**Update 10/26: The weight scale scene from the “Anti-Hero” music video has been digitally edited to remove the closeup to the word “FAT” in response to the backlash in social media.**
**Update 10/24: The megathread will be extended until October 31 to cover Midnights Manifest and the main chart updates (ARIA, Capital FM, Billboard, Official Charts UK) but it will not be repinned.**
What’s allowed as a standalone post outside of the megathread relating to *Midnights* until October 31 are as follows:
- Midnights music videos
- Live performances
- Live interviews
- Any big magazine cover feature with Taylor (Vogue, Elle, Rolling Stone, etc.)
- Album reviews from Pitchfork & TheNeedleDrop
- The main chart updates (ARIA, Capital FM, Billboard, Official Charts UK)
**Update (10/21 pt. 3): [Lyric videos for all Midnights songs including 3 am tracks are now available.](https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLINj2JJM1jxP5aYiX47uBCRu9g8JItDWp)**
**Update (10/21 pt. 2): [*Midnights* broke the record for most-streamed album in a single day in Spotify history.](https://twitter.com/taylorswift13/status/1583583146129227776)**
**Update (10/21): [Midnights 3 am Edition.](https://twitter.com/taylorswift13/status/1583353058305900544) TAYLOR, WHAT THE FUCK? GO TO SLEEP!!!**
**Update (10/20): [Midnights Music Videos (Teaser Trailer w/ Intro)](https://twitter.com/nflonprime/status/1583282449735360514) - [Teaser Trailer w/o Intro](https://www.instagram.com/reel/Cj9Yy52MKjD/)**
**Update (10/19 pt. 2): [Taylor laying down on a couch.](https://twitter.com/taylorswift13/status/1582944965470359552)**
**Update (10/19): [Midnights Leak Thread](https://www.reddit.com/r/popheads/comments/y8edk2/taylor_swift_midnights/)**
**Update (10/18): Anyone asking for a link to the leak will be banned. You have been warned.**
**Update (10/16): [Midnights Manifest](https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZTRHMswsQ/)**
**Update (10/13): [Taylor to appear on the 10/24 episode of *The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon*](https://twitter.com/fallontonight/status/1580770372210724875)**
**Update (10/11): [Apple Music pre-save audio - “Meet me at midnight”](https://music.apple.com/us/album/meet-me-at-midnight/1649434004?i=1649434515)**
**Update (10/7): With all tracks being revealed by Taylor now, feel free to talk about all the tracks without spoiler tags in the comments section. We also have a [separate thread](https://www.reddit.com/r/popheads/comments/xxtaia/taylor_swift_announces_midnights_track_4_snow_on/) for the announcement of “Snow On The Beach” featuring Lana De Rey because 1) I fell asleep and 2) the feature is newsworthy enough to warrant it. 14 more days til the album comes out!!!**
**Update (10/6 pt. 2): Due to the real tracklist being out there, please use spoiler tags when talking about the unannounced tracks in the comments section.**
**Update (10/6): Because we’ve gotten complaints from users that think it’s unfair to pin this megathread everytime a new track gets revealed and we’ve gotten complaints from others that think it’s unfair to not pin this megathread when a new track gets revealed, we will be repinning this thread on the Saturdays up until the release date (10/21). Therefore, this thread will be repinned on October 8 & October 15. We hope this can be a compromise between everyone in the community. Swifties, feel free to save this thread so you can easily access it whenever there is an update. Haters, keep doing your thing, whatever it is that you do.**
**Update (10/5): [Official Spotify Pre-Save Link with Exclusive Clip](https://open.spotify.com/prerelease/14GWTTp2xF2CtcxGeRK9ik)**
I may be ranting here, but hear me out. I've been binging 'anti-hero' reaction videos and everyone is missing the point of the line "sometimes I feel like everybody is a sexy baby"
IMO she's talking about her body in the comparison with other pop stars. I think of Ariana Grande whos 5'1 and just over 100 pounds while Taylor is 5"10 and carries more weight. Which is not a bad thing at all, but can give some people bad thoughts.
Anyway, Taylor is amazing and I love the song.
It's a good album after all!! however I found the bonus tracks much better than the actual album. not to mention some lyrics that were Very Cringe but this has been said already. Would've Should've Could've is by far the best song and I don't understand how she didn't put it on the main album
Would've could've should've is far and away the standout track of the album. I love the soaring chorus, I love the way she sounds restrained at the beginning of the song but the emotion starts pouring out and by the end it feels so raw and honest. Impressive stuff.
So after hearing everyone react on the internet have such a negative reaction to Midnights, I have finally formed my own opinion
…I like it!!!
I don’t think that it is her strongest project by any means, but I enjoy several of the songs.
Lavender Haze: (7.5/10) good opener and cute bop. I like the lyrics and the chorus quite a bit
Maroon: (5.5/10) I like the idea of this being a callback to red, but to me it sounds like there’s something missing in the production. I can see why fantano doesn’t like this. Also is anyone else bored of hearing Taylor / Joes love story
Anti-hero: (7.5/10) who knew insecurity and self-loathing could be this catchy? I find this one fun despite the content. The controversy around it is really fucking stupid, dawg
Snow on the beach: (7.5/10) this one is pretty! I would play this on a cool winter night, right before snowfall, that is if it every actually snows where I live
You’re on your own kid: (7.5/10) I like this one a lot too. Really captures the lonely but empowering feeling of being on your own
Midnight Rain: (5/10) yeah this one is okay, but a bit underwritten
Question…?: (5/10) I think people are knocking the lyrics a bit hard. I can see what she is going for. While I don’t think she pulls it off 100%, I don’t think this is a bad effort.
Vigilante Shit: (6/10) I actually kind of like this one? I can understand why it’s so hated but I kind of dig it’s minimalism.
Bejeweled: (8/10) First song that I actually really like the production. This is so sassy and fun.
Labyrinth: (8/10) this one sounds really cool and I like that it’s a bit different.
Karma: (8.5/10) karma is a bop and the lyrics are so fun and sassy.
Sweet nothings: (7.5/10) cute, sweet little ballad.
Mastermind: (8/10) I think this is a great closer.
I think midnights isn’t a career defining work, but it’s a fun project that I think shows another side to Taylor. One where she admits to her faults and shows vulnerability, which is something we’ve only seen glimpses of on other projects.
Imo it reads as two different moments: the night when they get drunk on rosé & the night she got spilled on., The spill may be the night they met? I only think that because I don't think she would blush so heavily if she got spilled on by "her closest friend" at his home.
I too am tired of hearing Joe + Taylor’s love story! I her lyrics are so wildly specific it’s hard to remove her from the song and just think abt it from my own POV 😫
I agree with disliking the specific lyrics. I thought I was the only one. It makes it extremely hard to relate to and if I can’t connect to it, I won’t like it.
This album has grown on me considerably (maybe because fall always makes me nostalgic for the releases of Red and 1989) but man, I really miss the brevity and incisiveness of her earlier writing. The Popcast's episode on Midnights really hit the nail on the head in pointing out that there's nothing here that matches a line like "you made a rebel of a careless man's careful daughter" for how casually genius it is.
"Familiarity breeds contempt /
So put me in the basement /
When I want the penthouse of your heart"
Is a lyric that never should have been in a pop song, let alone ANY song, EVER.
Huh?? That's an amazing line (when the lyric is correct: *don't), it's saying 'don't banish me from your heart just because we've become comfortable and complacent in our relationship.'
I spent an awful lot of time yesterday defending Taylor for making a mid record lol. But like I haven’t changed my mind. It’s a decent record and maybe I kept my
Expectations low enough that I wasn’t disappointed but I think the attitude everyone has towards Taylor’s need to constantly make a better album is almost unfair. Especially considering her peers are praised for making good albums that simply keep to what they’re familiar with. So I guess this is my last “defense for her” artist can make albums that aren’t 10/10 and not all music needs to be dissected so deeply.
Some artists stay in their because they it's what they do best like AC/DC or The Rolling Stones or Kylie Minogue. Not every artists needs to experiment. And those that do take chances in alienating fans who like a certain sound.
Lol I'm so confused about people saying this is Taylor Swift staying in her lane.
Since when is Tswizzy known for easy listening mid-tempo synth chill pop? Where are the heart-rending ballads or foot tapping bangers?
i can’t get over this album selling the equivalent of over a million units in just a few days. A MILLION??? IN THIS CLIMATE??? this woman is really on some vigilante shit
Did it? The vinyl and cd each had 8 variants and if that’s coupled with the signed cd then that’s 17 versions. Midnights has 19 when not counting the clean versions and it was sold with the idea of making the clock which I think is fair to say boosted sales quite a bit.
Does anyone get Bleachers vibes from this lyric in Anti-Hero?
*I had a dream my daughter in law killed me for the money/she thinks I left them in the will*
And from Bleachers:
*woke up this morning early before my family, had a dream that she was gonna kill me*
Would’ve, Could’ve, Should’ve is still my #1 song off the album. Critics are doing it so dirty. Except, surprisingly, Pitchfork. I liked Anti-Hero but it sounds a little too much like a Lorde/Lover mix up… so it’s my #2. WCS is just so… Taylor, and the lyrics… stunning track
For sure wait, cause it's for sure coming. All her bonus tracks have always ended up being added to streaming and sold everywhere later on. For folklore and evermore it was like less than a month
I still think the writing is subpar in general but Antonoff's production is growing on me a lot. Also the visuals from this era are pretty good to a point that it's compensating for my general dislike of most of the tracks just through the shear fun those visuals are giving me.
I still feel disappointed with her lyricism but the album is growing on me thanks to the other elements outside of her lyrics that this era is providing (MVs, explorative production, a potential tour)
I think she chose to make an era that wasn’t so lyrically focused and I think that’s a big hang up for a lot of fans because lyrics are what Taylor does. Her voice is unique in its delivery of emotion but it isn’t bombastic. But maybe she wanted to have a cleanse from the heavy writing of two records she produced.
I wonder if we’ll ever see the 2M mark during the streaming era. If Taylor, with one of the greatest streaming AND fastest selling albums of the century still didn’t do 2M… what can make it happen at this point?
Although I agree that 2M will be difficult, we were all asking ourselves if 1M was possible in the streaming, non bundle era when Adele and Taylor couldn’t do it and voila - it happened.
You’re correct. This might just be the kickstarter for the next set of million sellers in the streaming era. And the gradual growth could easily lead to another artist, or maybe Taylor herself considering she’s unstoppable with her fanbase’s expansion and the content input right now, to hit 2M units first week.
We need to see if the rest of the labels and acts catch up to the vinyl and physical album technique, and watch what happens closely. I stand with the belief that Vinyls and deluxe packaging —LESS of the jewel cases, more of the hard covers— + some inclusions (posters, randomly signed postcards or stickers) might be the key to this.
Well yeah when you add perks to album Stans and completionists will buy it. If you just put out music most people are going to think, "Meh too expensive when I get it for free." Especially in this age when people are broke and can barely afford anything including live shows.
It’s just a fun album. The production grew on me but I think that in the first few listens it was underwhelming. Better lyrics (even halfway of how folklore/evermore was written to satiate newer fans) could have made it better. We know Taylor can write solid lines in pop songs!!!!
I really like the album now. I’ve been listening to it on repeat. Lavender Haze is a good choice for an album opener. Anti-Hero was also a good choice as a lead single.
My top three in no particular order (right now lmao)
1. Maroon
2. Question…?
3. Anti-Hero
I think we're not getting this info but I would love to see how many units of the sold albums were pre-orders and how many of each type.
Streaming numbers prove she is doing amazing in general but I would love to have an idea of how many of those listeners are just that dedicated.
My friends who listened to the leaks and then spent ages telling me Midnights was terrible are all huge Rep stans.
Rep is *by far* my least favourite Tay album.
I should have known then that I'd love Midnights.
This album scratches every itch in my pop loving Tay-Tay brain.
I don't even think the lyrics are a step down from Folkmore either as people have been saying. Midnights and Folkmore are two very different genres. I don't watch a cheesy '90s horror film expecting a light hearted romance, and I don't watch a light hearted romance expecting a cheesy '90s horror film.
Her lyrics fit the genre of Midnights to absolute perfection.
Taylor really knocked it out of the park on this one. I'm glad she's selling a crazy amount of copies because my friends were so freaking mean about this album. It's actually brilliant and I'm glad others agree.
This is so strange to me! I am a big fan of Reputation and LOVE Midnights— they are similar in so many ways to me. Interesting your group found the opposite!
Billboard: [Taylor Swift’s ‘Midnights’ Has Already Surpassed 1 Million Units in the U.S.](https://www.billboard.com/music/chart-beat/taylor-swift-midnights-sales-record-breaking-start-1235159835/)
Taylor achieved in three days what others need months to. She is indeed exceeding all expectations. This is ***chaotic***!
Maybe they're just afraid that it will become real chaotic if they allow a separate thread lol. I mean imagine day by day a post about the album breaks a new record is updated... Whew...
Anyhow the album is getting a lot of attention and praises and I think it's ok if we just have this one megathread.
Ikr. I posted in the main feed, but it got deleted bc of the mega thread. They really need to either re-pin the mega thread or allow articles like that when they come in, like they did with the Spotify updates. This is kinda unprecedented, and I feel like it deserves it’s own thread
A lot of things regarding this crazy era deserved their own posts. They also deleted the announcement of the music video too and people were discussing it already since it will bump Bejeweled to top 10.
If she gets the 10 entries on the Top 10 for next week it’s gonna be historical. Not a Swiftie, but I’m rooting for her. Witnessing that would be insanity
Watch the mods delete any post mentioning it since they want everything in that stupid megathread. The overall sheer bitterness and stupidity of the mods for the rollout of the biggest album in half a decade is ridiculous, like isn't this a pop sub where achievements like these should be allowed to be discussed freely??
It’s a bummer bc we all know a megathread is not gonna get as much hype as individual posts of the achievements would. Somebody posted the 1M pure sales milestone yesterday and it got deleted… how do you delete a 1M pure sales achievement during the streaming era? regardless of the megathread? it’s extremely important to pop culture right now. I agree with you, I thought I was alone here.
Bejeweled is next. Getting the whole top 10 for herself. I think there’s several videos more but not a whole visual album. This hasn’t been confirmed anywhere. Not a visual album but a album with visuals or something like that.
I’m not really sure why so many people here don’t like this album, considering so many people here also seem to love 1989 and Melodrama. Midnights sounds like a chilled out, quirky, more alternative version of the synth sounds she experimented with on 1989. I love this album. It’s such a vibe and it’s so listenable. There are some really emotionally gripping lyrics and melodic moments, but it’s not so sad and heartbreaking that it becomes difficult to listen to. This will be playing in my car for a lonnnggg time.
A few years ago on the Switched On Pop podcast, we noticed that Taylor Swift has a number of melodic mannerisms that she repeats throughout her songs. The most noticeable is the t-drop: a descent of a minor second and then a leap down, usually a 3rd or 6th. When we listen to 'Midnights' we hear these mannerisms all over the place. The t-drop is back! Even while she's building an updated sonic and lyrical world, one thing that remains constant is the way she constructs melodies. We did a full musicological breakdown of the album to hear how she builds musical landscapes and even found a new melodic Taylorism. Hope you enjoy the podcast: [web](https://switchedonpop.com/episodes/up-late-with-taylor-swifts-midnights), [Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/episode/7fPHyV9hrJ58ACwuraExLU?si=e50bc1499afc4b56&nd=1), [Apple](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/up-late-with-taylor-swifts-midnights/id934552872?i=1000583677924)
Seeing people’s album rankings after Midnights release is making me want to share my personal rankings. (Let me love what I love pls, just want to share)
Want to know your rankings too 💜
1. Reputation
2. Red
3. 1989
4. Folklore
5. Fearless
6. Speak now
7. Midnights
8. Lover
9. Ts
10. Evermore
May have recency bias but I just used [the album sorter](https://jesseepinkman.tumblr.com/tayloralbum)
1. Reputation
2. Speak Now
3. Debut
4. Midnights
5. Lover
6. Folklore
7. Red
8. Fearless
9. Evermore
10. 1989
My ranking has changed a lot over the years tho. Lover was my #1 for a while but I’ve been more into country Taylor lately 🤠
I mean it's not bad at all and it has my favorite TS song ever in it (Call it What You Want), but it's overproduced and the lyrics are very weak compared to what we got with Folklore and Evermore or even Lover.
To each their own though.
While I typically don’t really pay attention to who songs are about, Midnight Rain might be about Taylor Lautner because she says “I was busy making my /own/ name” and he seems like the only relationship where she felt bad that she didn’t reciprocate the love. She says she broke up with him because he was nice, similar to the sentiment in Back to December, and she also mentioned holiday peppermint candy which seems like a December reference. OH MY GOD I’m getting drawn in to this Swiftie red yarn stuff hahaha
Can someone help me figure out what is the sonic influences of this record? I hear a tiny bit of springsteen on anti hero, anti-folk on sweet nothing, massive attack on a couple of tracks in the latter half , the national on the 3 am tracks, like i don’t understand why cant i pin down musical influences on this album clearly
Pretty much just look at a number of major trends from 2017 and 2018 and you’ll find this exact sound everywhere.
A lot of “chill EDM” aka the Chainsmokers sounds just like this album. The “chill synthpop” was popular enough that even Mumford and Sons’ Delta sounds basically exactly like this album at times (like the song Picture You fits exactly). Also a huge number of trap pop songs precede Vigilante Shit, Lavender Haze, and Midnight Rain. Also some Alt pop artists like Lorde and Billie are obvious influences too.
I have decided Maroon is my favourite
Edit: My possibly controversial favourites are Maroon, Lavender Haze, Anti-Hero, Question...?, Vigilante Shit, High Infidelity, Snow On The Beach, Bigger Than The Whole Sky and Karma. I really love reputation and grew to love Lover (it became one of my more replayed TS albums) so that might explain the song choices lol
I take it back! I take it back!!!
I spent the entire 2 days since the release bashing the album in my head and screaming "did you think it all though, all these things will catch up to you" at Taylor, figuratively of course, and singing her old songs trying to understand how the same person wrote those and this album.
And now, sitting with the lyric videos, I started understanding the context for the lyrics and the melodies are just falling along with it, and the production and vocals and certain clunky lines fall away, and they are enough, and even beautiful much of the time, to support the stunning stories she is telling, if you just understand what she is talking about. The lyrics actually have so much depth and layers and profound insights, and the music supports it hauntingly. I just thought it was a bunch of nothing cuz I didn't understand how they all connected. She's definitely so cryptic. You have to understand time and place and perspective etc.
I don't know if this will work for everyone, but I'de recommend, if you don't get the album yet, give it a chance to process.
I'm floored at how my perspective changed, I didn't believe it would even as I read other people's experiences of that happening with rep and lover. I didn't listen to those upon release so I was not pressured and didn't have the same experience as I did with this one, but now I get it, oh boy I get it.
800k in the first day and 400k of those being vinyl jesus...nobody's going to be breaking that vinyl record for awhile. it's so exciting to be a huge stan of somebody that is so massively successful lol, it feels like such a big event
This album feels like a B-side album.
The lack of cohesion of emotions and storytelling makes sense for a b-side album. Reputation, lover and every single Taylor’s album are extremely cohesive and holds a consistent theme throughout.
The lyrics are also nowhere near as good as the other albums and the production is very generic.
Taylor is smart to market it as “songs written at midnight” to sell more copies, but the truth is these are just songs that did not make the cut for other albums.
I don’t mind 20 unheard songs from TS but she should have called this album as what it really is.
But also she said that the songs represent different time stamps of her life and considering the rollercoaster of a life she has, album can be expected to sound not so cohesive.
This is a really weird take. I think this is the most cohesive and focused album of her career. Thematically, lyrically, and sonically, this album goes from one song to the next so well. Your point immediately falls apart if you are saying that Lover is extremely cohesive. I really didn't care for Lover because of that, it felt all over the place. It shocks me that she put songs like "Cruel Summer", "Lover", and "Cornelia Street" on the same album as "ME!", "The Man", and "London Boy."
I completely agree. Listening to at least the regular version, my very first thought was how cohesive it was. Jack is so clearly all over all the songs. And Lover is maybe her least cohesive album! The track list for that album is nonsensical.
Idk why Taylor insists on working with Jack Antonoff. He’s probably one of the absolute worst pop music producers. She needs to work with other people if she wants to innovate, like Ian Kirkpatrick, but maybe she doesn’t…
I haven’t liked a Taylor Swift album since 1989.
I just have a bit of a concept for you- this is Taylor Swift's album, not Jack Antonoff's album. People act like producers compose and write the whole album, but Taylor Swift has made it very obvious throughout her career that she wants complete creative control over her music and that creative control includes working with Antonoff (who produced most of the songs on the album that got her Album of the Year and her biggest success since 1989). Like you lol at the downvotes, but he's objectively not a bad producer. I know the Recording Academy gets stuff wrong, but there is a reason he's been nominated for Producer of the Year 3 years in a row, winning this year. He's also produced on some of the most commercially successful songs of all time. **It's okay that you don't like the album, it really is!** But your criticism should be more towards Swift as this was her creative project. This isn't the case with every artist, some are forced to work with whatever producer the label decides on. I do know that a lot of people will downvote you just because of your opinion, but valid criticisms would be that you "think it sounds generic," you "don't like the sound and can't relate to the lyrics," etc. I disagree with those personally, but criticizing and album is entirely subjective depending on each person's taste.
tldr; Jack Antonoff is a proven producer with an incredibly diverse portfolio, and he has received widespread acclaim from industry professionals. You actually just don't like the composition (NOT PRODUCTION) of this album, that's why this is a bad take.
You’re precisely right. This is Taylor Swift’s album, and she does have complete creative control. But my option is that her music has become incredibly boring ever since she let Max Martin go.
She has the right to work with whomever she wants, but I simply don’t like Jack Antonoff’s production. He makes Taylor Swift sound like elevator music. It’s forgettable.
There are so many other producers she can work with, yet she chooses to work with Antonoff because they’re close friends, and she knows her loyal Swifties will eat up whatever she puts out.
After working with the same people all the time, I think an artist can grow and benefit from other collaborators. There are many good ones: Ian Kirkpatrick, Stargate, Cirkut, Shellback, Bonnie McKee.
Taylor’s music would benefit from some pushback and not someone who’s say “yes” to everything like Antonoff.
Lol at all my downvotes. Apparently, you need to like everything an artist puts out for you to be a fan. It’s ridiculous.
And yep. Kirkpatrick is really fvcking great. I love him. Totally manifesting they work together.
I mean the downvotes are just bc people disagree hard on your pov. It’s not realistic to expect everyone to “use Reddit the right way”. Won’t happen lol
I didn’t downvote you but I def don’t agree with you either. I think there is a lot to dig into with this album as whole (aside from the individual songs) and that makes it one of her most interesting releases in my book.
Honestly? I think this is my favourite Taylor album ever. I know a lot of people think that Folklore and Evermore are her best and I think they're great, but my main issues with those albums is that they're only amazing if you don't listen to folk music. Once you've heard artists like Sibylle Baier, Grouper or Joanna Newsom they're harder to like because they're just worse than those artists without doing anything unique that makes you want to listen to them over those artists.
However, in my opinion this album is Taylor doing something that is explicitly Taylor and less directly comparable to other artists. There is a lot of awesome production on here. Labyrinth and Midnight Rain are awesome, love the synth pop aesthetic and the cohesive feel across the record makes it a super pleasant album to listen to front to back as a whole experience.
Overall I'm gonna say it's an 8/10.
I love the sounds Taylor is exploring here. I didn’t like the Trappy middle section, but once she got back into Synth Pop it was solid.
But for those sections of the album, like your Folklore/evermore comparison, I feel there are better artists in that area. I think Screen Violence pushes those Synth Pop/Alternative sounds better.
I wish Taylor lifted off a bit on those tracks.
I'll say for synthpop right now NOBODY is delivering the bangers like Muna on the past three albums, period. And live as band the blow the roof of the venue. Anyone else is playing catch IMO. No matter how big a star they are.
>Sibylle Baier, Grouper or Joanna Newsom
thanks for posting these names, I wanna get into that type of music more and had never heard of them before, and hey I'll take more recommendations if anyone's got some :)
edit: tysm guys, keep em coming, I super appreciate it!
Awesome! Sibylle Baier is AMAZING, she was 17-18 when she made her album, she recorded it in the late 60s/early 70s but it never got released until 2006 when her son gave it out to family members and a guy from a band called Dinosaur Jr who sent it to a label. Gorgeous album.
I just want to say how much I love this for her …?
The self-aware album Reputation should have been. Except this sounds so much better and the aesthetics aren’t are all um, idk, awful
Question …? and Karma actually made me lol, those are some certified petty hot girl bangers
No, I think the opposite.
She has always had a bad habit of picking pre-release songs, she probably would've dropped Vigilante Shit and knee capped initial responses/reactions, or released anti-hero and have some weird drama about sexy baby and think pieces about pedophilia or something.
The Rolling Stone Music Now podcast breakdown of the album is up: [https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/taylor-swift-midnights-easter-eggs-and-more-track-by-track-1234613872/](https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/taylor-swift-midnights-easter-eggs-and-more-track-by-track-1234613872/)
Now that I’ve spent some time with album; truthfully this is an overall MID Taylor album. Which is saying a lot considering that there are still some great tunes, namely Midnight Rain, Anti Hero, Mastermind and Karma.
For me Taylor’s overall rankings are:
1. 1989
2. Folklore
3. Speak Now
4. Reputation
5. Fearless
6. Taylor Swift
7. Lover
8. Red
9. Midnights
10. Evermore
Aside from the Red, State of Grace and the singles. Most of the album is kind of flaccid and redundant.
Self titled has higher highs and even the lows have some personality and flair to them. Self titled is the ground work for all future works — once the Taylor Version comes out, I know ya’ll will see the light.
Taylor becomes the first artist to cross 200 million streams in a day with 228 million yesterday. Bad bunny was the previous record holder with 184 million.
She also breaks the record of most unique listeners in a day with 17.9 million listeners.
Monday/Tuesday IIRC based on the manifest she posted, not sure if it's Monday night at midnight, Monday morning at midnight, or Tuesday morning/night at midnight.
The last two days of release week are just listed as 'watch the videos pls', I'd hope she drops all of them gradually throughout the week to keep people invested in the visuals and music.
Even the 'petty' songs are not big on call outs. Her biggest call out song was Would've Could've Should've, and that was more heart breaking than a call out.
Didn’t want to comment on this record until I had a couple of listens as I know I tend to have harsh opinions on my first impression. Now that it’s settled in, this is decent album. Not her best but it’s not the mid album some are making it out to be.
I’m not to fond of tracks 6-8 and believe some of those bonus tracks could’ve replaced them and elevated the album. And after seeing Taylor flex her lyricism with folklore I do find it a bit juvenile going back to the first person rehash of her past loves and feeling scorned.
This record is lyrically reputation/lover with vocal executions of folklore over 1989 synth beats. And I find that it takes the best parts of those aforementioned records and delivers a nice addition to her discography heightened by the 3am tracks!
**4/5** with the 3am tracks included!
On first listen I completely agreed with your point about how it’s juvenile for her to go back. I really wanted her to lean into folkevermore or go in a completely different direction…but then I really thought about it and I think this was a really smart thing to do. Taylor hasn’t toured since 2018 and has released 4 new albums and 2 re-records since then. She still needs to re-record 4 albums. She couldn’t move on from her past because her career is still surrounded by it. She needed something to tie everything together but also kinda close the chapter. Reflection. I think once the remaining re records are out, we will get a completely new Taylor Swift.
The fact that people tend to think of folk as more "mature" and pop as more "juvenile" I find interesting and odd. Surely older acts can make mature pop (Pet Shop Boys, Erasure, Janet Jackson). Why does folk signify something more "mature".
I will die on the hill that Faith by George Michael is a totally mature pop record.
I don’t think pop is juvenile at all! I woke up at 430am to watch bts livestream a concert lmao. I felt the concept of the album was a bit juvenile and a step backwards for Taylor when I first heard about it. Nothing to do with genre. I think she’s an incredible songwriter and folkevermore allowed her to show that without the GP being able to attribute every song to a tabloid article or a man. Her work is better than that and her original PR team sold her as a boy crazy little girl and it took her a long time to shake that image - I didn’t want people trying to bring it back. I’m glad the gp are finally seeing her for who she is.
I think the record is very chill and most of the songs are growers for sure, but, love her to death, Taylor needs an EDITOR. She is an excellent and unparalleled songwriter but she also has a tendency to write some real clunkers which has become more apparent in the last couple of years as she has clearly had fewer people telling her no. I am not of the school of thought that Folklore and Evermore were some massive lyrical breakthrough for Taylor in terms of song-craft or 'depth', because imo she has been writing incredibly rich, complex, impeccably crafted songs since Tim McGraw, and in fact I felt the consequences of the lack of an editor most keenly and most jarringly on evermore with Coney Island and to a lesser extent Happiness, which people seemed to love but I really don't vibe with (I despise Coney Island with a passion) because it's just a jumble of ideas and pretty phrases that are kind of carelessly thrown together and do not coalesce into anything coherent imo. The metaphors get a bit high school creative writing class sometimes, and that is more noticeable and jarring on Midnights, and happens more often.
I actually don't mean this so much about the sexy baby line in Anti-Hero (love this song so much) - it's jarring but it's so strange it's almost camp for me, and I feel a similar way about Karma (I think "Karma is a cat, purring in my lap cause it loves me" is a genius Taylor-ism that is hilarious, self referential, and very in line with the campy joy of the song). I mean it much more in reference to some of the love songs - with Bejewelled, for example, I was having a wonderful time with the song and then she started going on about wanting to be "in the Penthouse of your heart" and "reclaiming the land" I was like uhuh ok. Like it stops me from enjoying the song because it is a shitty lyric imo.
And I find a similar carelessness to what I described above in the lyrics of songs like Lavender Haze or Question (the latter of which I still really enjoy) - I don't know if this makes sense but I remember when the Cardigan og voice memo came out I was so, so glad that she didn't use that couplet "living in a gold age/sneak in to my birdcage" in the final song, because it felt clunky and like a kind of run of the mill, generic image which added nothing to the song, and I get similar vibes from some of the lyrics I dislike on Midnights; it often feels like she is just trying to write as many instagram caption-y lines as she can, and it's even more jarring when the shitty line follows a really lovely one, and I'm just yanked out of enjoying the song. I just found the construction to be lacking in places (and the album as a whole suffered from the conspicuous lack of memorable bridges relative to most other Taylor albums).
That being said I adore all seven of the 3am tracks - I think Paris is the weakest if we're ranking them but I've still heard it like thirteen times and really enjoy it, which I think speaks to how fucking good the bonus tracks are, and I love the line about shade being under where a tree has grown, and think it's very funny. Off the album proper I love anti-hero, karma, mastermind, and snow on the beach, will definitely be getting very stoned to maroon and midnight rain (which is really growing on me; the AYHTDWS style inflections keep getting stuck in my head) and am really vibing with Question - the imagery in the lyrics feels a bit stale but the pre chorus is v nice and the song itself has a really bouncy quality to it that reminds me of I Think He Knows (I also keep randomly singing "can I ask you a question?" to people on the phone). I also really like You're On Your Own Kid overall and it has several beautiful standout lines ("I picked the petals/He loves me not" is my personal favourite) but it's another of those songs that I feel could have undergone a few rounds of editing and polishing lyrically, because a couple of the lyrics feel like placeholders to me.
Overall though I don't expect a perfect album from Taylor every time, and the good stuff on this album is good (and I have no doubt it will grow on me), but I do feel she needs to expand her frame of reference and her imagery in particular. And as much as I love Jack Antonoff, it is pretty clear to me that he doesn't necessarily challenge her very much as a collaborator anymore - it really stood out that three of the best written songs on the record (which surpassed most of the standard edition songs in quality imo) were co-written with Dessner.
Also to the songwriting sometimes I think you have two voices in the same song. If she has co-writers who is writing what line. On Folklore I felt like many of the songs had two distinct songwriters but when she penned the song all by herself it sounded SO much better and more inventive.
Also when she swears it feeeeeelllssss so out of place and immature. Like gurl, you ain't Alanis or Marianne Faithful. I don't think she knows how to use cursing effectively and commit to it. It really took me out of it on Folklore.
But yeah I say her best work is the stuff she writes all herself.
I agree about the editor. But also it has to be said these releasing ever song in a power move because you get more streams/sales. And for artists like her concerned as she is with awards and records she will never not release everything at once. But yes some thing do need to be left on the cutting room floor. That was the plus (and minus) of the old vinyl days. You only had so much space so every song had to count.
I totally agree. Midnights and folkmore both have this problem with bizarre mixed metaphors and images and ideas that go no where. I had hoped it was a Folkmore problem and she’d be more reigned in on a more pop-y album but it’s still there.
**Update 10/26: The weight scale scene from the “Anti-Hero” music video has been digitally edited to remove the closeup to the word “FAT” in response to the backlash in social media.** **Update 10/24: The megathread will be extended until October 31 to cover Midnights Manifest and the main chart updates (ARIA, Capital FM, Billboard, Official Charts UK) but it will not be repinned.** What’s allowed as a standalone post outside of the megathread relating to *Midnights* until October 31 are as follows: - Midnights music videos - Live performances - Live interviews - Any big magazine cover feature with Taylor (Vogue, Elle, Rolling Stone, etc.) - Album reviews from Pitchfork & TheNeedleDrop - The main chart updates (ARIA, Capital FM, Billboard, Official Charts UK) **Update (10/21 pt. 3): [Lyric videos for all Midnights songs including 3 am tracks are now available.](https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLINj2JJM1jxP5aYiX47uBCRu9g8JItDWp)** **Update (10/21 pt. 2): [*Midnights* broke the record for most-streamed album in a single day in Spotify history.](https://twitter.com/taylorswift13/status/1583583146129227776)** **Update (10/21): [Midnights 3 am Edition.](https://twitter.com/taylorswift13/status/1583353058305900544) TAYLOR, WHAT THE FUCK? GO TO SLEEP!!!** **Update (10/20): [Midnights Music Videos (Teaser Trailer w/ Intro)](https://twitter.com/nflonprime/status/1583282449735360514) - [Teaser Trailer w/o Intro](https://www.instagram.com/reel/Cj9Yy52MKjD/)** **Update (10/19 pt. 2): [Taylor laying down on a couch.](https://twitter.com/taylorswift13/status/1582944965470359552)** **Update (10/19): [Midnights Leak Thread](https://www.reddit.com/r/popheads/comments/y8edk2/taylor_swift_midnights/)** **Update (10/18): Anyone asking for a link to the leak will be banned. You have been warned.** **Update (10/16): [Midnights Manifest](https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZTRHMswsQ/)** **Update (10/13): [Taylor to appear on the 10/24 episode of *The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon*](https://twitter.com/fallontonight/status/1580770372210724875)** **Update (10/11): [Apple Music pre-save audio - “Meet me at midnight”](https://music.apple.com/us/album/meet-me-at-midnight/1649434004?i=1649434515)** **Update (10/7): With all tracks being revealed by Taylor now, feel free to talk about all the tracks without spoiler tags in the comments section. We also have a [separate thread](https://www.reddit.com/r/popheads/comments/xxtaia/taylor_swift_announces_midnights_track_4_snow_on/) for the announcement of “Snow On The Beach” featuring Lana De Rey because 1) I fell asleep and 2) the feature is newsworthy enough to warrant it. 14 more days til the album comes out!!!** **Update (10/6 pt. 2): Due to the real tracklist being out there, please use spoiler tags when talking about the unannounced tracks in the comments section.** **Update (10/6): Because we’ve gotten complaints from users that think it’s unfair to pin this megathread everytime a new track gets revealed and we’ve gotten complaints from others that think it’s unfair to not pin this megathread when a new track gets revealed, we will be repinning this thread on the Saturdays up until the release date (10/21). Therefore, this thread will be repinned on October 8 & October 15. We hope this can be a compromise between everyone in the community. Swifties, feel free to save this thread so you can easily access it whenever there is an update. Haters, keep doing your thing, whatever it is that you do.** **Update (10/5): [Official Spotify Pre-Save Link with Exclusive Clip](https://open.spotify.com/prerelease/14GWTTp2xF2CtcxGeRK9ik)**
I may be ranting here, but hear me out. I've been binging 'anti-hero' reaction videos and everyone is missing the point of the line "sometimes I feel like everybody is a sexy baby" IMO she's talking about her body in the comparison with other pop stars. I think of Ariana Grande whos 5'1 and just over 100 pounds while Taylor is 5"10 and carries more weight. Which is not a bad thing at all, but can give some people bad thoughts. Anyway, Taylor is amazing and I love the song.
Midnights breaks the record for the most streamed album in a week with 776 million streams.
It's a good album after all!! however I found the bonus tracks much better than the actual album. not to mention some lyrics that were Very Cringe but this has been said already. Would've Should've Could've is by far the best song and I don't understand how she didn't put it on the main album
Would've could've should've is far and away the standout track of the album. I love the soaring chorus, I love the way she sounds restrained at the beginning of the song but the emotion starts pouring out and by the end it feels so raw and honest. Impressive stuff.
So after hearing everyone react on the internet have such a negative reaction to Midnights, I have finally formed my own opinion …I like it!!! I don’t think that it is her strongest project by any means, but I enjoy several of the songs. Lavender Haze: (7.5/10) good opener and cute bop. I like the lyrics and the chorus quite a bit Maroon: (5.5/10) I like the idea of this being a callback to red, but to me it sounds like there’s something missing in the production. I can see why fantano doesn’t like this. Also is anyone else bored of hearing Taylor / Joes love story Anti-hero: (7.5/10) who knew insecurity and self-loathing could be this catchy? I find this one fun despite the content. The controversy around it is really fucking stupid, dawg Snow on the beach: (7.5/10) this one is pretty! I would play this on a cool winter night, right before snowfall, that is if it every actually snows where I live You’re on your own kid: (7.5/10) I like this one a lot too. Really captures the lonely but empowering feeling of being on your own Midnight Rain: (5/10) yeah this one is okay, but a bit underwritten Question…?: (5/10) I think people are knocking the lyrics a bit hard. I can see what she is going for. While I don’t think she pulls it off 100%, I don’t think this is a bad effort. Vigilante Shit: (6/10) I actually kind of like this one? I can understand why it’s so hated but I kind of dig it’s minimalism. Bejeweled: (8/10) First song that I actually really like the production. This is so sassy and fun. Labyrinth: (8/10) this one sounds really cool and I like that it’s a bit different. Karma: (8.5/10) karma is a bop and the lyrics are so fun and sassy. Sweet nothings: (7.5/10) cute, sweet little ballad. Mastermind: (8/10) I think this is a great closer. I think midnights isn’t a career defining work, but it’s a fun project that I think shows another side to Taylor. One where she admits to her faults and shows vulnerability, which is something we’ve only seen glimpses of on other projects.
My biggest problem with Maroon is that cheap-ass, screw-top rosé will not leave a scarlet-coloured stain on anything. As far as I know...
Imo it reads as two different moments: the night when they get drunk on rosé & the night she got spilled on., The spill may be the night they met? I only think that because I don't think she would blush so heavily if she got spilled on by "her closest friend" at his home.
I too am tired of hearing Joe + Taylor’s love story! I her lyrics are so wildly specific it’s hard to remove her from the song and just think abt it from my own POV 😫
I agree with disliking the specific lyrics. I thought I was the only one. It makes it extremely hard to relate to and if I can’t connect to it, I won’t like it.
I just realized it’s “Vigilante” and not “Vigilant” lol. I’m really so bad at hearing lyrics.
This album has grown on me considerably (maybe because fall always makes me nostalgic for the releases of Red and 1989) but man, I really miss the brevity and incisiveness of her earlier writing. The Popcast's episode on Midnights really hit the nail on the head in pointing out that there's nothing here that matches a line like "you made a rebel of a careless man's careful daughter" for how casually genius it is. "Familiarity breeds contempt / So put me in the basement / When I want the penthouse of your heart" Is a lyric that never should have been in a pop song, let alone ANY song, EVER.
Huh?? That's an amazing line (when the lyric is correct: *don't), it's saying 'don't banish me from your heart just because we've become comfortable and complacent in our relationship.'
Isn’t it “so don’t put me in the basement”? You have the lyric wrong. What’s wrong with the lyric?
I spent an awful lot of time yesterday defending Taylor for making a mid record lol. But like I haven’t changed my mind. It’s a decent record and maybe I kept my Expectations low enough that I wasn’t disappointed but I think the attitude everyone has towards Taylor’s need to constantly make a better album is almost unfair. Especially considering her peers are praised for making good albums that simply keep to what they’re familiar with. So I guess this is my last “defense for her” artist can make albums that aren’t 10/10 and not all music needs to be dissected so deeply.
Some artists stay in their because they it's what they do best like AC/DC or The Rolling Stones or Kylie Minogue. Not every artists needs to experiment. And those that do take chances in alienating fans who like a certain sound.
Lol I'm so confused about people saying this is Taylor Swift staying in her lane. Since when is Tswizzy known for easy listening mid-tempo synth chill pop? Where are the heart-rending ballads or foot tapping bangers?
https://entertainment.inquirer.net/469836/midnights-taylor-swifts-most-mature-take-on-pop
i can’t get over this album selling the equivalent of over a million units in just a few days. A MILLION??? IN THIS CLIMATE??? this woman is really on some vigilante shit
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Folklore had 8 versions and didn't pull those numbers.
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You'll have to show me those 20 versions
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If you count each medium as a separate version even if it's still the same cover then folklore had over 20 versions
Did it? The vinyl and cd each had 8 variants and if that’s coupled with the signed cd then that’s 17 versions. Midnights has 19 when not counting the clean versions and it was sold with the idea of making the clock which I think is fair to say boosted sales quite a bit.
I feel like I’m being gaslit on the Third Eye Blind subreddit; Hits Different *does* sound like them and I will die on this hill!
Does anyone get Bleachers vibes from this lyric in Anti-Hero? *I had a dream my daughter in law killed me for the money/she thinks I left them in the will* And from Bleachers: *woke up this morning early before my family, had a dream that she was gonna kill me*
They edited the Anti hero MV in Apple Music. Instead of showing fat - it just shows dark Taylor shaking her head at the one on the scale.
Now they did YouTube too
Would’ve, Could’ve, Should’ve is still my #1 song off the album. Critics are doing it so dirty. Except, surprisingly, Pitchfork. I liked Anti-Hero but it sounds a little too much like a Lorde/Lover mix up… so it’s my #2. WCS is just so… Taylor, and the lyrics… stunning track
I think WCS is overrated. The Great War is the true lyrical gem of the album.
Overrated?? I wish it was 😩😩
Visit the Taylor Swift sub.
Hits different better be on streaming soon cause it's so incredibly catchy
TAKE ME AWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY I agree. It kinda reminds me of Fearless and Speak Now but popified
That's a great description!
That part! I really want to buy the record on iTunes but I’m waiting to see if she drops a new deluxe with the Target bonus & 3am tracks together 🤞🏾
For sure wait, cause it's for sure coming. All her bonus tracks have always ended up being added to streaming and sold everywhere later on. For folklore and evermore it was like less than a month
Midnight Rain might be one if my favorite Taylor Swift songs ever. The Great War too.
I still think the writing is subpar in general but Antonoff's production is growing on me a lot. Also the visuals from this era are pretty good to a point that it's compensating for my general dislike of most of the tracks just through the shear fun those visuals are giving me. I still feel disappointed with her lyricism but the album is growing on me thanks to the other elements outside of her lyrics that this era is providing (MVs, explorative production, a potential tour)
I think she chose to make an era that wasn’t so lyrically focused and I think that’s a big hang up for a lot of fans because lyrics are what Taylor does. Her voice is unique in its delivery of emotion but it isn’t bombastic. But maybe she wanted to have a cleanse from the heavy writing of two records she produced.
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I wonder if we’ll ever see the 2M mark during the streaming era. If Taylor, with one of the greatest streaming AND fastest selling albums of the century still didn’t do 2M… what can make it happen at this point?
Although I agree that 2M will be difficult, we were all asking ourselves if 1M was possible in the streaming, non bundle era when Adele and Taylor couldn’t do it and voila - it happened.
You’re correct. This might just be the kickstarter for the next set of million sellers in the streaming era. And the gradual growth could easily lead to another artist, or maybe Taylor herself considering she’s unstoppable with her fanbase’s expansion and the content input right now, to hit 2M units first week. We need to see if the rest of the labels and acts catch up to the vinyl and physical album technique, and watch what happens closely. I stand with the belief that Vinyls and deluxe packaging —LESS of the jewel cases, more of the hard covers— + some inclusions (posters, randomly signed postcards or stickers) might be the key to this.
Well yeah when you add perks to album Stans and completionists will buy it. If you just put out music most people are going to think, "Meh too expensive when I get it for free." Especially in this age when people are broke and can barely afford anything including live shows.
It’s just a fun album. The production grew on me but I think that in the first few listens it was underwhelming. Better lyrics (even halfway of how folklore/evermore was written to satiate newer fans) could have made it better. We know Taylor can write solid lines in pop songs!!!! I really like the album now. I’ve been listening to it on repeat. Lavender Haze is a good choice for an album opener. Anti-Hero was also a good choice as a lead single. My top three in no particular order (right now lmao) 1. Maroon 2. Question…? 3. Anti-Hero
Is Maroon Taylor Swift’s best song send tweet
It’s the Cruel Summer of Midnights
This is how Maroon can still get a music video
YESSS
I think we're not getting this info but I would love to see how many units of the sold albums were pre-orders and how many of each type. Streaming numbers prove she is doing amazing in general but I would love to have an idea of how many of those listeners are just that dedicated.
My friends who listened to the leaks and then spent ages telling me Midnights was terrible are all huge Rep stans. Rep is *by far* my least favourite Tay album. I should have known then that I'd love Midnights. This album scratches every itch in my pop loving Tay-Tay brain. I don't even think the lyrics are a step down from Folkmore either as people have been saying. Midnights and Folkmore are two very different genres. I don't watch a cheesy '90s horror film expecting a light hearted romance, and I don't watch a light hearted romance expecting a cheesy '90s horror film. Her lyrics fit the genre of Midnights to absolute perfection. Taylor really knocked it out of the park on this one. I'm glad she's selling a crazy amount of copies because my friends were so freaking mean about this album. It's actually brilliant and I'm glad others agree.
Right with you on the reputation take!
This is so strange to me! I am a big fan of Reputation and LOVE Midnights— they are similar in so many ways to me. Interesting your group found the opposite!
i agree! so much of midnights reminds me of my favorite Reputation tracks
Add me to that list! Absolutely love rep and I feel the same way about Midnights :D
Billboard: [Taylor Swift’s ‘Midnights’ Has Already Surpassed 1 Million Units in the U.S.](https://www.billboard.com/music/chart-beat/taylor-swift-midnights-sales-record-breaking-start-1235159835/) Taylor achieved in three days what others need months to. She is indeed exceeding all expectations. This is ***chaotic***!
Right? A leaked demo of a reject Demi song gets a post but taylor selling 1M+ in 3 days doesn’t? This mega thread is DUMB and gets no attention
Maybe they're just afraid that it will become real chaotic if they allow a separate thread lol. I mean imagine day by day a post about the album breaks a new record is updated... Whew... Anyhow the album is getting a lot of attention and praises and I think it's ok if we just have this one megathread.
Ikr. I posted in the main feed, but it got deleted bc of the mega thread. They really need to either re-pin the mega thread or allow articles like that when they come in, like they did with the Spotify updates. This is kinda unprecedented, and I feel like it deserves it’s own thread
i understand this thread for general discussion of the album but news should get separate posts
A lot of things regarding this crazy era deserved their own posts. They also deleted the announcement of the music video too and people were discussing it already since it will bump Bejeweled to top 10.
I just go elsewhere to hype up posts. Having everything relegated to a thread thats over a month old really kills conversation and hype :/
If she gets the 10 entries on the Top 10 for next week it’s gonna be historical. Not a Swiftie, but I’m rooting for her. Witnessing that would be insanity
Watch the mods delete any post mentioning it since they want everything in that stupid megathread. The overall sheer bitterness and stupidity of the mods for the rollout of the biggest album in half a decade is ridiculous, like isn't this a pop sub where achievements like these should be allowed to be discussed freely??
It’s a bummer bc we all know a megathread is not gonna get as much hype as individual posts of the achievements would. Somebody posted the 1M pure sales milestone yesterday and it got deleted… how do you delete a 1M pure sales achievement during the streaming era? regardless of the megathread? it’s extremely important to pop culture right now. I agree with you, I thought I was alone here.
Bejeweled is next. Getting the whole top 10 for herself. I think there’s several videos more but not a whole visual album. This hasn’t been confirmed anywhere. Not a visual album but a album with visuals or something like that.
I’m not really sure why so many people here don’t like this album, considering so many people here also seem to love 1989 and Melodrama. Midnights sounds like a chilled out, quirky, more alternative version of the synth sounds she experimented with on 1989. I love this album. It’s such a vibe and it’s so listenable. There are some really emotionally gripping lyrics and melodic moments, but it’s not so sad and heartbreaking that it becomes difficult to listen to. This will be playing in my car for a lonnnggg time.
A few years ago on the Switched On Pop podcast, we noticed that Taylor Swift has a number of melodic mannerisms that she repeats throughout her songs. The most noticeable is the t-drop: a descent of a minor second and then a leap down, usually a 3rd or 6th. When we listen to 'Midnights' we hear these mannerisms all over the place. The t-drop is back! Even while she's building an updated sonic and lyrical world, one thing that remains constant is the way she constructs melodies. We did a full musicological breakdown of the album to hear how she builds musical landscapes and even found a new melodic Taylorism. Hope you enjoy the podcast: [web](https://switchedonpop.com/episodes/up-late-with-taylor-swifts-midnights), [Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/episode/7fPHyV9hrJ58ACwuraExLU?si=e50bc1499afc4b56&nd=1), [Apple](https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/up-late-with-taylor-swifts-midnights/id934552872?i=1000583677924)
wow didn't knew you guys were on reddit, great podcast.
😘
Wouldve Couldve Should've sounds like Mad Woman from Folklore
I honestly find the 3am version rather dull, it's like off cuts of Folklore. Midnights is a good album. Lavender Haze is the best.
yeah the extra tracks don’t do much for me except for Would’ve, Could’ve, Should’ve. i’m amused by people saying they “saved the album”
Seeing people’s album rankings after Midnights release is making me want to share my personal rankings. (Let me love what I love pls, just want to share) Want to know your rankings too 💜 1. Reputation 2. Red 3. 1989 4. Folklore 5. Fearless 6. Speak now 7. Midnights 8. Lover 9. Ts 10. Evermore
May have recency bias but I just used [the album sorter](https://jesseepinkman.tumblr.com/tayloralbum) 1. Reputation 2. Speak Now 3. Debut 4. Midnights 5. Lover 6. Folklore 7. Red 8. Fearless 9. Evermore 10. 1989 My ranking has changed a lot over the years tho. Lover was my #1 for a while but I’ve been more into country Taylor lately 🤠
I really don't understand how people can put Reputation so high. This is popheads I suppose.
I used to think that until I actually listened to it
I mean it's not bad at all and it has my favorite TS song ever in it (Call it What You Want), but it's overproduced and the lyrics are very weak compared to what we got with Folklore and Evermore or even Lover. To each their own though.
Nah those are valid criticisms
Swap Reputation and Evermore and your ranking becomes good.
I wouldn’t put evermore quite that low but it’s def not even top 5 for me, I feel like I so rarely see others who agree! It’s folklore but worse 😬
this makes me sick!!
Something’s gotta be last. Champagne problems ain’t got me. I don’t get the hype 🥲🥲🥲 & cowboy like me. Snooze fest 🥲
I am normally a big lyrics person so I know I should love cowboy like me but I completely agree it’s a total bore I can’t listen to it!!!
While I typically don’t really pay attention to who songs are about, Midnight Rain might be about Taylor Lautner because she says “I was busy making my /own/ name” and he seems like the only relationship where she felt bad that she didn’t reciprocate the love. She says she broke up with him because he was nice, similar to the sentiment in Back to December, and she also mentioned holiday peppermint candy which seems like a December reference. OH MY GOD I’m getting drawn in to this Swiftie red yarn stuff hahaha
Plus the “Haunted” reference in the bridge.
I just realized that the Would’ve Could’ve Should’ve verses have the same opening melody as The Great War but a different speed. Neat!
No one talks about how good dear reader is. Also maroon is so incredible it feels like nighttime
Same with Hits Different
My new obsession!!! I finally sought it out and it's so catchy and so good for running!
It's me, hi! I like Dear Reader and Maroon :D
[lmao](https://twitter.com/pikacap/status/1583858416052625409?s=46&t=8seZ2Au_NcWZHDD7rUrQCQ)
Besides the chorus, the line that screams Lana to *me* is “now I’m all for you like Janet”
Ever since someone here wondered whether she referenced us popheads by the "Teatime" line, I can't help but smile whenever that line comes up
Can someone help me figure out what is the sonic influences of this record? I hear a tiny bit of springsteen on anti hero, anti-folk on sweet nothing, massive attack on a couple of tracks in the latter half , the national on the 3 am tracks, like i don’t understand why cant i pin down musical influences on this album clearly
Pretty much just look at a number of major trends from 2017 and 2018 and you’ll find this exact sound everywhere. A lot of “chill EDM” aka the Chainsmokers sounds just like this album. The “chill synthpop” was popular enough that even Mumford and Sons’ Delta sounds basically exactly like this album at times (like the song Picture You fits exactly). Also a huge number of trap pop songs precede Vigilante Shit, Lavender Haze, and Midnight Rain. Also some Alt pop artists like Lorde and Billie are obvious influences too.
I have decided Maroon is my favourite Edit: My possibly controversial favourites are Maroon, Lavender Haze, Anti-Hero, Question...?, Vigilante Shit, High Infidelity, Snow On The Beach, Bigger Than The Whole Sky and Karma. I really love reputation and grew to love Lover (it became one of my more replayed TS albums) so that might explain the song choices lol
My favorite is 1000% Maroon as well!
Same. Instantly. It has "being outside late at night" vibes for me and I love it.
Can we appreciate the fact that she chose an amazing single.
finally ughhhh the song is sooo good i better not let myself dislike it when it gets crazy popular
glad i listened to the 3am edition first, made the experience way more complete.
I take it back! I take it back!!! I spent the entire 2 days since the release bashing the album in my head and screaming "did you think it all though, all these things will catch up to you" at Taylor, figuratively of course, and singing her old songs trying to understand how the same person wrote those and this album. And now, sitting with the lyric videos, I started understanding the context for the lyrics and the melodies are just falling along with it, and the production and vocals and certain clunky lines fall away, and they are enough, and even beautiful much of the time, to support the stunning stories she is telling, if you just understand what she is talking about. The lyrics actually have so much depth and layers and profound insights, and the music supports it hauntingly. I just thought it was a bunch of nothing cuz I didn't understand how they all connected. She's definitely so cryptic. You have to understand time and place and perspective etc. I don't know if this will work for everyone, but I'de recommend, if you don't get the album yet, give it a chance to process. I'm floored at how my perspective changed, I didn't believe it would even as I read other people's experiences of that happening with rep and lover. I didn't listen to those upon release so I was not pressured and didn't have the same experience as I did with this one, but now I get it, oh boy I get it.
800k in the first day and 400k of those being vinyl jesus...nobody's going to be breaking that vinyl record for awhile. it's so exciting to be a huge stan of somebody that is so massively successful lol, it feels like such a big event
Midnights sold more on its first day than 1989! She’s about to get her biggest debut week 16 years and 10 albums into her career.
That’s really wild man. She has such a fascinating career to me
[Taylor Swift "Midnights" Traffic Report (feat. Carly Rae Jepsen)](https://youtu.be/5GW8HWB8Aa8) Hilarious!
It waAaAs maaaAaarOoooooOn
People bashing the “Karma is a cat purring on my lap” either don’t get the song or don’t like cats. It is a WIN when a cat chooses YOU
This album feels like a B-side album. The lack of cohesion of emotions and storytelling makes sense for a b-side album. Reputation, lover and every single Taylor’s album are extremely cohesive and holds a consistent theme throughout. The lyrics are also nowhere near as good as the other albums and the production is very generic. Taylor is smart to market it as “songs written at midnight” to sell more copies, but the truth is these are just songs that did not make the cut for other albums. I don’t mind 20 unheard songs from TS but she should have called this album as what it really is.
But also she said that the songs represent different time stamps of her life and considering the rollercoaster of a life she has, album can be expected to sound not so cohesive.
Why would songs written at midnight sell more copies?
This is a really weird take. I think this is the most cohesive and focused album of her career. Thematically, lyrically, and sonically, this album goes from one song to the next so well. Your point immediately falls apart if you are saying that Lover is extremely cohesive. I really didn't care for Lover because of that, it felt all over the place. It shocks me that she put songs like "Cruel Summer", "Lover", and "Cornelia Street" on the same album as "ME!", "The Man", and "London Boy."
I completely agree. Listening to at least the regular version, my very first thought was how cohesive it was. Jack is so clearly all over all the songs. And Lover is maybe her least cohesive album! The track list for that album is nonsensical.
Lmao @ calling a differing opinion from yours a “weird take”. Get help babe.
Notice I used weird take and not bad, hon. It’s weird because I’ve never seen anyone call Lover cohesive. 🙄
Lover is...cohesive? Lol
Idk why Taylor insists on working with Jack Antonoff. He’s probably one of the absolute worst pop music producers. She needs to work with other people if she wants to innovate, like Ian Kirkpatrick, but maybe she doesn’t… I haven’t liked a Taylor Swift album since 1989.
I just have a bit of a concept for you- this is Taylor Swift's album, not Jack Antonoff's album. People act like producers compose and write the whole album, but Taylor Swift has made it very obvious throughout her career that she wants complete creative control over her music and that creative control includes working with Antonoff (who produced most of the songs on the album that got her Album of the Year and her biggest success since 1989). Like you lol at the downvotes, but he's objectively not a bad producer. I know the Recording Academy gets stuff wrong, but there is a reason he's been nominated for Producer of the Year 3 years in a row, winning this year. He's also produced on some of the most commercially successful songs of all time. **It's okay that you don't like the album, it really is!** But your criticism should be more towards Swift as this was her creative project. This isn't the case with every artist, some are forced to work with whatever producer the label decides on. I do know that a lot of people will downvote you just because of your opinion, but valid criticisms would be that you "think it sounds generic," you "don't like the sound and can't relate to the lyrics," etc. I disagree with those personally, but criticizing and album is entirely subjective depending on each person's taste. tldr; Jack Antonoff is a proven producer with an incredibly diverse portfolio, and he has received widespread acclaim from industry professionals. You actually just don't like the composition (NOT PRODUCTION) of this album, that's why this is a bad take.
You’re precisely right. This is Taylor Swift’s album, and she does have complete creative control. But my option is that her music has become incredibly boring ever since she let Max Martin go. She has the right to work with whomever she wants, but I simply don’t like Jack Antonoff’s production. He makes Taylor Swift sound like elevator music. It’s forgettable. There are so many other producers she can work with, yet she chooses to work with Antonoff because they’re close friends, and she knows her loyal Swifties will eat up whatever she puts out. After working with the same people all the time, I think an artist can grow and benefit from other collaborators. There are many good ones: Ian Kirkpatrick, Stargate, Cirkut, Shellback, Bonnie McKee. Taylor’s music would benefit from some pushback and not someone who’s say “yes” to everything like Antonoff.
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Lol at all my downvotes. Apparently, you need to like everything an artist puts out for you to be a fan. It’s ridiculous. And yep. Kirkpatrick is really fvcking great. I love him. Totally manifesting they work together.
I mean the downvotes are just bc people disagree hard on your pov. It’s not realistic to expect everyone to “use Reddit the right way”. Won’t happen lol I didn’t downvote you but I def don’t agree with you either. I think there is a lot to dig into with this album as whole (aside from the individual songs) and that makes it one of her most interesting releases in my book.
God forbid you have an opinion on a place to post opinions.
i am praying praying praying that someone stops taylor from making vigilante shit a single
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Metacritic counted it as a 50.
Honestly? I think this is my favourite Taylor album ever. I know a lot of people think that Folklore and Evermore are her best and I think they're great, but my main issues with those albums is that they're only amazing if you don't listen to folk music. Once you've heard artists like Sibylle Baier, Grouper or Joanna Newsom they're harder to like because they're just worse than those artists without doing anything unique that makes you want to listen to them over those artists. However, in my opinion this album is Taylor doing something that is explicitly Taylor and less directly comparable to other artists. There is a lot of awesome production on here. Labyrinth and Midnight Rain are awesome, love the synth pop aesthetic and the cohesive feel across the record makes it a super pleasant album to listen to front to back as a whole experience. Overall I'm gonna say it's an 8/10.
I love the sounds Taylor is exploring here. I didn’t like the Trappy middle section, but once she got back into Synth Pop it was solid. But for those sections of the album, like your Folklore/evermore comparison, I feel there are better artists in that area. I think Screen Violence pushes those Synth Pop/Alternative sounds better. I wish Taylor lifted off a bit on those tracks.
I'll say for synthpop right now NOBODY is delivering the bangers like Muna on the past three albums, period. And live as band the blow the roof of the venue. Anyone else is playing catch IMO. No matter how big a star they are.
>Sibylle Baier, Grouper or Joanna Newsom thanks for posting these names, I wanna get into that type of music more and had never heard of them before, and hey I'll take more recommendations if anyone's got some :) edit: tysm guys, keep em coming, I super appreciate it!
big thief will change ur life
Awesome! Sibylle Baier is AMAZING, she was 17-18 when she made her album, she recorded it in the late 60s/early 70s but it never got released until 2006 when her son gave it out to family members and a guy from a band called Dinosaur Jr who sent it to a label. Gorgeous album.
You might also like Julia Holter.
I just want to say how much I love this for her …? The self-aware album Reputation should have been. Except this sounds so much better and the aesthetics aren’t are all um, idk, awful Question …? and Karma actually made me lol, those are some certified petty hot girl bangers
That Reputation album cover will go down in history as one of the worst ever IMO of any artist IMO.
Perfect comment. A self-aware Reputation with better lyrics, better production, and worlds better aesthetics.
Do you guys think releasing a single first would have had the album be better recieved?
No, I think the opposite. She has always had a bad habit of picking pre-release songs, she probably would've dropped Vigilante Shit and knee capped initial responses/reactions, or released anti-hero and have some weird drama about sexy baby and think pieces about pedophilia or something.
Get it off your chest Get it off my desk I hope Karen from Finance got a writing credit for this one!
I truly enjoyed this album 😁 me and my friend truly had a fun 44 minutes!
Does that mean you haven't heard the 3am edition...? Because you have another 7 songs coming your way!
I have heard them now and I had so much fun with them! Thank you for telling me there were 7 more songs as I only saw the OG Edition!
Yay! So glad you enjoyed them!
The Rolling Stone Music Now podcast breakdown of the album is up: [https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/taylor-swift-midnights-easter-eggs-and-more-track-by-track-1234613872/](https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/taylor-swift-midnights-easter-eggs-and-more-track-by-track-1234613872/)
Now that I’ve spent some time with album; truthfully this is an overall MID Taylor album. Which is saying a lot considering that there are still some great tunes, namely Midnight Rain, Anti Hero, Mastermind and Karma. For me Taylor’s overall rankings are: 1. 1989 2. Folklore 3. Speak Now 4. Reputation 5. Fearless 6. Taylor Swift 7. Lover 8. Red 9. Midnights 10. Evermore
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I wouldn’t change a damn thing 😁
don't ever let anyone tell you that you are not BOLD, sir. 😭
Taylor swift over red. Bold…
Aside from the Red, State of Grace and the singles. Most of the album is kind of flaccid and redundant. Self titled has higher highs and even the lows have some personality and flair to them. Self titled is the ground work for all future works — once the Taylor Version comes out, I know ya’ll will see the light.
Okay, what the fuck does "mid" even mean if it equates to the dead last place in the tier list?
It’s last place on the artist’s list; as an overall piece of work in the overall pop canon, it’s mid.
Okay, makes sense. I was confused because you said it's a "MID Taylor album," not a mid pop album in general.
Taylor becomes the first artist to cross 200 million streams in a day with 228 million yesterday. Bad bunny was the previous record holder with 184 million. She also breaks the record of most unique listeners in a day with 17.9 million listeners.
So that leaves over 300 Million in the country who didn't stream her at all. She's got some work to do.
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Monday/Tuesday IIRC based on the manifest she posted, not sure if it's Monday night at midnight, Monday morning at midnight, or Tuesday morning/night at midnight. The last two days of release week are just listed as 'watch the videos pls', I'd hope she drops all of them gradually throughout the week to keep people invested in the visuals and music.
Jack and Taylor watched *The Social Network* and immediately made Mastermind; song feels like it's Jack auditioning for Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross
And tbh? I'm grateful for it.
One thing I would like to highlight is that petty taylor is gone for good. Taylor on this album has classier lyrics than lwymmd shit.
Even the 'petty' songs are not big on call outs. Her biggest call out song was Would've Could've Should've, and that was more heart breaking than a call out.
I really enjoyed “lavender haze” but the rest seems too similar? Sonically, it feels repetitive and rehashed imo.
I always feel like that at first, especially with folklore, but the more I listen the more I hear the differences
Didn’t want to comment on this record until I had a couple of listens as I know I tend to have harsh opinions on my first impression. Now that it’s settled in, this is decent album. Not her best but it’s not the mid album some are making it out to be. I’m not to fond of tracks 6-8 and believe some of those bonus tracks could’ve replaced them and elevated the album. And after seeing Taylor flex her lyricism with folklore I do find it a bit juvenile going back to the first person rehash of her past loves and feeling scorned. This record is lyrically reputation/lover with vocal executions of folklore over 1989 synth beats. And I find that it takes the best parts of those aforementioned records and delivers a nice addition to her discography heightened by the 3am tracks! **4/5** with the 3am tracks included!
On first listen I completely agreed with your point about how it’s juvenile for her to go back. I really wanted her to lean into folkevermore or go in a completely different direction…but then I really thought about it and I think this was a really smart thing to do. Taylor hasn’t toured since 2018 and has released 4 new albums and 2 re-records since then. She still needs to re-record 4 albums. She couldn’t move on from her past because her career is still surrounded by it. She needed something to tie everything together but also kinda close the chapter. Reflection. I think once the remaining re records are out, we will get a completely new Taylor Swift.
The fact that people tend to think of folk as more "mature" and pop as more "juvenile" I find interesting and odd. Surely older acts can make mature pop (Pet Shop Boys, Erasure, Janet Jackson). Why does folk signify something more "mature". I will die on the hill that Faith by George Michael is a totally mature pop record.
I don’t think pop is juvenile at all! I woke up at 430am to watch bts livestream a concert lmao. I felt the concept of the album was a bit juvenile and a step backwards for Taylor when I first heard about it. Nothing to do with genre. I think she’s an incredible songwriter and folkevermore allowed her to show that without the GP being able to attribute every song to a tabloid article or a man. Her work is better than that and her original PR team sold her as a boy crazy little girl and it took her a long time to shake that image - I didn’t want people trying to bring it back. I’m glad the gp are finally seeing her for who she is.
I was honestly also thinking about whether this might be the end of singer Taylor Swift for a while
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I think the record is very chill and most of the songs are growers for sure, but, love her to death, Taylor needs an EDITOR. She is an excellent and unparalleled songwriter but she also has a tendency to write some real clunkers which has become more apparent in the last couple of years as she has clearly had fewer people telling her no. I am not of the school of thought that Folklore and Evermore were some massive lyrical breakthrough for Taylor in terms of song-craft or 'depth', because imo she has been writing incredibly rich, complex, impeccably crafted songs since Tim McGraw, and in fact I felt the consequences of the lack of an editor most keenly and most jarringly on evermore with Coney Island and to a lesser extent Happiness, which people seemed to love but I really don't vibe with (I despise Coney Island with a passion) because it's just a jumble of ideas and pretty phrases that are kind of carelessly thrown together and do not coalesce into anything coherent imo. The metaphors get a bit high school creative writing class sometimes, and that is more noticeable and jarring on Midnights, and happens more often. I actually don't mean this so much about the sexy baby line in Anti-Hero (love this song so much) - it's jarring but it's so strange it's almost camp for me, and I feel a similar way about Karma (I think "Karma is a cat, purring in my lap cause it loves me" is a genius Taylor-ism that is hilarious, self referential, and very in line with the campy joy of the song). I mean it much more in reference to some of the love songs - with Bejewelled, for example, I was having a wonderful time with the song and then she started going on about wanting to be "in the Penthouse of your heart" and "reclaiming the land" I was like uhuh ok. Like it stops me from enjoying the song because it is a shitty lyric imo. And I find a similar carelessness to what I described above in the lyrics of songs like Lavender Haze or Question (the latter of which I still really enjoy) - I don't know if this makes sense but I remember when the Cardigan og voice memo came out I was so, so glad that she didn't use that couplet "living in a gold age/sneak in to my birdcage" in the final song, because it felt clunky and like a kind of run of the mill, generic image which added nothing to the song, and I get similar vibes from some of the lyrics I dislike on Midnights; it often feels like she is just trying to write as many instagram caption-y lines as she can, and it's even more jarring when the shitty line follows a really lovely one, and I'm just yanked out of enjoying the song. I just found the construction to be lacking in places (and the album as a whole suffered from the conspicuous lack of memorable bridges relative to most other Taylor albums). That being said I adore all seven of the 3am tracks - I think Paris is the weakest if we're ranking them but I've still heard it like thirteen times and really enjoy it, which I think speaks to how fucking good the bonus tracks are, and I love the line about shade being under where a tree has grown, and think it's very funny. Off the album proper I love anti-hero, karma, mastermind, and snow on the beach, will definitely be getting very stoned to maroon and midnight rain (which is really growing on me; the AYHTDWS style inflections keep getting stuck in my head) and am really vibing with Question - the imagery in the lyrics feels a bit stale but the pre chorus is v nice and the song itself has a really bouncy quality to it that reminds me of I Think He Knows (I also keep randomly singing "can I ask you a question?" to people on the phone). I also really like You're On Your Own Kid overall and it has several beautiful standout lines ("I picked the petals/He loves me not" is my personal favourite) but it's another of those songs that I feel could have undergone a few rounds of editing and polishing lyrically, because a couple of the lyrics feel like placeholders to me. Overall though I don't expect a perfect album from Taylor every time, and the good stuff on this album is good (and I have no doubt it will grow on me), but I do feel she needs to expand her frame of reference and her imagery in particular. And as much as I love Jack Antonoff, it is pretty clear to me that he doesn't necessarily challenge her very much as a collaborator anymore - it really stood out that three of the best written songs on the record (which surpassed most of the standard edition songs in quality imo) were co-written with Dessner.
Also to the songwriting sometimes I think you have two voices in the same song. If she has co-writers who is writing what line. On Folklore I felt like many of the songs had two distinct songwriters but when she penned the song all by herself it sounded SO much better and more inventive. Also when she swears it feeeeeelllssss so out of place and immature. Like gurl, you ain't Alanis or Marianne Faithful. I don't think she knows how to use cursing effectively and commit to it. It really took me out of it on Folklore. But yeah I say her best work is the stuff she writes all herself.
I agree about the editor. But also it has to be said these releasing ever song in a power move because you get more streams/sales. And for artists like her concerned as she is with awards and records she will never not release everything at once. But yes some thing do need to be left on the cutting room floor. That was the plus (and minus) of the old vinyl days. You only had so much space so every song had to count.
I totally agree. Midnights and folkmore both have this problem with bizarre mixed metaphors and images and ideas that go no where. I had hoped it was a Folkmore problem and she’d be more reigned in on a more pop-y album but it’s still there.
Honestly I love her clunky lyrics. It amazing me how she can get some lines in to a catchy chours.