Folklore89sm

I feel like a there's a pretty strong - if somewhat quirky and almost indie-pop leaning 12 track pop album among the Lover album (Cruel Summer, Lover, The Man, The Archer, I Think He Knows, Miss Americana, Cornelia Street, DBATC, London Boy, SYGB, False God, and Afterglow), whereas I would struggle to come up with more than a 7-track Showgirl EP (The Fate Of Ophelia, Elizabeth Taylor, Opalite, Father Figure, Ruin The Friendship, Honey, The Life of a Showgirl). 3 of the 4 encore songs are decent bonus tracks. Lover doesn't put Taylor in a good light and she flexes a lot of her bad habits on the album, but there's something disturbingly un-Taylor about Showgirl.

As a certified showgirl hater, there is absolutely nothing desperately about this FYC poster. Two quotes and a single publication's star-based score is about as minimal as I've ever seen these posters be.

The irony being that Taylor didn't have her official team beg for any of her number ones (yes I know she's a chart-obsessed hypocrite but she hasn't stooped that low yet)

Speak Now solos

Labyrinth wasn't my favourite track off Midnights but it's probably the one I hear most commonly in public in coffee shops and bars. It's aged beautifully and encapsulates the album's soundscape perfectly.

It's frustrating how she botched the showgirl theme with the TLOAS album. The concept was there but she misunderstood her own vision. If only she'd thrown herself into the sophisticated pop sound. I know she had disco hits like these in her if she'd committed to the bit

I fear debut TV would only fuel the "look how good she used to be" discourse

I just need her to turn up to the VMAs in a great gown/beautiful gown and I'll forgive her for Cleveland.

Personally, I'd be happy for her to leave pure pop behind for a while. I think she knocked it out of the park on her first try at creating an instant classic pure pop album with 1989 and hasn't come close to doing it again with any of her later efforts. Her best work this side of 2014 has been her least pop-leaning albums folklore/evermore but I don't want her to simply try to recreate those albums because they gave her her last overwhelmingly positive critical reactions (not counting re-recordings). She probably does need to take herself away from the studio for a while and just let the inspiration come to her without forcing it. I do think when she eventually returns to music, it will be with a country album to mark her 13th album. I look forward to it but she needs to approach it with the clear laser-focus vision which she so sorely lacked on TLOASG.

Far from it. Her fourth album is Taylor at her best. She might not have a better 5 track run than the opening to RED. State of Grace is easily one of the best songs she's ever written. Red is quintessential Taylor Swift - clever pop-country classic. Treacherous is a quiet masterpiece. I Knew You Were Trouble is a certified classic that somehow holds up perfectly despite its dubstep chorus. All Too Well is All Too Well.

It's the "bathing in your reflected light" part that kills the bridge completely for me. When it comes to these stumbling sections you either choose to be dorky and conversational or wordy and metaphorical. I really am sick of the run-on rambling thing she's been doing on a few songs over the past few albums but this particular bridge is the worst of its kind. Being able to fit an entire sentiment into as little words and syllables as possible to fit some kind of rhyme scheme and rhythm is a vital part of songwriting. The rambling is lazy.

The more time passes the more it becomes clear than Anti-hero is a songwriting highlight in her career. That song - especially the main hook of the chorus - is the kind of almost stupidly obvious that it is crazy that nobody came up with it 30, 40, 50 years ago. It's absolutely genius.

She should do whatever the hell she wants

The Fate of Ophelia Elizabeth Taylor Opalite Father Figure Ruin The Friendship Honey The Life of a Showgirl Patient Zero Pink Clouding Babylon I feel this is the tracklist that shows the album in its best light. No 10/10s but a perfectly decent - if directionless - pop album exists in there somewhere. I think if anything that the extended tracklist of 16 songs really clarifies that Showgirl is Lover 2.0 in terms of quality and dead wood.

I really think people are being dramatic. Patient Zero, Pink Clouding, and Babylon would have been well-received tracks had they come out on Midnights or the 1989 vault. They're not exceptional but they're absolutely not bad at all. Cleveland is definitely an acquired taste but the other three are decent bonus tracks. The theatrics aren't needed.

Pink Clouding is a grower and one of her most faithful 80s sounds

A Jack Antonoff album with zero synthesiser would be a welcome concept. I was impressed with the production of IKIIKY.

What does it matter?

It's sounding kind of country rock

Great to have confirmation the 4 new songs are actually new songs and were written after Showgirl's release and response. Hoping she took some notes.

ooh where did you hear about the instrumental

For the first time in a long time I'm not getting my hope up about a Taylor release, but all I want from this is a banging undeniably great production. I don't dislike the lyrics but I need this to absolutely explode sonically. I just want her to commit to the bit sonically more than anything. In an ideal world this would be punchy glam rock a la Blondie.

I'd rather she'd just leave the Showgirl era behind and reflect on it as a valuable learning experience and constant reminder of the direction the public never want her to go in again. Onwards and upwards.

The last few general elections in NI have shown an overall Nationalist majority. Sinn Fein (the leading nationalist party) are the biggest party and the first minister is a Nationalist woman.

I wouldn't bet on her beating Ella Langley. That being said, she rarely does anything without it meaning something. Confirming her attendance at the CMAs is (to me at least) a pretty huge statement and as good as solidifies her next musical move being a full return to country.