Well, I certaintly didn’t expect to be back so soon with another album review… but here we are. Just like last time, I will go ahead and rank my top 10 songs from the latest Taylor Swift album “Evermore”, a sister companion album to Folklore, which was released earlier this year.
10. Majorie: This is definitely a touching song Taylor Swift wrote about her grandmother, and a good companion to epiphany from the previous album. It is a little lower on this list because of how depressing it is. I definitely wouldn’t use it as a pick-me-up. It’s especially relevant in the context of 2020 though, which has brought many deaths, including two of my friends. “What died didn’t stay dead… you’re alive, you’re alive in my head.”
9. No body, no crime: A country song about a secret murder. What’s not to love? I also love the fact that it mentions Olive Garden, my favorite Italian “restaurant”. I could imagine this song being on the soundtrack to a murder mystery dinner.
8. Champagne Problems: This song tells the story of a woman who shocks her fiance by turning down a marriage proposal. It’s definitely a much more mature and adult version of “Speak Not” from Taylor’s previous album. Instead of leaving somebody at the altar, she is brave enough to reject him then and there. And for not leading him on, I give this song a #8 in the rankings. “One for the money, two for the show I never was ready so I watch you go“
7. Happiness: The two songs I have in my spotify playlist called “happiness” are from the Fray and Taylor Swift. They are both downbeat despite their title. It’s a good breakup song ultimately, explaining that there will be happiness after evil exes (especially marines). I would have enjoyed listening to this during any of my previous breakups. “There’ll be happiness after you But there was happiness because of you Both of these things can be true There is happiness”
6. Closure: After most breakups, most people need closure to be able to move on in life. The narrator in the song is quite the opposite though, clearly bitter at her ex and resentment for all the wrongs he has caused in her life. Good. I think there are many toxic people in this world, and it makes sense to distance yourself from them permanently before they leave scars in you too deep to ever be repaired. “I know that it’s over, I don’t need your Closure, closure, your closure“
5. Tis’ The Damn Season: It’s a Christmas song, and I have a soft spot for Christmas songs, even if there’s technically a curse word in the name of the song. There’s also a reference to Robert Frost’s poem The Road Not Taken. I like it when Taylor Swift references literature, just like she did in Love Story, referencing Romeo and Juliet and the Scarlet Letter in a single sentence. “And the road not taken looks real good now And it always leads to you and my hometown”
4. Willow: A wonderful single, and I definitely think it was appropriate for this album. I prefer it much more than Folklore’s Cardigan, and I like how you can definitely sing along and get the melody stuck in your head. A reference to the best decade of all time is also quite nice. “Life was a willow, and it bent right to your wind But I come back stronger than a ’90s trend”
3. Long Story Short: This song couldn’t be more than different than “the story of us”, but I like it nevertheless. I feel like this “feud” with Kanye West is never ending, but funny. I see many people in life, men and women included, making the wrong decisions when it comes to relationships. The willingness for Taylor Swift to admit that makes her human. “And I fell from the pedestal Right down the rabbit hole Long story short, it was a bad time”
2. Evermore: The title of the album, and ultimately a song projecting depression turning into hope. Bon Iver continues to be a good supplement to Taylor Swift’s voice. I still like Folklore’s Exile better, but this serves as a nice ending to a mostly more hopeful album. “And I was catching my breath Staring out an open window Catching my death And I couldn’t be sure I had a feeling so peculiar That this pain would be for Evermore”
1. Ivy: Even though this song is about an affair, and I hate affairs, the song is so upbeat and catchy I just can’t not place it as the #1 song of the album. I will have this on repeat for the next couple weeks. The visual metaphor of an ivy is strikingly similar to Out of the Woods from 1989. “Oh, goddamn My pain fits in the palm of your freezing hand Taking mine, but it’s been promised to another”
Taylor Swift proves she continues to be a musical prodigy. If I had to choose between this album and Folklore, this probably is a little better only because the songs are slightly happier.
Here’s my rankings of all 9 Taylor Swift studio albums released thus far.
