so at this point it has been a week and I've developed some more complex thoughts on the album. Right now, I still think I like folklore a lot more. I like the songs on this album, but this album just has a strange feel to it for me. It doesn't really feel like a regular album, it feels like a bunch of bonus tracks. Honestly to me it feels a bit overkill, too much of a good thing. But I do like them. It's just the album as a whole doesn't really speak to me. But it took me a long time to even like folklore at all and I've just recently gotten into songs like my tears ricochet. I actually haven't listened to the album in a few days but I have listened to it a lot, so here's how I feel about each song:
1. willow
this song is the sixth lead single I've heard before the album, the other albums I had just heard the songs whenever. With WANEGBT, I was left confused. With Shake It Off, kind of disappointed. LWYMMD, um... interesting. ME!, made me smile. I don't really remember cardigan as I listened to the album as a whole before watching the music video, so I heard the 1 first and by the time I watched the video I was very tired. This time I watched the music video for willow before listening to the rest of the album as it was the first track. It made me feel kind of like ME! did, I was smiling a lot while watching it. At first I thought it sounded kind of strange, the way it went from the verses into the chorus. But I liked it. I also really like how the video goes from cardigan into willow. When she said "that's my man" it reminded me of I Think He Knows which is my favorite song on Lover. It's really cute. When she said "I come back stronger than a 90s trend" I said "oh Taylor"
I'm not sure if I felt or feel that is a weak lyric, it does seem a bit out of place in the song because up until then it kind of felt like we were traveling back in time and then suddenly we were in 2020 again, but it is a nice lyric for the times we're living in, considering how many scrunchies and crop tops I have, I'm really into the 90s so definitely felt it just not sure it belonged in this song. I liked the song at first, didn't love it but now I definitely love it. The lead single usually isn't the song that gets me so it's kind of surprising. This was the song that got stuck in my head and I ended up playing over and over again. It's in the three way tie for my favorite song on the album, with no body, no crime and long story short.
2. champagne problems
I don't do too much with Taylor on my Twitter account, I am a Joey Logano stan so I hang with the NASCAR Twitter community for the most part. But I do have a few friends and mutuals there who are also Taylor fans, so I made a group chat for swiftie motorsports fans. It's called the nascardigans, cute hm? yeah I didn't come up with it but I love it
anyway we all listened to the album together during release night and talked about it in the group chat, and it seems everyone in the chat was really into this song and how sad it was, but I think I was still thinking about willow because I didn't really start to hear the song until maybe the second verse, and then I was just confused. But I loved how it went into the chorus "because I, dropped your hand while dancing, left you out there standing" I still really love that, I think it sounds really beautiful. I suppose it's the saddest song on the album but I don't know, I like it but I don't love it. Well, I love most of Taylor's songs so I do love it, but not as much as some others on the album.
3. gold rush
this is another song that the group chat seemed to love, and I liked it at first but it's not really in my top five or so. I don't even know what IS in my top five but I don't think this is it. I think it sounds lovely, but meh. It's one of those songs like Getaway Car and Cruel Summer. Everyone seems to love them but me and I recognize and appreciate that they are good songs, but maybe they are just too perfect and perhaps a bit overrated for me. I still like it, I just think the album has better songs to offer than this fan favorite. I could of course change my mind, it has only been a week.
4. 'tis the damn season
what I always loved about Taylor's music is that I almost always knew what she was talking about. While I love this new storytelling thing she has been doing, it does leave me confused at times because I feel like I need to know who and what these songs are about. This song I don't totally understand what's going on, but I do love the chorus. This album certainly has some good chorus build ups. I sort of know what's going on, I think it is about an old flame "you can call me yours for the weekend" but the full story and details of the song take awhile to click for me sometimes. I can listen to a song a hundred times before the lyrics really click and I understand what they're saying, I have an issue with zoning out a bit so I don't always get it.
5. tolerate it
I get it, but I just don't feel it. It took months for folklore's track five to click with me so I'll give it more time.
6. no body, no crime
LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE like what's NOT to love?? for ONE, it's yeehaw Taylor. This is 2020's Goodbye Earl, which was like one of my favorite songs growing up. I always loved the storytelling of that song and now here Taylor is doing the same thing, man I love a good country song about friendship and murder. I also love that she wrote this on her own. One of the best things about country music (GOOD country music, not the constant songs about beer and trucks and dogs) is how it tells a story, an interesting story, and I'm really glad Taylor tried this out.
7. happiness
I think this is where I really started to zone out on release night and just wanted to go to sleep. I have no memory of actually hearing this on release night. I've listened to it a bit throughout the week, and for awhile I really didn't like it. But in the past few days I think it's become one of my favorites. It has some very strong lyrics, I think the chorus is a bit weak compared to the other ones on the album, but the verses are spot on. There are some really beautiful lines in this song. I personally feel it's the best ballad on the album.
8. dorothea
another song I have no memory of listening to the first time, this is the first one Abigail asked me if I liked the morning after release and I had no idea... took a few listens, but I think it's really cute and mature. I'm not really into bands and older pop music, but it seems like back in the day there was a lot of songs with female names, like Suzy Q, just shouting out a female name in a song is a really cool thing I think. Very catchy chorus and interesting name.
9. coney island
not a fan of this one. I like it better than I did at first, but it's still probably my least favorite on the album. The guy's voice doesn't help. I think it will grow on me more, might end up being my favorite, but right now it's a no for me.
10. ivy
this one is the one that made me start listening to the clean version of the album
which I find the substitute lyrics during the bridge a lot more tasteful anyway and I don't understand why she didn't use them on the regular version of the album. The thing that sucks about clean albums is that they usually bleep curse words out, they did a good job on this song substituting words instead, they did a good job with that on most of the album but on some places they did not. Anyway after all of that, I think I do like this song. The chorus is very catchy. I think it's really pretty. I just have some negative feelings from it after the first listen, but if I can mange to look past those it is probably in my top five.
11. cowboy like me
I don't get this song at all.
12. long story short
this is one that sort of woke me up on release night
it's so cute! It's one where I know what she is talking about and I absolutely love the chorus. I am afraid this one has begun to wear off, I really really loved it at first and I still like it a lot but it hasn't aged very well for me personally or maybe I have overplayed it, but I don't think I have listened to it any more than I have willow.
13. majorie
I get it, and I think it's a lovely sentiment and it is a very nice song. I just haven't really felt it like others seem to. Also when I look at the title or think about it I call it "major ree" rather than "marge or ree". I think it's really sweet Taylor did songs with her grandfather and grandmother in mind, but right now I like epiphany a lot more.
14. closure
I really liked this one on release night, but I feel like I haven't listened to it that much. I think it's a good one, probably one of my favorites but not sure. I had it up there with long story short but now I forget what it sounds like at times.
15. evermore
hmmm. here's an example of overkill- exile was beautiful but I really don't know why Bon Iver is featured on this track. It kind of gets weird when he starts singing. It's also strange to me that it is the title track and someone else is featured on it, just a little pet peeve. I didn't like this track much at all for awhile, it's really grown on me quite a bit. Until he starts singing
and like his feature isn't bad, it just seems so out of place.
I've just heard the bonus tracks, right where you left me and it's time to go, but they are so fresh I really have no opinion at this point. I still don't really feel the lakes as part of folklore since it came weeks after the album release, so I don't know if I will ever be able to see these as part of the album or not.
Overall I think it is a good album, and I LIKE it, but I don't know. I should give it more time before I give it too harsh of a judgement. I don't really rank Taylor albums anymore, I never really found a place to put folklore on that list and now evermore confuses it even more. It has good songs, but it's impossible not to compare it to folklore and at this point I think folklore is a stronger album. But I've also had months to fully process folklore, so we shall see.
