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Swift announced her 12th album, TheLife Of A Showgirl, on her now fiancé Travis Kelce’s podcast “New Heights” with his brother Jason Kelce. Dylan Puck, class of 2029 and dedicated Swiftie, reviews the release track by track, comparing his first reactions from immediate release (alongside a theatre-released behind-the-scenes movie) on the first weekend of October to his second and third listens a few days after.
The Fate Of Ophelia- This song was announced a bit prior before that it was the lead single off of the new album. One thing that Taylor is known for in the Swiftie community is being terrible at choosing the lead single, which unfortunately something I couldn’t agree more about. The lead single is normally the song most casual people hear, so when it’s not good, that’s the only impression someone gets. I wish I could say that isn’t true about this song but I just can’t. I honestly do think it is better than some lead singles we’ve gotten. I think it’s a fine song. But most definitely not the song I would only want people to hear from this amazing album.
Elizabeth Taylor- To be honest to describe this song in one word would be “Forgettable”. My notes from when I was listening to this song right when it was released was “It’s fine, but it could just be that i’m tired.” Now at a normal hour of the day I can confirm that it wasn’t just that I was tired… “Too repetitive” is a frequent and understandable criticism.
Opalite- I was expecting a boring, forgettable song… but to say this song completely blew away my expectation is an understatement. Catchy enough to be the first single.
Father Figure- When I first listened to this song I wrote down “Top 30 Taylor songs ever”. But when I listened to it again, I was confused why I liked this song so much. Now I just find it kind of forgettable. That doesn’t mean it’s a bad song by any means. Just not as good as I hyped it up at 1 am.
Eldest Daughter– Track 5 is known for Swifties as the most emotional and often the best song on a Taylor album. I had this opinion about the last album that she picked the wrong song for track 5. That was an unpopular opinion for the last album, but for the most part people I’ve talked to have agreed this is not the best option for this album. After a bit more listens I am starting to get it a bit more but still I think actually romantic would have been 100 times better as track 5.
Ruin the friendship- Very good, definitely a highlight from the album. Enjoyable while you listen, disappears almost immediately.
Actually Romantic- NOW THIS IS THE TRUE TOP 30 TAYLOR SONG ON THE ALBUM! The supposed lore around this song is also crazy. A singer named “Charlie XCX” wrote a song about Taylor last year on her hit album “BRAT” basically saying that she hated Taylor. This song is a response to that saying that Charlie is obsessed with Taylor, And Taylor even makes claims that she is “In love with her”. Everything about this song is what I want from a Taylor song which is what makes it so good.
Wi$h Li$t- This is another song that I don’t particularly care about. It’s good but definitely not a standout from the album. But I do really like the chorus, it’s been stuck in my head – the lyrics? the melody? be more specific?
Wood- Another song I don’t really care that much about. Honestly if I had to separate it into like or dislike its probably leaning more towards dislike but its definitely not the worst thing ever. (this is about Travis Kelce? Very explicit for a Taylor Swift song?)
CANCELED- I got a text from my friend (another Swiftie?) in the middle of the night who had listened to this song when the album first released, saying this song was crazy good and she was “Obsessed” .but after i’ve listened to it a couple times it’s not good. It’s not unlistenable but it would probably actually be a song I would skip.
Honey- Another genuinely forgettable song.
The Life Of A Showgirl (Featuring Sabrina Carpenter)- Wow! I was expecting another song I didn’t care about at the end but this song was the complete opposite! It really swayed my opinion of liking this album at the very end!
Swiftes like me were taken aback because of how unordinary the leadup to this album was. In the past couple years she hasn’t done any interviews or talked to the public really.
In the end I would give this album a 7/10. It is definitely a rollercoaster with good and bad songs. The highlights are definitely “Opalite” “Ruin the friendship” “Actually Romantic” and “The life of a showgirl”. While the songs that weighed it down were “The fate of ophelia” and “CANCELLED”. Still worth giving a chance.
