It’s no secret that when Taylor Swift drops an album, the world notices – and I’m no exception. However, when 12 a.m came on October 21st, and I finally was able to listen to the album I had been so impatiently waiting for, I found myself being…underwhelmed; and after multiple relistens and a lot of self-inquiry, I think I’ve discovered why.
First, the sudden shift in production from a folkloric/indie/acoustic sound that carried her latest record Folklore and Evermore to an early 2010’s pop sound. Now, I’m not one to hate on a good pop beat, but for some reason, I found the production on Midnights too simple for their own good. Even though Folklore and Evermore were stripped back sonically, the production of both albums was still rich and flavorful. Midnights on the other hand provided very little complexity or build, but instead relied on a singular beat pattern and Swift’s lyrics to carry the song. While Swift is notability one of the biggest pop stars in the world, she recently was able to rebrand herself and her sound with folklore and evermore and it worked amazingly. People who never before liked Swift’s pop sound were loving her new style and productions – me included. Though Swift’s switch back to a more laid-back pop beat wasn’t for me, I can understand that growth and adaptability of sound are crucial to longevity.
However, one aspect of Swift’s new album that left me, well, cringing a bit, was the rudimentary lyricism on some of the songs. Considering Taylor is known for her songwriting abilities, lyricism was never something I doubted her on, however, some of the songs on her new album left me wondering “ girl, what is going on?” Whether it is the “sometimes I feel like everybody is a sexy baby, and I’m a monster on the hill” line or the “cat eye sharp enough to kill a man.” Swift definitely has her share of cringe-worthy lyrics on this project. Normally I’d write these types of fun, corny, not-so-serious lyrics off as being camp, but I think that involves a level of self-awareness that Swift doesn’t seem to have when it comes to the rudimentary level of some of these lyrics. While the album does have its fair share of lyrical feats, especially in the Midnight 3 a.m Version, I found those songs being jaded by the substandard ones that came before it.
Between the substandard lyricism and the underwhelming production one theme, I think carries both of these critiques is that it just feels Taylor’s music took a step back in maturity. Going from songs like All Too Well, Tolerate it, Hoax, This is Me Trying, and Cardigan to songs like Vigilante Shit, Karma, Glitch, and Paris, it just seems like a downgrade both sonically and lyrically. Swift has set a bar so high for herself that it’s easy to miss that mark by her own standard, however, I understand that “mark” is subjective to each listener. That being said, I feel like past Swift projects have showcased her talents and abilities far better than this last album, but that does mean Midnight is an objectively bad album. It just falls short of the standard she has set for herself through her previous albums.
After listening to Midnights alongside the rest of Swift’s discography, I realized my issue with the album wasn’t necessarily that it was bad, instead, it just wasn’t at the standard Swift has set for herself time and time again. Between a sudden sonic shift from her, the elementary nature of lyrics, and an acknowledgment that the maturity of the album doesn’t parallel Swift’s own age and accompanying life experiences, Midnights felt like an album that would’ve been more suited for a 25-year-old Taylor as opposed to a 32-year-old Taylor.