The reviewer compares her attempt at reinventing herself in pop as superior to Miley Cyrus and Madonna: "Sometimes, their mercurial nature can backfire, as in the case of a twerking, tongue-wagging Miley Cyrus, or that time Madonna rap-rhymed “soy latte” with “double shot-ay.”
He also goes out of his way to praise her for actually writing her own songs compared to say Rihanna, who had a hit with "We Found Love" but that was originally written for Leona Lewis and how Britney turned down "Umbrella". Taylor is an enigma because as a mainstream pop star she writes all her own music and all the emotion behind it authentically her.
Says that she's long been a pop music star, despite the fact that this is her first official pop album
This part was good so I'm just going to quote the whole thing: "Much has also been made of Swift’s private life. As a teenager and twenty-something, she wrote songs inspired by her most powerful emotional experiences—which, as any teen or twenty-something can attest, usually involve relationships. Male rappers can drone on about “bitches” they treat like disposable pieces of flesh, while rockers like Eric Clapton have been lauded for ballads pining over other men’s wives. In a cruel bit of hypocrisy, Swift was branded the Jennifer Aniston of pop; a young woman scorned who was constantly “playing the victim,” milking her revolving door of heartbreak and that one time Kanye West immortalized the phrase Imma let you finish, but… at her expense. That was all pretty much bullshit."
The author talks about how she uses this album to get back at her detractors and provide commentary on her public image in a tongue-in-cheek manner à la "Blank Space".
Starts off the album review with saying "Welcome to New York" is a horrible song (YAHZZZ sf true) , a "cruel toll" you have to suffer through to get to the more exceptional parts of the album
Describes "Blank Space" as having prom and goth queen vibes because of Lorde's influence (ha impacT)
Mentions the sample for "Style" is from the Drive soundtrack and makes the Lana comparison for "Wildest Dreams"
Describes "Shake it Off" as "catchy as all hell—an infectious amalgam of “Thrift Shop” horns and “Happy” gaiety."
Says she's a "melodic kleptomaniac" in the best way possible.
Shades Katy Perry: "Swift has culled bits and pieces from her musical contemporaries in the pursuit of something vibrant, and timeless. It’s this timelessness, too, that’s integral to Swift’s success. While her lesser rivals (*cough* Katy Perry) cram their songs with dateable references, the songs here deal with universal themes of love, longing, and lust for life."
Describes "I Know Places" as a low point due to overproduction from Max Martin and Ryan Tedder.
"Despite the unrelenting hype, 1989 delivers. A beautiful union of past and present, it’s as appetizing a pop album as you’ll find in this day and age. For an amorphous music machine like Swift, it seems there’s no better place to start over than the buzzing, turbid, and resilient City of New York."
SOURCE @ THE DAILY BEAST
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