TAYLOR SWIFT, 1989
Yesterday the awesome T Swizzle announced via a You Tube livestream that she will be releasing a new album called '1989' this autumn. It will be available to pre-order vair vair soon and can be officially purchased on the 27th of October (ooooh exciting!). The new album is named in reference to the year that Taylor was born, as well as being a nod to the 80's influence that will supposedly grace the album, which Taylor has also officially confirmed as being her first 100% pop album.
During the livestream Taylor also revealed the name of the first single from the album, a certain 'Shake It Off' which is almost certain to be a chart smasher in the months to come. The single is the product of Taylor's own overcoming of what critics and haters may say about her, and is her way of essentially giving them the digital middle finger and showing them that she doesn't really care what they have to say.
And that is obviously a good thing, and clearly deserves a 'you go girl', however as someone who has been a fan of Taylor's since 2009 and who was obsessed with her debut self titled album and its successor 'Fearless' in particular, 'Shake It Off' really isn't my cup of tea. I love Taylor dearly, after all she's the one who inspired me to convert my own teenage woes into songs that were quite literally crap x 1 million, and it's her first three albums which are the soundtrack to my secondary school years, and she often inspired me to be bolder and braver, as well as helping me god knows how many times through the heartbreak and ups and downs of love. I owe Taylor to the moon and back, but despite how much her and her music mean to me, I'm really struggling to adapt to her new foray into the whole pop scene.
When 'Red' was released a couple of years ago, there were hints of the pop path that Taylor was about to follow, and I knew that she might go down that route at some point, however overall it still retained that core sound and vibe that I associate with Taylor and that I love most about her. The lyrics on 'Red' were simply sublime and some of the best I've ever heard with the title track in particular being especially amazing, whilst the music itself was maturer than her previous albums yet still absolutely gorgeous to listen to. It still had the guitar, which Taylor so effortlessly worked in her previous albums, and Taylor's beautiful, sometimes fun, sometimes haunting, always stunning vocals. It was simply a fabulous album.
Now I know that it's only logical for artists to want to evolve their sound and keep pushing the boundaries, and it's fair play to Taylor that she wants to break free from the country roots that were so tightly wrapped around her and explore other genres. And there's no doubt that she does pop well, with '... Never Ever Getting Back Together' and 'I Knew You Were Trouble' being two very strong examples of this, but in my opinion, it's that country, folky, guitar lead music in which Taylor is at her absolute strongest, and it's those sorts of genres in which Taylor's talent shines the very brightest.
If she had first broken through as a pop artist, then I think we'd all agree that her music was very good and extremely catchy, however because we all know of her country background, we therefore know the amazing extent of her capabilities and just how talented she really is.
Taylor herself said yesterday on her podcast that for her 'Red' was an album about heartbreak, and that she needed to make a whole new genre of music on this new album, music that essentially represents the period of happiness and liberation that comes after the heartbreak is over. And again to that I say fair play, fair point, of course you should be allowed to do that. But the selfish part of me wishes that Taylor would channel that feeling via the music she makes best of all, with a guitar and a set of stunningly beautiful, intelligent, captivating lyrics which always seem to capture the feelings and emotions of different scenarios so effortlessly and so accurately.
Now of course I'm going to give '1989' a chance, because there's no doubt that it will be a very good album, and after all, Taylor is my homegal and I want to see what she's come up with, because her albums normally give a nod to what we can expect from Taylor in a couple of years time, plus they're always so diverse and evidently lovingly made. However I can't lie, all the while I'll be hoping that in a couple of years down the line, Taylor will be picking up where she left off and playing and crafting the kind of music that she does best of all, but at an even bigger and better level (if that was even possible).
SHAKE IT OFF
'1989' is out 27th October nationwide.
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