The Best Songs On ' Midnights' Reveal Taylor Swift' s Growth Midnights HEAD TOPICS

The Best Songs On ' Midnights' Reveal Taylor Swift' s Growth

10/21/2022 10:30:00 PM

From Anti-Hero to Snow On The Beach to Midnight Rain

Midnights

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NYLON

Taylor Swift’s tenth studio album, Midnights , has arrived. From Anti-Hero to Snow On The Beach to Midnight Rain flings open the door to Swift’s moody nocturnal world with opening track “Lavender Haze.” Like an overture, the song sets the stage for the rest of the album — mid-tempo, emotional electro-pop filled with defiance, longing, and rumination on the past. Addressing her boyfriend of many years, Swift admires the way he handles the endless scrutiny she faces, while also touching on another theme repeated later on “Midnight Rain:” marriage. While Swift’s early catalog featured epic fairytale weddings (“Love Story” literally ended with Swift-as-Juliette getting married in a white dress), “Lavender Haze” immediately sets the record straight that the singer now lives outside the restrictive binary of “one night or a bride.” The phrase itself comes from an episode of 1950s-set Read more:
NYLON » Taylor Swift says her song 'Anti-Hero' is a 'guided tour' of her insecurities Why Taylor Swift’s self-loathing ‘Anti-Hero’ already hit a nerve with fans Taylor Swift Attends Her Own Funeral in 'Anti-Hero' Music Video Taylor Swift Attends Her Own Funeral in Spooky ‘Anti-Hero’ Music Video: Watch

A man needed a brain tumor removed He played the sax during surgery

The 35-year-old played the theme of the 1970 film “Love Story” and the Italian national anthem, among other songs, on the saxophone during a nine-hour operation. Read more >> Taylor Swift says her song 'Anti-Hero' is a 'guided tour' of her insecuritiesTaylor Swift said 'Anti-Hero,' new ' Midnights ' song, will delve 'far' into her insecurities. MeetMeAtMidnight Why Taylor Swift’s self-loathing ‘Anti-Hero’ already hit a nerve with fansTaylor Swift's first single ('Anti-Hero') of her new album Midnights showcased a new level of candor, referencing 'depression,' as multiple critics agreed in early reviews that it was pretty dark music for Swift. Because i believe she has many terrible and sad full things which has happened with the world lately Another album full of “I hate my ex boyfriend” garbage. Next. Taylor Swift Attends Her Own Funeral in 'Anti-Hero' Music VideoTaylor Swift is poking fun at herself and addressing her biggest insecurities in the new music video for 'Anti-Hero,' off her newly-released album, ‘ Midnights .’ Taylor Swift Attends Her Own Funeral in Spooky ‘Anti-Hero’ Music Video: WatchTaylor Swift's nightmares come to life in her music video for 'Anti-Hero' off TSMidnighTS. taylorswift13 is doing bodyshaming in AntiHeroMusicVideo 😒 Taylor Swift Drinks With Her Double and Holds Her Own Funeral in ‘Anti-Hero’ Music VideoTaylor Swift meets the anti-hero version of Taylor Swift in the official music video for “Anti-Hero,” the first lead single off the Grammy winner’s new album, “ Midnights .&8… All About Taylor Swift's “Anti-Hero” Music VideoAll About Taylor Swift's ‘Anti-Hero’ Music Video All right , which show the pop star at her songwriting and song-crafting best.feelings of grief and loss ., was pretty dark music for Swift.Midnights . “Lavender Haze” Midnights flings open the door to Swift’s moody nocturnal world with opening track “Lavender Haze.” Like an overture, the song sets the stage for the rest of the album — mid-tempo, emotional electro-pop filled with defiance, longing, and rumination on the past. "I struggle a lot with the idea that my life has become unmanageably sized and not to sound too dark, but I struggle with the idea of not feeling like a person. Addressing her boyfriend of many years, Swift admires the way he handles the endless scrutiny she faces, while also touching on another theme repeated later on “Midnight Rain:” marriage. / It must be exhausting, always rooting for the anti-hero. While Swift’s early catalog featured epic fairytale weddings (“Love Story” literally ended with Swift-as-Juliette getting married in a white dress), “Lavender Haze” immediately sets the record straight that the singer now lives outside the restrictive binary of “one night or a bride. What we know so far about 'Midnights aside from the 3rd track, 'Anti-Hero' In case you missed it, our cryptic pop queen has been revealing track names for"Midnights" since Sept.” The phrase itself comes from an episode of 1950s-set Mad Men, which she then defies with the lines “No deal/This 1950s shit they want from me. She's eventually shot with a bow and arrow before covering her wound with a"Vote for Me for Everything" campaign button, while glittery blood can be seen dripping down her shirt. ” Notably, the writing credits include Zoë Kravitz and Kendrick Lamar collaborator Sounwave. 21.” People on social media lost it trying to figure out what “everybody is a sexy baby” could mean: Is it an inside joke? A veiled insult? A reference to the that mocked the idea of men being drawn to women who act young and helpless, guest starring Cristin Milioti as a self-described “very sexy baby”? Advertisement The internet was stumped, and the song offered further mystery with, “Did you hear my covert narcissism lightly disguised as altruism / Like some kind of congressman?” Not to mention the verse where Swift admits, “I have this dream my daughter-in-law kills me for the money / She thinks I left them in the will. — Claire Valentine, Entertainment Editor “Maroon” It’s not often, or ever, that Taylor Swift writes a song that feels genuinely ominous. “Maroon,” Midnights ’ second track, written in ode to a red-hot relationship from her past, gets a nervy, disquieting edge from a droning synth hovering over its pop melody like a storm cloud. One video at a time, Swift draws one ball randomly and announces the track name in correlation to the number. As Swift (ostensibly) fondly remembers flickers of their time together — “When you splashed your wine into me/ And how the blood rushed into my cheeks/ So scarlet, it was maroon,” she exhales — a foreboding sense of dread lingers in its undercurrent.” Fans know she could eventually release a detailed explanation of what exactly she means in the song or leave it a mystery forever — with Swift, there truly is no in between. It’s a marker that the “Red” singer has finally grown up, and that the red of her youth has finally crusted over into something darker."It's the worst," he declares, before revealing that Swift had her beach house"turned into a f**king cat sanctuary. — Steffanee Wang, Associate Music Editor “Anti-Hero” Who among us hasn’t spiraled into a pit of self-loathing after spending too much time alone with our own thoughts? But when it comes to sharing our deepest, darkest inner secrets, those conversations are usually saved for our closest friends or our therapists — not millions of (possibly very judgmental) strangers around the world. Anxiety, paranoia, trust issues, body image, unhealthy coping mechanisms — you name it, Swift touches on it in Midnights ’ lead single, “Anti-Hero.” It’s a brave, relatable bop infused with just the right amount of humor in its music video to balance out the intensely personal subject matter. Self-reflection is difficult enough in private, but Swift’s willingness to do it in such a public manner further proves why legions of fans turn to her songwriting to feel seen and understood. Taylor Swift, she’s just like us! — Alyssa Vingan, Editor-In-Chief “Snow On The Beach (feat. 13 cents," the rest of the will reads as the room devolves into chaos. Lana Del Rey)” It’s only right that the first song Taylor Swift and Lana Del Rey decide to do together is utterly ethereal. “Snow On The Beach,” as its chorus states, is weird but f*cking beautiful — I’d argue the quiet standout of the album. Lightly Christmas-sy and psychedelic, there is something mesmerizing in how the song falls like ice hitting the fingertips. Fans initially complained about Lana not having a large enough part on the song, but I’d argue that her feature is perfect: she blows in and disappears like an icy, otherworldly gale. The song is all about the wonder in those once-in-a-lifetime happenings, like falling in love, or a freak but beautiful weather event." Meanwhile, a very-much-alive Swift peeks out from the casket before making an escape. Let’s hope the Swift and Del Rey collaboration won’t be one of them. — SW “Midnight Rain” The sad, synth-heavy “Midnight Rain” finds Swift reflecting back on a love she left behind in favor of her own future. “He wanted it comfortable, I wanted that pain/He wanted a bride, I was making my own name,” the chorus intones with distorted, pitched down vocals. In some ways, it’s another callback to her earlier songs, as she reflects on the towns full of “pageant queens and big pretenders” she sang about on country albums like Fearless, and refers to the subject of the song as “my boy.” Now grown up, Swift is peering back in time at the “life [she] gave away,” and at the person she “never thinks of, except on midnights like this. And that I, you know, not to sound too dark, but I just struggle with the idea of not feeling like a person. ” —CV “Question...?” Swift is a master at the slow build, and she executes a brilliant one on “Question…?,” a song that gently erupts in its own chaos. What starts off as an innocent interrogation from a “good girl” to a “sad boy” quickly spins out of control as real intentions surface: “And what's that that I heard? That you're still with her?/ That's nice, I'm sure that's what's suitable and right,” Swift blurts on the bridge." Swift also shared several behind-the-scenes images on Twitter after the music video's release. When the drums finally kick in, the song veers into strange territory as Swift bends her vocals to very fun effect, Imogen Heap-style — and it certainly lives up to the drama and intrigue. — SW “Bejeweled” On the opposite side of the “Anti-Hero” coin, “Bejeweled” is a self-love anthem in which Swift confidently takes her power back from someone (or someones) who either didn’t deserve it or took it for granted. She’s making sure to let her exes, her haters, anyone who’s listening, really, know that she’s hot shit and well aware of it. Swift doesn’t need anybody else to validate that, which is a personal growth milestone we should all aspire to. — AV “Labyrinth” “Labyrinth” is a slow-burn ballad about the rush of falling in love quickly. “I thought the plane was going down/How’d you turn it right around?” she sings on one of the more hopeful and future-facing tracks on Midnights . Though she’s “lost in the labyrinth of my mind,” Swift’s lover wants to pull her out of her late-night dark thoughts and into a happier place, if only she can surrender to the feeling. — CV For the most wholesome song on Midnights , look to “Sweet Nothing,” the record’s penultimate song written jointly by Swift and Joe Alwyn. The credits alone already make the lullaby-esque track extra special, but a listen to its lyrics highlight it as one of the most tender songs they’ve written about their relationship. It’s all built around the core realization that “All that you ever wanted from me was sweet nothing,” a quality that’s invaluable when dallying in the arena of celebrity love and dating. Haters and skeptics still doubt the merits of Swift and Alwyn’s relationship, but “Sweet Nothing” enters like a gentle salve to the chatter. They’ve found sanctuaries in one another, and you hear it clearest here. — SW “Could’ve, Would’ve, Should’ve” No Taylor Swift album is complete without a breakup bop, and on Midnights (3am Edition) , boy did she deliver. Like the album as a whole, "Could've, Should've, Would've" is a deep dive on Swift's psyche as a whole, rather than the immediacy of a fleeting feeling which she's done so expertly in the past (see: "Enchanted"). With the help of Aaron Dessner, she ruminates on a long lost relationship that still haunts her; it may not be the most appealing truth, but sometimes a breakup lingers long past its expiration date. Here, Swift comes to terms that though she knows better now, you can't change the past and its effect on the present. — Lauren McCarthy, Executive Editor .