Board 8 > "The Life of a Showgirl" topic [Taylor Swift]

(+) Yeah! (+)

Album is out at midnight.

I'm still a CD collector so I'm going to get it in the morning. Absolutely no bonus tracks/extended editions (for now) which is actually a little refreshing for a change. The last couple felt a little bloated by the time you added everything up, but hopefully this means we're getting 12 bangers.

Still excited even though I haven't been the biggest fan of the last two projects.

It apparently leaked a little earlier so I know a forum of people who have listened to it and, uh,

Underleveled posted...

hopefully this means we're getting 12 bangers

This does not seem to be the case lol

The promotion rollout for this album is apparently pretty misleading, instead of being the big return to bold big pop ala 1989 and Reputation it's more similar to Midnights and TTPD. Which is pretty disappointing as someone who is very tired with this sound for her, TTPD is a slog to get through. Also the lyrics are uh very bad in a bunch of spots.

That's a bit disappointing honestly.

Alright I just finished it

Album is aggressively fine, and I don't see myself going back to it. It's pretty much all mid tempo Taylor by the numbers, she does some nice sounding melodies here and there and some cute lyrics occasionally but with that there's some truly bad lyrics and it's all just been done before by her, multiple times now. The title track with Sabrina Carpenter which is the closer could actually have popped off if the rest of the album before it wasn't so musically one note. The production is just not very interesting either.

I think TTPD is my favorite of her albums so if this is more of that, I'm good!

Feels like culturally this is the moment where America turns on her. Hope I'm wrong, honestly.

Wifes been listening to it all morning. I dont know , kinda getting into Weezer territory with the every song sounding the same and following formula

TimeForAction posted...

Wifes been listening to it all morning. I dont know , kinda getting into Weezer territory with the every song sounding the same and following formula

Yeah to be honest I kinda thought TTPD was already like this.

TimeForAction posted...

Wifes been listening to it all morning. I dont know , kinda getting into Weezer territory with the every song sounding the same and following formula

This isn't even the first time I've seen the Weezer comparison for this album lmao

Bane_Of_Despair posted...

This isn't even the first time I've seen the Weezer comparison for this album lmao

i assure my take is organic lol. Im just a weezer fan whose wife listens to Taylor swift

Oh no I believe it, it just means multiple people feel the same lol

I don't love it, gotta be honest.

There's been some really good posts coming out of the release lol

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/forum/4/40189d89.jpg
https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/forum/b/b7077e20.jpg
https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/forum/c/c9734932.jpg

Just finished my first time through and I liked it! And I am sure the songs will all grow on me more the more I listen to them.

Eldest Daughter has some woefully cringe lyrics, wow.

After the first listen, I can say that this may end up being a slow burn that grows on me over time like Reputation or Lover, but for now, this was good, fine, whatever you want to call the next slight step up from mediocre.

My favorite song by far is Ruin the Friendship.

I don't typically go out of my way to listen to albums on release but I caught some of this on the radio this morning.

I liked Father Figure and Actually Romantic is fun in a mentally ill (affectionate) kind of way. Elizabeth Taylor, Fate of Ophelia, and Ruin the Friendship were fine. Opalite and especially Eldest Sister not so fine.

this is kinda embarrassing on the whole

you're 36, you have to grow up at some point

You don't have to when you have enough money!

FFDragon posted...

this is kinda embarrassing on the whole

you're 36, you have to grow up at some point

I'm not saying you're wrong, but we are all mid/late 30's to early 40's still commenting on a video game message board that's main purpose was initially to discuss which of two video game characters were coolest.

My first listen puts me where darkx is essentially. I don't think it is bad but it didn't really grip me like I was hoping.

Well difference being we aren't airing it out to millions of people

Despite my clowning of the album, and rightfully so imo, I don't actually think it's totally terrible. It's like, fine-ish, but I wouldn't say it's exactly good and especially for how her and her team hyped/promoted it as

Hey man if you can figure out some way to monetize whatever the hell this is that we're doing, I would absolutely be on board.

But yeah we'll see if this grows on me at all. I thought TPD was not great at all when I first heard it, but it grew on me a lot. There isn't really a track on here that sticks out to me though (besides maybe The Fate of Ophelia?) so I'm not sure this one will grow on me as much over time.

TTPD is not great at all you had it right

Maybe I worded that weird, but I still don't think it is "great". I do think it is pretty good though and I just don't think I'll ever get that high on this one.

It also feels like she wastes Sabrina Carpenter here in a very sort of bland collaboration that should've been way more fun than what it was.

My wife is a big fan and had it on most of the day

only track that really stuck out to me was The Fate of Ophelia

I think my initial impression was a bit better than TTPD, still not particularly high. But then again I am not much of a Taylor Swift fan in the first place, I haven't particularly enjoyed any of her post-1989 (the album, not the year of her birth) releases. Agreed that Sabrina Carpenter is wasted, and it almost felt like Swift was a poor imitation of her in the lyrics for some songs. The one about Travis Kelce's massive cock comes to mind.

Sheep007 posted...

The one about Travis Kelce's massive cock comes to mind.

Yeah, I know Taylor's lyrics have been getting more and more vulgar as time has gone on but this one made me do a double take.

Sheep007 posted...

The one about Travis Kelce's massive cock comes to mind.

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/forum/6/65bd06ce.jpg

This album cycle has truly been fascinating to watch unfold

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/forum/7/71d456be.jpg

Underleveled posted...

whatever you want to call the next slight step up from mediocre

That would be "average" I guess, since "mediocre" means "average at best" (usually just below average). Listening to the album for the first (and probably only, like the last two), I feel like I've heard it before, and with more mature lyrics at that. The, uh, "cocky" song in particular reeks of what a 15 y/o boy believes girls think about sex.

This era of sleepy, depressing mainstream pop needs to end already. I want sunnier, more upbeat music - this was supposed to be a return to that, but this is only halfway there (which I've seen others say too). Honestly, I haven't cared for Taylor's music much as of late. I prefer the younger Taylor, the girl next door who sang about boys with a songwriting pen far beyond her years, the one who was cute and bubbly and full of life. The current Taylor is a celebutante whose songwriting has hardly grown as she has, recycling the same tropes and holding on to who she used to be, even though she very clearly is not. I remember stories about a younger Taylor greeting every single fan who wanted to, whereas now she shuns them and milks them for more cash. She's gotten crustier from paparazzi stalkers demanding to know every single intricate detail of her personal life, and this has given her thirst to return to those magical days where she still had her innocence.

As is being said here, this album could be where it became apparent that her reign as "Queen of Pop" was over... unless she blows things up with her next effort, of course. I'm glad this one's only 12 tracks and doesn't go over an hour like most of her records. As good as Folklore was, a breath of fresh air for her for the time, it went on 3-4 songs too long. Albums with a consistent sound for each song, barring rock epics where this is the point, should never really go over 50 minutes; this is especially true if the tone is melancholy. That runtime works better for albums like Speak Now and Red, where there are several different flavors. Taylor peaked during that experimental time, a blend of her country roots with places she wanted to go. It's pretty apparent her best days have passed...

I enjoyed this album quite a bit. I suppose I have never been much of a technical music person so I can leave any objective merit to people more informed than myself, but personally I like the happy vibe most songs give off and glad she is in a good place after years of being a tortured poet.

Father figure is almost as good as blank space for me tbh

Father Figure and Ruin the Friendship are my favorite songs for my first few listens.

This isn't a favorite album of hers for me but I still thoroughly enjoy it.

I think Father Figure is pretty bad lol, completely butchers the referencing of the George Michael original

SirChris posted...

I enjoyed this album quite a bit. I suppose I have never been much of a technical music person so I can leave any objective merit to people more informed than myself, but personally I like the happy vibe most songs give off and glad she is in a good place after years of being a tortured poet.

Father figure is almost as good as blank space for me tbh

I do think this is likely to be overhated and there are probably some reasons for that. The first is she is very popular and a lot of people are going to hate her because they think she's overloved and they're going to loudly whine about it to balance things out. It also doesn't help that republicans and misogynists have sort of been salivating for her popularity to fall off since 2016. So I think some of the complaints you see online have less to do with "technical music people" and more to do with loud people that were never going to like her music no matter what it was.

BUT...that being said...I also do think this is probably her weakest album since like the super early days so I think there are complaints that are more objectively (subjectively?) valid.

BUT I also don't want to be someone telling people not to have fun so if you like the album I think that's cool. I will say the response from my IRL friends has been much more positive that the places I hang out online so I could be in the minority on this any way. I'll try giving it another listen in a week or so.

Dems/left leaning people are also turning on her in droves, I'm finding

FFDragon posted...

you're 36, you have to grow up at some point

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R6wHAaa7e2U

havent listened to the album yet lol but I hear taylor has entered her anti-feminist era

my friend went to a wedding yesterday and said they played 3 songs from the album and everyone went nuts

pretty sure whatever major criticism or controversies there might be are limited to the echo chambers of the internet

Honestly, and I say this as a fan, coming from a place of love, I think it would do her (mental and physical wellbeing), her public image, and her music some good for her to just kind of disappear for a bit and wait a few more years before she releases anything like she did between 1989 and Reputation. I'm absolutely certain that a lot of the negative reception towards this album is coming from a place of Swift fatigue, and I wouldn't be surprised if she's getting tired too. Stay out of the limelight as much as the most famous person on planet earth possibly can, enjoy life with Travis and come back in 2028 with something new and different.

Underleveled posted...

Honestly, and I say this as a fan, coming from a place of love, I think it would do her (mental and physical wellbeing), her public image, and her music some good for her to just kind of disappear for a bit and wait a few more years before she releases anything like she did between 1989 and Reputation. I'm absolutely certain that a lot of the negative reception towards this album is coming from a place of Swift fatigue, and I wouldn't be surprised if she's getting tired too. Stay out of the limelight as much as the most famous person on planet earth possibly can, enjoy life with Travis and come back in 2028 with something new and different.

And also stay off social media, because several songs on the album are clearly just her being mad about Twitter drama

Suprak_the_Stud posted...

I do think this is likely to be overhated and there are probably some reasons for that. The first is she is very popular and a lot of people are going to hate her because they think she's overloved and they're going to loudly whine about it to balance things out. It also doesn't help that republicans and misogynists have sort of been salivating for her popularity to fall off since 2016. So I think some of the complaints you see online have less to do with "technical music people" and more to do with loud people that were never going to like her music no matter what it was.

BUT...that being said...I also do think this is probably her weakest album since like the super early days so I think there are complaints that are more objectively (subjectively?) valid.

BUT I also don't want to be someone telling people not to have fun so if you like the album I think that's cool. I will say the response from my IRL friends has been much more positive that the places I hang out online so I could be in the minority on this any way. I'll try giving it another listen in a week or so.

Oh I dont mind. I prefer this to her last album though which was imo a mess of an album but was also kind of beautiful in how much she shredded herself in moments. This album feels more cohesive to me as an album.

Also people saying she is going maga when she has a song about her dick being bigger than the devil's people need to calm down.

That being said probably in my bottom 4 or her albums but also I dont really like to compare siblings. Father figure, opalite, and fate of ophelia are all going in my top 15 songs from her and thats good enough for me

Kenri posted...

And also stay off social media, because several songs on the album are clearly just her being mad about Twitter drama

I cant think of a single song this would apply to kenri

SirChris posted...

Also people saying she is going maga when she has a song about her dick being bigger than the devil's people need to calm down.

My friends don't think she's going maga, but they do think she's a fake feminist who isn't using her platform because she doesn't care

I think if Kamala had won the reaction to this album would be extremely different

UltimaterializerX posted...

The album is very mid even with this aside. And I am a huge fan of hers, got every album and such.

The meta analysis is easy. Child celebs or children of celebs don't grow up normally and are all stuck in arrested development. I don't blame any of them because it's basically never their fault. They literally mentally cannot "grow up".

This made me do a Google.

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/forum/4/473dd822.jpg

Some of these are pretty debatable but Reese Witherspoon is a good example of someone who has pretty consistently been stable and acted her age.

I'm not sure Haley Joel Osment is the best of examples

I wasn't debating you. It was out of morbid curiosity because you brought up a good point. I had to Google because I couldn't think of anyone.

Actually if anything the fact that HJO is one of the best counter examples it could come up with proves your point further.