Taylor Swift has released a second track from her upcoming pop album, 1989, and it’s an improvement on first single ‘Shake It Off.’
‘Out of the Woods’ was co-written with Jack Antonoff of fun. and Bleachers, and you can definitely see his influence on the track’s structure and production. That’s a good thing.
Still, I’m not crazy about the repetition in the chorus, and it’s a bit concerning that both tracks from 1989 have gone to that well.
Taylor Swift is making it harder and harder to like her.
She’s a talented songwriter, no doubt, but it’s hard to argue that she’s using those talents wisely these days. Her last album was the uneven Red, which spawned a few clever, pop-infused hits but also caught her spinning her wheels.
Last week, Swift announced the upcoming release of her next album, 1989 (named after her birth year). And based on the first single, it’s a step in the wrong direction.
OK, this is a little more interesting.
Coming in at #6 on Village Voice’s Pazz & Jop poll of the best singles of 2012 is Taylor Swift with ‘We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together.’ Of course I’ve actually heard this song, unlike the first four I’ve posted.
Compared to what’s come so far, Swift’s ditty is a masterpiece. But that’s not saying much.
Top Songs of 2012 – #13
Red, Taylor Swift’s chart-topping follow-up to Speak Now, is generally disappointing for reasons I can’t put my finger on.
I think it boils down to Swift’s worldview having a shelf life. She certainly has a gift for melody and she can turn a phrase, but I hear far too much of her in every song she writes, and frankly I’m a little tired of spending that much time with her.
Since the release of Taylor Swift’s new album, Red, I’ve read several versions of the same joke: referencing the country-pop superstar’s penchant for writing scathing break-up songs about the many men who’ve wronged her, people have begun to suggest “Taylor, maybe it’s you…”
That idea ran through my mind more than once listening to Red, another collection that’s exhaustively focused on the failings of the men in Swift’s life. I have to say, it’s quite a feat to make me feel sympathy for John Mayer.
