by abby crabill
Somehow always knowing what her fans need, Taylor Swift has done it again. On April 19th, Taylor released her eleventh album, The Tortured Poets Department, as a surprise double album. Taylor shares her new album as a form of closure for herself from past heartaches, leaving her fans feeling as if they are getting a sneak-peek inside of her personal journal. As expected, she intertwines allusions to many other artists and works throughout her poetic tracks. While a feeling of angst and drama sets the overall tone throughout the album, each song leaves listeners trying to cope with understanding different emotions. In traditional Taylor fashion, there is plenty of room for speculation among her tracks. Any attempt to decode her music could go on forever, but here are a few thoughts to recognize and consider when listening to her newest album (for the first time, or the 100th time).
A large part of the album takes listeners deeper into feelings of heartache, loss, and not being enough. For example, songs like “So Long, London,” “loml,” and “Peter,” tend to represent loss and the pain that comes with reminiscing on moments that once brought joy. Taylor seems to recall several moments of unhappiness that she felt as she left a relationship and the town she spent much of her time in with the lines from “So Long, London,”
“I didn't opt in to be your odd man out, I founded the club she's heard great things about. I left all I knew, you left me at the house by the Heath”
Her song “Peter” seems to be an interesting telling of Peter Pan from the character Wendy's perspective. The song explores Wendy reminiscing on the promises that Peter made to her when they were younger, that have never come to fruition.
“You said you were gonna grow up, then you were gonna come find me. Said you were gonna grow up, thеn you were gonna come find mе. Said you were gonna grow up, then you were gonna come find me. Words from the mouths of babes, promises oceans deep but never to keep, oh, never to keep.”
If listeners don't want to spend all of their time alone under a fuzzy blanket wallowing in sadness, the album also explores themes of hope, freedom, and prevailing despite the odds. Some of these tracks include, “Florida!!!,” “Who’s Afraid of Little Old Me?,” “Clara Bow,” and “So High School.”
There is a final overall theme to the album, which strongly represents Taylor exploring all of the instances that have not only made her a better singer-songwriter, but a stronger woman.
This is best presented in her track, “Who’s Afraid of Little Old Me?” with the repetition of lyrics like, “Who's afraid of little old me? Well, you should be,” and “You wouldn't last an hour in the asylum where they raised me.” It can also be seen in her track, “Clara Bow,” when the lyrics change from comparisons made between Taylor and other famous artists, including: Clara Bow and Stevie Nicks to simply making it as a star for being herself.
“You look like Taylor Swift, in this light. We're loving it. You've got edge she never did, the future's bright... dazzling.”
As a whole collection, both The Tortured Poets Department and The Anthology, can be considered some of Taylor Swift's most personal, raw, and poetic work so far. Once again, she delivered, both for her fans and herself.