Dillon
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Post by Dillon on Apr 24, 2024 2:35:54 GMT
It was pointed out how this album seems like it’s quantity over quality, but I think Taylor’s goal wasn’t pristine quality this time around. Maybe she didn’t want a tight-nip album. I get the impression that she just wanted to let loose. That she wanted to get together with her favorite collaborators - Jack and Aaron - pump out some songs and smack together an album that she liked. I’m sure there are still some songs she could’ve weeded out and left behind or maybe just song ideas that she decided not to finish for the album. But I think this was just supposed to be “her” album this time around - making it because she wanted to, making it because she could, making it because she was enjoying the process, and making it because she didn’t have to take it too seriously. At this point, I don’t think she cares if someone critiques a song that she puts out as “weak” or unsubstantial compared to her past work. I think she understands that she can’t keep topping herself. That she won’t always be doing A+ work if the bar keeps moving.
But if that was her approach with this album, only time will tell if she will return to trying to perfectly curate her future albums with tight tracklists and cohesion.
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Dillon
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"He's probably a circus freak!"
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Post by Dillon on Apr 24, 2024 2:12:10 GMT
^ Yeah the crying at the gym line is probably just her attempt at trying to put it in perspective of an average person doing an everyday normal activity but that’s also true for herself.
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Dillon
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Post by Dillon on Apr 23, 2024 22:51:34 GMT
I don’t believe the folklore love triangle theory being connected to Matty. It just doesn’t make sense.
I got the impression Down Bad was about Matty. Taylor said in a radio clip explaining the inspiration behind the song being abducted by an alien, basically being enamored by the experience and being left with despair after being put back on earth, discarded, and left stranded. And that doesn’t feel like an analogy that could be used for a 6 year relationship.
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Dillon
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Post by Dillon on Apr 20, 2024 18:35:59 GMT
Giving the Anthology its own post. So after getting through the standard album a second time, 2am had come and that’s when Taylor had announced the full extended double album Anthology version. I literally said out loud that I couldn’t handle 15 more songs! But I persevered! With the first song The Black Dog I could tell The Anthology would most likely be less pop than the first 16 songs. And that ended up being true. I really love Taylor’s pop stuff and was coming off the high of the first 16 songs (which did feature non-pop elements), so there were moments I felt disappointed in the songs on The Anthology, but nonetheless I still was still loving every song on first listen. I couldn’t consider any song a skip or a grower. I loved every one. But as I got closer to 2:30am and halfway through the songs, I was struggling to stay awake. A few times I fell out, had to back up and repeat songs because I missed them. And this made my first listen of the Anthology feel like the song were too samesy and I think that’s because I was overloaded from the first 16 songs and so tired and unable to process everything. I finally got through the Manuscript and went to bed. When I woke up hours later, I gave the Anthology a second listen. This time being rested and mentally prepared I was able to differentiate the songs. They no longer felt too samesy. And my second listen confirmed that my first listen was true in the fact that I instantly loved each song. The only song on the Anthology that slightly underwhelmed me was Cassandra. Part of it I think is because the song still confuses me. And it also reminds me heavily reminds me of Mad Woman which is not a favorite track of mine. However, I love sonic and melodic parallels between Taylor’s songs, so that’s what elevates it for me and makes me love it. If we choose to think The Anthology also has a track 5 even though it’s “technically track 21”… How Did It End is high on my track 5 rankings. I like it much more than So Long London. And a funny thing. Before hearing and reading the lyrics, I thought the title said “thank you ALMEE”
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Dillon
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Post by Dillon on Apr 20, 2024 18:12:42 GMT
I stayed up at midnight to listen to the album. Upon first listen, Fortnight was just alright and I think it’s because there’s so much anticipation for a new Taylor Swift album but absolutely no expectation of what it will sound like. Plus I think opening tracks have a lot of pressure compared to the other songs because they’re what start an album.
Immediately with track 2 and on, I instantly loved every track. I couldn’t believe it! Typically with a new Taylor album, for me there are a few standout tracks that I love right away, most tracks being growers upon further listens, and one or two tracks that feel like skips that become long haul growers. But the standard version of this album truly blew me away upon the first listen.
With that said… So Long, London was a bit underwhelming for a track 5. I think the tempo should have been slower and the rolling kick drum removed. It’s like if The Archer got remixed with You’re On Your Own Kid, production wise. And those are two of my lower ranked track 5s. But just like an album opener, there’s a lot of anticipation for the track 5 of a new album. And we instantly compare it to the track 5s of past albums which isn’t necessarily fair?
The only other song that was just a bit underwhelming for me was I Can Fix Him. It’s good. But it feels like almost like a rehashed version of Glitch with a folksy/western-y sound that just doesn’t do as well of a job as Glitch.
I knew there was speculation of something happening at 2am, so I stayed up and listened to the standard 16 songs again waiting for 2am to come. And on the second listen, Fortnight had already gotten better now that I had sonic context of the rest of the album. I knew what I was going in for. I do really wish the song featured more of Post Malone. I’m disappointed he kind of got the Snow On The Beach treatment.
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Dillon
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Post by Dillon on Mar 10, 2024 21:14:38 GMT
A Target exclusive variant has been announced. It’s identical to the Manuscript version with the cover and bonus track, but features clear vinyls instead of the white vinyls that the original variant has.
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Dillon
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Post by Dillon on Mar 4, 2024 0:00:00 GMT
I like the dark, but the cover itself with that photo is my least favorite so far. Even the bonus track, The Black Dog, is my least favorite track name so far.
Really surprised there’s not a fifth variant for target. Maybe Target said it could only be red colored and Taylor said no lol
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Dillon
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Post by Dillon on Feb 27, 2024 1:05:30 GMT
I think a big reason why Avril goes back to the drawing board and scraps songs/ideas so often is that it’s the music creation that she enjoys most. We all know she hates the promotion process and touring, she has a love/hate relationship with. So I don’t think she’s pressed about finishing her next album super quickly because she’s already feeling fulfilled by creating music even if a good portion of it gets shelved or is never intended for an album in the first place.
And while she’s about to go on this Greatest Hits tour, it’s not going to require much promotion, if any really. So she gets to skip her least favorite part. And without having a fresh new album, she has no pressure to be performing new songs that we all know she disliked having to learn new songs for tour.
She knows her peak days are behind her and that she’s financially stable without be an active, major artist who releases music/albums regularly. So I think she’s just enjoying making music with her friends and not doing much else on top of that. I think making the next new album gets less important to her with each album she puts out.
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Dillon
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Post by Dillon on Feb 27, 2024 1:05:14 GMT
If Boy at the Rock Show is a rework/cover of the blink-182 song, then that’s really no different from her recording a version of Lauren Christy’s I Want What I Want during the HAW sessions.
I think it’s just her having fun in the studio and doing different things that she has no intention of doing anything with officially.
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Dillon
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Post by Dillon on Feb 25, 2024 22:43:39 GMT
If there does end up being a Target vinyl, I just hope it’s not red colored. It would be so out of place with this album’s color scheme.
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Dillon
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Post by Dillon on Feb 25, 2024 17:21:11 GMT
I think The Albatross cover is my least favorite so far. It detracts from the theme created by the other covers which were centered around a bed while The Albatross appears to be in front of a body of water.
Perhaps the body of water is one of the lakes in the Lake District, a reference to the poets. So it may very well tie in well with the album, but visually it detracts from the first two covers and makes me not like it as much.
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Dillon
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Post by Dillon on Feb 25, 2024 17:15:14 GMT
I think what worries fans about the limited vinyls is that while Midnights and 1989tv (to a lesser degree) had all variants available again after the album releases, that was not the case for folklore which had more variants and were all announced/available for preorder together at the same time rather than one at a time. And the folklore variants did not come back.
Even Speak Now TV had the limited Violet vinyl (the first variant to be announced) and it didn’t come back after the album was released.
There’s arguments to be made that these limited vinyls aren’t truly limited but also arguments to be made that they are. This time around for TTPD, I’m honestly getting the feeling that the limited editions are going to be limited. At least to a degree. Because this time it’s not just vinyl variants, but also a CD and cassette variant for each edition. I don’t know if I see all three media formats for each variant becoming available again after the initial preorders.
The vinyls maybe. But I don’t see the cassettes coming back. And the CDs come with additional items which makes me think that the CDs may come back but without the extra items.
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Dillon
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Post by Dillon on Feb 17, 2024 20:18:36 GMT
I like the original cover, but I think I like the Bolter cover more.
And I just now noticed that both covers do have the album title on them. Between Midnights, 1989TV, and TTPD, it seems she’s fully returned to putting the album title on the covers of her albums. Which I prefer having the title on the covers.
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Dillon
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Post by Dillon on Feb 6, 2024 3:17:37 GMT
Yes. The track list has been officially released. But the “synth pop” attribute is only rumored. The album is not yet posted on any streaming site or digital music store for pre-add/pre-order so therefore a genre has not been revealed.
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Dillon
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Post by Dillon on Feb 6, 2024 0:55:48 GMT
Yes Taylor continues to pump out music and content in general, but the high level of exposure doesn’t inherently come from her and her team. We know she sparingly markets her content for her own sake. She has a huge fan base that will talk to each other and hype each other up, but it’s largely the media that pushes Taylor to overexposure.
Just look at the NFL and sports realm showing Taylor on tv when she’s at a game or bringing her up in conversation where it’s not needed. Taylor wasn’t asking for that and quite honestly, neither was the public. The media knows Taylor’s name brings a crowd because of her vast fan base and overall appeal so they bring her up at any chance they get even when she’s not super relevant in the topic. I think the media’s attempts to get viewers and impressions from the public and Taylor’s fans and gone overboard and over time that will cause Taylor to become “overplayed” or “overrated”.
It’s kind of unfortunate. Because Taylor is obviously in a very creative headspace right now with a seemingly infinite amount of passion and drive to fulfill her creativity and of course she should continue to fuel that while she’s got it because she’ll surely have times in the future when her drive for those things might diminish even if only temporarily. So I think Taylor could continue to pump out content to fulfill herself and also keep her fans engaged and excited about her projects without the general public growing tired of her because it’s kept closer knit. But the media’s unruliness for using Taylor for bait is keeping her name in too many places and it’s giving the general public fatigue over time.
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