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Celina Thompson | Writer and Editor
Midnights, Taylor Swift’s tenth studio album, dropped on October 21 – and critics have a lot to say. In short, the album’s simplicity makes for a cohesive flow of sound and lyricism that may not stand out against Swift’s past releases, but rather captures what she does best.
The album has a song for every mood – whether you’re in a vengeful mood, want to dance in your room to the album on full blast, or want to study on a rainy day, Midnights has it. Online reviews have highlighted this. As said by Alexis Petridis of The Guardian, “Vigilante Shit’s sound is minimal and unflappable – a beat with thin slivers of bass and electronic tones sliding in and out of the mix, … while Karma is kaleidoscopically tuneful, another track that harks back to 1989”.
Another aspect noted by critics is the album’s subduedness that attributes to Swift’s description of it being “a collection of music written in the middle of the night, a journey through terrors and sweet dreams.”. Quinn Moreland for Pitchfork Media writes that Midnights is about reflection, not reinvention, and I certainly agree. What we got from the album is not entirely new, nor has Swift reconstructed her music style to take a risk in hitting listeners with something they never expected. What we do get, however, are underlying messages from the critically acclaimed songwriter hidden in the lyrics to reveal aspects of herself that she has hesitated to share in the past. For example, Anti-Hero’s theme of self-loathing in its deliverance expressed a sort of empowerment that proved to be extremely liked by casual listeners and critics alike. “There’s an appealing confidence about this approach, a sense that Swift no longer feels she has to compete on the same terms as her peers.” – The Guardian.
However, Midnights has gained criticism because of its lacking in comparison to Swift’s previous releases. “I don’t really see myself revisiting it like the way I did for folklore and evermore, picking out new details and songs to experience. Already, there are some songs I find myself not wanting to listen to, where I’m like, “Nah, I’ve heard enough of that one,” which is so the opposite of how Taylor usually works in my brain.”, Sam Franzini writes for the Atwood Magazine’s Roundtable Midnights review. Controversy surrounding the album’s release accredits its intense, even excessive familiarity to Jack Antonoff, who co-wrote 12 of its 13 songs and co-produced them all. “Antonoff’s extensive credits mean he has a hard time preventing musical ideas from bleeding into each other,” says BuzzFeed. Low-rating google reviews of Midnights take a slightly different approach although consistent approach, with users writing “Sounds just like her last two albums”, “All her songs nowadays are … sounding the same”, and “Anticlimactic”.
While I enjoyed certain songs from the album respectively, the album’s cohesiveness does not compare to that of past releases like folklore. I don’t blame listeners for being disappointed not towards the album’s quality, but towards Swift’s potential as a songwriter because of how much she has wowed fans in the past. Overall, Midnights is a good album that is undoubtedly worth a listen, but its strength as Taylor Swift’s newest release is being widely questioned and it’s up to you to decide on where you stand.
Midnights is now available on streaming platforms across the globe. Listen to it here.
