“Catchy” does not even begin to define the pure essence of Taylor Swift’s new album, 1989; her musical “hooks” are anchors, as steadfast as they are addictive. If, by now, you do not understand that “the haters gonna hate hate hate hate hate,” I don’t know if you ever will.
Anyone who was hoping Swift would revert back to her country days with this new album was sadly disappointed. 1989, named after Swift’s birth year, is Swift’s most pop and electronic album to date. However, it was received reasonably well by audiences.
Sophomore Spencer Krell shared his enthusiasm: “[1989] is better than her old music. “Blank Space” and “Shake it Off” are my favorites!”
The track list of the album begins as any good story does: in New York. In “Welcome to New York,” we are immediately introduced to Swift’s new sound. Vivacious beats and synthesizers make you question if you are actually listening to a Taylor Swift song. If you think back to Swift’s earlier songs, such as “Mean” and its dream of “living in a big ole’ city,” this track is more than applicable.
Songs like “Blank Space” and “Shake it Off” stand as Swift’s acknowledgement towards the countless rumors about her being an airhead and a crazy girlfriend. They are fun, upbeat, and dare you to not sing along. Both music videos already have millions of views and are featured on radio stations constantly.
“Style”, “Out of the Woods”, and “All You Had To Do Was Stay” are rumored to be about Swift’s ex, Harry Styles. “Style” features a new-age-sounding guitar riff accompanied by Swift’s signature lyrics and compare Styles to the timeless James Dean while reminding us that some things never go out of style. On the other hand, “Out of the Woods” talks about the ups and downs of Swift and Styles’s relationship and how the downs eventually won out. She even alludes to Harry Styles’ signature paper airplane necklace. Lastly, the idea for “All You Had To Do Was Stay” came to Swift in a dream; the song talks about a guy she really likes that isn’t willing to commit to her. It features a very high-pitched, almost operatic “STAY!” that ties in very well with the layering of sounds that build during the song to create a very up-beat melody – behind rather depressing lyrics.
The more toned down songs “Clean”, “Wildest Dream”, and “This Love” are full of synthesized beats, as well, but in a more subdued sense. “Clean” includes minimal synthesized drumbeats, giving an early ‘90’s pop sound along with very emotional lyrics that aid in creating a very vulnerable state. The influence of co-writer Imogen Heap on this hit is obvious to anyone who is familiar with her work because of its very different and technical sound mixed with disparate lyrics.
“Wildest Dream” features a very sultry style and dream-like sounds from Swift, who is asking a boyfriend or ex-boyfriend to always remember her. “This Love” demonstrates the change in Swift as she transitions into maturity and adulthood. It seems to recognize love from a wider and more mature scale rather than fixating on the little details that Swift usually flits about on her past songs. It shows love as both good and bad and Swift’s struggle to choose if it (a relationship) is worth it. It truly demonstrates her maturity from crying with her guitar back in 2006 to really thinking through her decisions.
“I Wish You Would” features Swift’s signature lyrics about the struggles of love and wanting someone back with an early 2000s pop sound mixed with sizzling guitar riffs and pounding drums. “Bad Blood,” which is rumored to be about Katy Perry, is more of a chant, exposing Swift’s anger with little heated snippets like “Just don’t.” Swift’s grudges have always been demonstrated through her lyrics, but never have they been so full of angst.
The upbeat, pure pop of “How You Get The Girl” talks about how Swift’s ex should act if he wants her back, which includes giving her picture frames and saying he wants her forever. It sounds like it features actual instruments at times and is a mixture between disco-pop and bubblegum-pop, which differs from songs such as “I Know Places.”
The ear-catching, ominous opening of “I Know Places” generates great curiosity for listeners. “I Know Places” is about Swift’s struggle with having relationships while being in the public eye. It is evident that the paparazzi target her and all of her love interests; this song reveals how very detrimental it is for her and her relationships. Swift is one of the most famous people in the world, and one of the reasons she is so known is due to all of these high profile relationships she’s had. Here she is saying that she “knows places” they can hide and ways they can work through everything.
Overall, 1989 is a huge turning point in Swift’s career allowing her to shed her younger, naïve, and country exterior for a more mature and pure pop sound. She still has a lot of growing to do as an artist, but 1989 was an interesting sidetrack from her past work. The curly-haired southern belle we constantly had blasting through our speakers has transformed into a universal brand, reaching levels of immeasurable success never before reached by anyone in history.
Junior Maly Marsters says this album “is so good! I had to power through to get used to hearing Taylor as pop artist, but now I can’t stop listening [to 1989]!” Based on the charts, it’s evident that many agree.
Taylor is going on an arena world tour this summer and if you have yet to listen to 1989, make sure to check it out soon!