On October 27, 2014, Taylor Swift’s fifth studio album, 1989, was released with high hopes from her fans. For some, it was on par with the star’s previous album, RED, and for some, it exceeded their expectations. For me, it was about the same as my expectations, which consisted of another pop album reminiscent of that nails-on-a-chalkboard 2008 poppy sound crammed into several of the tracks. This is very disappointing to me because the album itself could have achieved so much more. Especially with this change in style, Swift could have delivered and impressed fans of other genres closely related to pop, such as indie, alternative, and possibly even rap. Let’s get an in-depth analysis of the album itself, first though.
1989 is Swift’s birth year, and falling in the eighties as that year does, Swift tries to direct her album in a direction conducive to eighties pop, which only manifested in maybe, MAYBE, a good two tracks. The pseudo-eighties album kicks off of the block with a track called “Welcome to New York,” which is one of those tracks where you think to yourself while listening, “If this isn’t a space filler, I don’t know what is.” The track is one of those mentioned earlier— merely a throwback to pop music in the late 2000’s. It’s just about her coming to the city of New York and loving it, with no lyrical or musical value to it. There really isn’t much else to say. In my iTunes library, this track is rated two stars.
The next track is the most popular track on the album, called “Blank Space.” I actually like this one— it’s the style I was really hoping for from her with this album. She’s capable of so much more with her voice, but doesn’t showcase it. The beat to this song is pretty groovy, and the lyrics aren’t bad as far as feeling and elaboration go. Of all the tracks on her album, this one was obviously produced as a real song, not as a space filler. It does, however, sound very inspired by one of her best friends, the “Royals” singer LORDE.
The third track on the album, “Style,” starts off with a funky guitar riff, and kicks into a heavier beat which I can totally hear being played on MTV with frizzy blonde hair flying everywhere. Of all of the tracks on 1989, this one is probably my favorite, and is also the most reminiscent of 80’s music. This is as close as the album gets to replicating that sound, and I’m not going to lie, this track is pretty good. Her friend LORDE commented on this song saying that it was her favorite as well.
The next track, “Out of the Woods,” is another track that’s like opening a chip bag containing the eighties that had already been opened, and biting into a stale eighties chip. Regardless, the song was cowritten by Jack Antonoff of fun. and Bleachers, and is another track that is reminiscent of the eighties, but not quite there. This is probably my second favorite track on the album. It’s tracks with this kind of feel that I hope she does more.
“All You Had to Do Was Stay” is exactly what I was referring to when I was talking about that nails-on-a-chalkboard-six-years-ago pop sound. This was very monotone, and reminded me a lot of her old pop side (which was not favorable at all). The lyrical value is cliché, the melody is overproduced, and falls into some sort of uncanny valley of almost-real-but-not-quite-genuine songs.
“Shake It Off” is probably my third favorite track because it just feels good. I mean, who didn’t like Shake It Off when it came out?
All jokes aside, this song was the first single released on 1989, and is in the same boat as “Blurred Lines” was when it came out. The reason why everyone likes it is because it’s familiar— both songs were extremely similar to a previous hit song. Like, eleven years back previous. In this case, it’s “Hey Ya” by OutKast. The only difference between the two is a female singer, the chord progression, 1BPM, and a key change from E to G. Other than that, I appreciate the song, more or less.
“I Wish You Would” sounds quite similar to a Katy Perry song, who is not my favorite artist in the world. Again, this is one of the tracks that is just space filler. It’s excess music that doesn’t mean really anything at all. It doesn’t hold much lyrical value, is still overproduced, and uses too much fake eighties synth bass. This one is probably my least favorite track on the album.
For me, “Bad Blood” was a pretty large let-down– the beat and melody were very lively and pure, but the lyrics were just plain awful. I would’ve loved if LORDE had a feature on this, because it’s right up her alley: she could sing the low parts and offer up exquisite lyricism, and Taylor could sing some of the high parts. This song would be a personal favorite if this were the case.
The next track, “Wildest Dreams,” is seamlessly produced and very satisfying to listen to. Although simple, this song grows on me the more I listen to it.
“How You Get The Girl” has that same old poppy feel to it. If it was toned down a bit production-wise, it would be bearable. As it stands right now, this track is just a space filler.
“This Love” is reminiscent of an ambient eighties acoustic song. This track is pretty good, but it just doesn’t fit with the album. It would be a good single as it stands, but as far as the album goes, this one is that one piece of the puzzle that just won’t seem to fit.
“I Know Places” is probably the most infuriating track for me. It would have been absolutely PERFECT as an album opener. The track opens with a cassette tape rolling (a popular token of the eighties), and the song is surprisingly satisfying, considering what the last few tracks have put me through. This track is fantastic, and I can only wish that Swift put it at the head of the album– it would kick off of the block with force.
Finally, “Clean” is another simple track, but it has the best beat on the entire album. You know who else it would suit perfectly? That’s right, Kendrick Lamar. If she took out some of the bell layers and had him rap on it, that right there would have been a gift from heaven. Lamar and Swift have already shown appreciation for each other, and a collaboration between the two would be amazing.
In summary:
1989 was a fun album to listen to. I like where Swift is going in her journey to truly find her style (no pun intended). I would love to see more features from her, however. As far as the eighties theme went, it was a creative idea, but the delivery wasn’t so much accurate as it was an exaggerated stereotype.
As the album stands, I would rate it a 6.7/10— that’s still pretty high.
Had the album been structured like this:
- I Know Places
- Style
- Out of the Woods
- Blank Space
- Shake It Off
- Bad Blood ft. LORDE
- Wildest Dreams
- Clean ft. Kendrick Lamar
It would have earned higher than a 9 for me for its more cohesive nature. It would be a short album, or an EP, but it would be far better and a large improvement from space fillers and overproduction. Collaborations from Taylor and other artists would further propel her in the industry, and widen her fanbase. As for now, she’s doing a pretty good job– just keep experimenting, and do what you like. Don’t let other people tell you what to do– and that’s a large piece of advice for the music industry.
–Carter Elliott ’18
