like…i’m literally starting to think that jm fucked her up so badly that she stopped believing in god…….
like she literally said he was a crisis of her faith and essentially saying ‘all i used to do was pray that you’d never looked my way’ and if she had never dated him that she would still be on her knees meaning she would still have her faith because she wouldn’t have danced with the devil…. and saying if he never touched her she would’ve gone along with the righteous meaning she thinks he caused her not to be righteous any more. and the bridge just like screaming at god to please let her soul rest but nothing is working and she still can’t let it go. its like her praying and praying to god to let her move on and she can’t and she cant stay on her knees anymore because she doesn’t believe in it anymore because it won’t work
‘give me back my girlhood, it was mine first’ is a powerful lyric on it’s own but the way taylor sings it and her choice in vocal delivery just takes it over the edge for me. she could have done the obvious, angry way of singing it with a lot of strength and power. almost like a direct threat at the climax of the song. but the fact that she goes against the obvious choice and makes her voice crack, makes it weak and fragile hurts way more. like she’s tired of asking for it back, she’s been begging for it for so long. she makes her voice higher to sound younger, like her younger self it trying to fight it’s way back and plead one last time to come back.
at first i thought “i see you every day now” in maroon was meant to convey how close she was to this person and how spending time together had become routine, but now i’m thinking about a layered double meaning giving “i thought i saw you at the bus stop, i didn't though” and “chasing' shadows in the grocery line” vibes like she’s haunted by him and his memory every day now, which is very “moving on from him is impossible when i still see it all in my head” which is truly the the red/maroon parallel track two of it all
Midnights is for the girls who worked hard to get a life of their own, but now feel empty, it's the album you listen to when you're alone in the kitchen with no partner to cook with, no friends to go out with, no parents to comfort you. It's for the jo march girls, who gave up everything and everyone and pretend like it's alright but cry themselves to sleep every night, it's for the girls who stare at the ceiling for hours after coming home, it's for the masterminds, the people pleasers, for the girls who think they're unlovable, it's for the autumn/winter girls, it's for the girls who love rain and gloom, it's for the girls who read the most gut wrenching books to feel emotions, it's the ultimate sad girl album.
The thing I love the most about Sweet Nothing is that it's so SIMPLE. It doesn't need big words, huge metaphores, just simple examples of everyday love like coming back home to your loved one humming in the kitchen and being your safe space, your loved one appreciating your talent and skills all the time, the fact you can be vulnerable in front of them and that they don't want ANYTHING from you, just YOU.
somehow knowing that tumblr is being kept around mostly as a testing ground for advertisers and corporations doesn’t even make me feel that exploited, because every social media site is exploitive. but being basically lab rats to test shit on before it’s refined for use in polite society is by far the funniest possible way to be exploited.
the perfection of every Midnights track (in order)
Track 1: Lavender Haze
the fact that it opens with "meet me at midnight", the tagline for this era. the pounding beats with drowned out melodies that makes it feel like you're hearing the song through the bathroom wall at a party winding down at midnight. the line "you don't really read into my melancholia." the narrative of pushing through the chaos of popular gossip and sexist social commentary, to be wrapped up in the soft 'lavender gaze' of a love and to surrender to falling down the love spiral.
Track 2: Maroon
the entire song reads like a narrative of a romance story, seeing vignettes of her falling in love with one connecting factor: various hues of red (the most romantic and bold color) bleeding into maroon. silly mistakes like him spilling wine on her shirt, passionate love marks left on her collarbones, rust that grew from telephones in between long distance calls, the blush on her cheeks. by the time the song ends and so does the relationship, the colors of these memories have faded from rubies and scarlet (remarkably more bright and happy colors) to maroon.
Track 3: Anti-Hero
brutally honest and self-reflective track, taylor's most sharp cutting lyrics yet. the insufferable passing of time, feeling at unease at every turn. how ease you feel doing self-destructive things (like staring at the sun) but then not being unable to face up to yourself and stare at the mirror. feeling like you're the problem at every turn, doubting your kindness as selfishness, acting out in unkind ways as a 'self fulfilling prophecy' because you already view yourself as the anti-hero.
Track 4: Snow on The Beach (ft. Lana Del Rey)
the soft strummings of instrumentals, taylor's delicate lyrics and pacing of her words mimic snowflakes slowly falling down, beautiful atmosphere on this track. the harmonies of Lana and Taylor's voices are absolutely heavenly, they complement each other's tones so well. the paradoxical image of there being snow on the beach to reflect falling in love in the most nonsensical, unbelievable and magical ways. feeling surrounded by a noiseless dream, not knowing if this is real - "it's weird but fucking beautiful, stars by the pocketful."
Track 5: You're On Your Own, Kid
after waiting eternities (watching fires wither into ashes, endless drip-drip of sprinklers and sitting through video phone calls with an unsympathetic lover smoking on the other end) - she realizes he's never cared and she's truly on her own. she yearns to escape this town and in an attempt to earn love, she's thrown meaningless parties and starved her body. it's all in hopes that she'll be saved by a magic kiss (as many princesses are saved in fairytales, notably). she endures it all, the jokes and fake friends and cruelty of the industry. but as she stands in a blood soaked gown, she sees it all for what it is: you may be on your own, as you always have been, but you can face it. such an incredibly relatable message and a harrowing yet comforting realization. you're on your own, but that also means you can save yourself.
Track 6: Midnight Rain
the distorted vocals and light synth rhythms work with the song so well, the reflections of why the relationship didn't work out are haunting her and replaying in her head. he's sunlight - nice, comfortable, comes from a picture perfect family with holiday peppermint candy. she's midnight rain - covert, hard to read, seeking out darkness and pain. it could've never worked out and she never thinks of him, except for on midnights like this (perhaps it was also raining when she wrote this song).
Track 7: Question... ?
Taylor's tortured by endless questions. she knows he's painted her nights with a color she's been searching for ever since. but with life, circumstances and miscommunications getting in the way she's ultimately been left with more questions than answers. the organization of the verses as different questions meant to unravel the failings of her relationship with this 'sad boy' is brilliant, showing us little glimpses into their history. her playful "it's just a question" after each biting remark, poking at the most sensitive and tense parts of their relationship, is exceptionally delightful.
Track 8: Vigilante Shit
the callback to reputation era is strong with this one! but whilst reputation revenge tracks were loud, unapologetic and messy, this track screams organized crime, meticulous planning and cunning games. the brilliant lyric ‘i don't start shit, but I can tell you how it ends'. the revenge storyline intertwined with the track of a coke addicted, high power businessman facing his downfall with his ex-wife and Taylor being on their 'vigilante shit' is just... some Bond level shit.
Track 9: Bejewled
the ultimate self-love, re-claiming your worth anthem. she's been letting him take advantage of her - walking over her peace of mind with shoes she bought for him - and she's tired of being too kind. "familiarity breeds contempt", being close to him has only drained her. so she's going to go out and polish up real nice because she's a jewel and a "diamond's gotta shine". i absolutely adore the twinkling sounds in the background, alongside with the peppy "nice" shouts in between verses and the upbeat beats underlying the whole track = it all beautifully constructs this image of Taylor shining bright like a jewel and it fits the happy emotive aspect of the track.
Track 10: Labyrinth
taylor's vocals are notably more muted, quiet and apprehensive on this track compared to the rest of the album. which makes sense, because she's lost in a labyrinth of her mind, facing her worst fears. like an elevator she knows will fall as quickly as it rises, she's frozen and lost in an endless maze as she realizes she's falling in love with someone who has the power to redirect the plane she previously thought was falling down. i also really love the cyclical imagery Taylor uses in this song to show her uneasiness at the situation, an attempt at repetitive patterns in order to calm herself: "breathe in, breathe through, breathe deep, breathe out" and "break up, break free, break through, break down."
Track 11: Karma
For her enemies, karma is something to be afraid of (a bounty hunter, thunder, an agitating thought) but not for Taylor. instead, karma is a sweet cat, her boyfriend, the wind blowing through her hair on the weekends - it's a friendly force always on her side of the street. the concept of turning karma (this intacticle, inhuman concept) into a powerful force that she's friends with.... genius. Taylor's signaling her security and happiness, that ultimately karma will always be on her side and she's not worried. her sweet voice and glossy synths paired with these cutting lyrics are a pairing made in heaven.
Track 12: Sweet Nothing
the CUTEST love song ever, i adore how simple this track is. it starts out with a reference to a childish game - "i spy with my little eye" - and a pebble that she forgot she pocketed from Wicklow. the relationship is comfortable and sweet. Taylor sings about how so many people want her for fame and money, how there's immense pressure on her and endless demands and criticisms from all directions. but not her lover. he's content with just being with her, even when the world is banging down on the walls, he's humming in the kitchen and ultimately he doesn't want anything from her except sweet nothings. whisperings of love that are superficial in nature, sure, but contain and express so much affection and trust.
Track 13: Mastermind
the closing track to slay all closing tracks. the references to fate (stars aligning, lighting of a fuse) and meticulous planning (chess, dominoes falling in clockwork, being the wind in their free-flowing sails and liquor in their cocktails) add so much rich imagery to this song. this track touches a lot on the concept of control and self determination (a theme throughout the album be it lack of control, self destructive control or restrictive control) but the ending of this song makes it a little different. turns out, all along, he knew what she was up to. she didn't need to concoct all this Machevillian, mastermind level planning that she's been doing with all her relationships since she was a little kid because people didn't want to play with her. she's found her match.
Maybe we are all right about which Taylor's Version album is next? What if it's both?
She has left clues that could go either way. These albums are both situations where she basically said "hold my beer". So in re-releasing them she has to one up herself right?
Speak now, she wrote by herself in its entirety because everyone questioned how involved she was in writing Fearless.
1989, she made entirely pop because everyone was complaining about Red not being a clear genre.
Which albums have we gotten so far? Fearless & Red.
What has Taylor never done? Release 2 albums at once.
I think the same but it's not possible due to the fact that both albums would need to be released seperately for them to have their moment. If they are released at the same time it wouldn't be too beneficial in terms of sales and streaming
i think the only time she may release two albums together is when she releases the debut album. but tbh all albums having their own eras again sounds better.
So I happened upon an article that has change my opinion on this. Not sure how much everyone knows about the possibility of a scrapped album in 2016 because of "the incident". Well it is explained in detail in a buzzfeed article. Apparently the clues lead to believe it would have been called Karma and been 90's grunge. That would "technically" be a double release if she lets Karma out of the vault with 1989, its would have been predecessor.
I'm sorry, but how the fuck is Billie writing with her bro not co-writing? Please explain. The audacity to say he was misquoted when he DOUBLED down on his opinion.
