| Date |
|---|
2023-02-01 1:29 |
An unlikely Swiftie's dive into reminiscing about feelings
TL;DR just take me to The Playlist
I never thought I would enjoy Taylor Swift.
Full stop.
Pop would just wash over me, and in a pretty petty opinion at the time, I considered it trite.
I was wrong.
Catchy can still be complex.
Accessible does not negate artistic.
Flowery can absolutely be functional.
Taylor paints with words in metaphors that can be interpreted on a first listen, and I find myself following along with the lyrics like I used to pour over the liner art of albums when I was a teenager. These tracks (mostly) send me back in time, thinking about moments and feelings I haven't touched in years; and when I reemerge into the present I do so with a greater appreciation of where I am and the people in my life today, as well as more empathy and forgiveness for those who are not.
Without further ado, these are the tracks that mean the most to me. Admittedly I have not thoroughly explored her whole (massive) catalog, and her later discography leans more to the folk & synth pop genres I have a greater affinity towards. Not saying these are the best, just my personal faves (in no particular order) that remind me to feel feelings again.
It's me. Hi!
I'm the problem, it's me.
Wow. Just...wow. What an introduction to a journey of confronting buried emotion by admitting you've been terrible at self-reflection.
And the road not taken looks real good now,
And it always leads to you in my hometown
My spouse & I were always friends with but never really dated. However, we would get together whenever we were in town at the same time for Christmases. This song just sends me back to that headspace of them being what I most looked forward to over the season. Reminds me of how I never wanted to say goodbye - and to remember to be grateful that I might never have to.
And when I felt like an old cardigan,
Under someone's bed,
You put me on and said I was your favorite
Young love is painful, and yet it heals, and you can change the ending, and it can absolutely persevere.
My reputation's never been worse, so
You must like me for me
Even when you're broken feeling at your worst, stick by the people that stick by you.
Just grab my hand and don't ever drop it
<iframe style="border-radius:12px" src="https://open.spotify.com/embed/track/2zfgVd034GlUvk7LqBHl6u?utm_source=generator" width="100%" height="152" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" allow="autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; fullscreen; picture-in-picture" loading="lazy"></iframe>TFW you feel like you need to keep a secret, but can at least hide from the world, together.
But then something happened one magical night,
I forgot that you existed
Time heals all wounds, even the deepest ones from the people you thought were your closest allies. Just keep going on living your life, and soon enough your present will be your past.
And I'd do it over and over
And over again if I could
A lot of Reputation is infused with big Lady Gaga energy, and the bombast in this track perfectly captures the feeling of power that accompanies when 'I did something bad' that felt so good.
There's many different ways to kill the one you love,
The slowest way is never loving them enough
Keep showing up to keep your loved ones feeling loved. Domestic picket fences does not equate to domesticated relationships. If you're bored, then you're boring - don't forget to try.
Sorry for not making you my centerfold,
Over and over
A perfect pairing to the previous track - "I do" does not mean "I'm done". Spending your life with someone shouldn't just be a measure of time - but rather of the energy you invest into them.
I had a marvelous time ruining everything
<iframe style="border-radius:12px" src="https://open.spotify.com/embed/track/2olxzvoFI9IpxqFeUv7WOX?utm_source=generator" width="100%" height="152" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" allow="autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; fullscreen; picture-in-picture" loading="lazy"></iframe>Just a marvelous bit of singer-songwriter storytelling. I still cry every time for these fictional people and how even the most gossip-inducing lives will leave nary any remnants behind when all is said and done.
And now that I know,
I wish you'd left me wondering
Ode to the time wasted on relationships that ran years past their due course because no-one was brave enough to say stop. A necessary precursor to Healing
Life was a willow,
And it bent right to your wind
Do you remember being so wrapped up in another person that your body ached whenever you were apart and your every waking thought was consumed by their visage? I sure fucking do.
Those Windermere peaks look like a perfect place to cry
<iframe style="border-radius:12px" src="https://open.spotify.com/embed/track/0eFQWVz0qIxDOvhLpZ40P7?utm_source=generator" width="100%" height="152" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" allow="autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; fullscreen; picture-in-picture" loading="lazy"></iframe>In recent years I've found getting lost in nature the perfect place for introspection and revelation, and this song is the romantic ideal of that activity.
Fuckin' politics and gender roles,
And you're not sure and I don't know
I did have a first kiss in the middle of a crowded room, and every single one of our friends were making fun of us - but they did not cheer, we were just asked to tone it down 😭
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