on TikTok and I loved it, so I'm going with it because Swiftie sounds quite juvenile and we're in our 30s divorcée era now–says me, who is actually a happily married 33yo 🤣), you will know that Taylor Swift is a romantic, she loves love and the idea of love and romance. She has talked about this before. She doesn't know how her story ends, but she wants it to end in love. She's really shown us how emotionally intelligent she is and how self-aware she is.
She changes a line in the post-chorus section just before the outro and asks who's gonna hold you? // gonna know you? // gonna troll you? Giving another indication that this is a bit tongue-in-cheek, that she doesn't take him that seriously and keeps him grounded by making fun of him likening himself to a macabre of tortured poets.
However, this is the end. He stops here and never actually follows through with the marriage commitment. The outro of the song comes back to the present time where she says he left his typewriter at her apartment, straight from the tortured poets department, suggesting he succumbed to his self-sabotaging nature and left her behind.
It's quite a sombre ending because she spent a lot of her time loyally by his side, through the self-destruction, and piecing it back together with this man, only to have him abandon her so quickly, he didn't even have time to take his belongings.
This piece is included in the CD insert. I think this is an important to read before going into the album as it provides context. I wish it was done as a spoken piece as part of the album to hear the emotion she would use to portray these words.
However, I am thankful for those who have their copy of the CD already and have shared it (mine is still making its way to me via post).
I think it would benefit listeners to read this prior to listening to understand where her headspace was when this period of her life happened.
Taylor wants us to know this period in her life was a mutual manic phase, where she left the oven and went straight into the microwave.
To me, this reads as her leaving her long-term relationship (oven), into something that is later referred to on track 12 'loml' as a "get-love-quick scheme" (microwave).
Ovens heat up slowly and if left unchecked, whatever is in there is going to turn into ashes eventually, whereas microwaves can heat up fast and destory what's in there quickly. She's using this to tell us the difference between these relationships, but neither produced anything successful and both burned down in the end.
She also tells us that she went temporarily insane and explains this with having been caged for too long and then was set free, but was still in a vulnerable place. What happened next was a little rat of a man who took advantage of her when she was in this headspace and love bombed her. Making everything so much worse than it had to be. She refers to him as being one of the worst men and later as the smallest man who ever lived on track 14.
A lot of critics don't understand this album and think Taylor has done too much here and needs an editior, but that's the point. The point of this album is meant to illustrate Taylor's temporary insanity and her manic phase; that's why it is wordy and it feels like a lot. She's done it this way so we can become immersed in the emotions of how she was feeling when this was all happening to her. The critics aren't doing enough research into the thematics of the album.
I standby this album not being for the general public, but rather this is for herself and for those fans who know the lore and know it well. It's for the fans who understand her as a writer and storyteller. The general public and the critics only really know Taylor for her radio hits and this album is not for them.
This is something she discussed during the Melbourne Eras Tour Night 1, which you can watch here. She called this album her life line.
