Taylor Swift dropped her 10th studio album, Midnights, this past Friday, October 21. This album is about “13 sleepless nights scattered throughout her life.” She describes them as “a collection of music written in the middle of the night, a journey through terrors and sweet dreams.” In this album, she returns to pop music after her last two albums, folklore and evermore, were more alternative/folk. Taylor broke the record of the most streamed album in one day with more than 185 million streams. To quote Taylor herself: that’s a real fucking legacy. Here are my takes and observations on all 13 tracks on the Midnights album.
Lavender Haze:
When I listened to “Lavender Haze” for the first time, I wasn’t exactly expecting it to be a very upbeat song. I thought it would be more calm and slow but it’s one incredible opening track. The beat reminds me of “I Think He Knows” from the Lover album. The term “lavender Haze” was used in the 1950’s to describe being in love. Swift explains how this song is about how she and Joe Alwyn, her boyfriend of six years, receive lots of pressure about marriage. But, she expresses how she doesn’t care about rumors like that spreading all the time as long as she’s feeling that “lavender haze.”
Maroon:
I instantly fell in love with “Maroon.” It has a very lustful but romantic vibe to it. It reminded me of “Dress” from the Reputation album. My soul leaves my body everytime I listen to this song; it has me in a chokehold. I don’t think this song is getting enough love. This track is about a short but very passionate relationship. I think this track could be about Harry Styles or Tom Hiddleston. The lyrics “And I chose you/The one I was dancin’ with in New York/No shoes, looked up/At the Sky” seem so amorous to me. It’s definitely one of my favorite tracks from the album.
Anti-Hero:
This is yet another upbeat song with heartbreaking lyrics, similar to “Death By A Thousand Cuts” from Lover or “Forever and Always” from Fearless. The instrumental kind of reminds me of “Only The Young” from her documentary, Miss Americana. I really enjoyed this track. It was catchy and definitely made a great lead single. In this song, Taylor dives deep into her insecurities and life problems as when she was going through depression and recovering from an eating disorder. I really appreciated Taylor for opening up and being real about these issues with us. She explains “This song really is a guided tour throughout all of the things I tend to hate about myself.”
Snow On The Beach:
“Snow On The Beach” created a lot of controversy because although it does feature Lana Del Rey, she’s mainly in the background vocals in the song. I do think that Lana should’ve gotten a verse in the song but the decisions made were between Lana and Taylor and I respect what they wanted to do. I was just in awe when I listened to this for the first time. “Snow On The Beach” is about falling in love with someone at the same time as they’re also falling in love with you. In the song she says how it’s “weird but fucking beautiful.” This is definitely one of the happier sides of this album.
You’re On Your Own Kid:
Ah yes, the track that has me bawling on my dorm floor: “You’re On Your Own Kid.” The lyrics on this track hit home very harshly. I was just in shock as she kept singing and she crafted such a heart aching bridge for this song. I knew YOYOK would hurt, considering it’s track 5 of the album (her track 5’s are notorious for being her most dismal songs on every album) When Taylor said she was going to go far into her insecurities for “Anti-Hero”, that’s when I knew I had to be terrified for this song. YOYOK is about her rising as a pop star. She started off writing songs about boys that didn’t notice her and how she did everything to catch their attention. She worked hard, became rich and famous but realized she was still alone and was still relying on being truly happy with someone else. At the end of the song, she recognizes that she’s always been alone but she’s numb to it.
Midnight Rain:
The first few seconds of “Midnight Rain” literally frightened me. I thought my headphones were messed up or something. Now that I know the distorted voice is a part of the song, I really LOVE this track. I like the distorted voice too! It’s also one of my top favorite songs on this album. It makes me want to dance around my room even though it’s not one of the more blissful songs. This song seems to be about not wanting to settle down with a man but it’s not like “Lavender Haze.” This seems to be more in the past and I think this is referring to Tom Hiddleston. There were rumors about how he was going to propose to her. On the other hand, the lyrics “He wanted a bride/I was making my own name/Chasing that fame” made me think that this was in the beginning stages of her career, when she dated Taylor Lautner. He was said to be very in love with her, but she most definitely wanted to focus on her career and grow as an artist.
Question…?:
“Question…?” has strong rumors that this might be about Karlie Kloss, her former best friend. People speculated for the longest time (and still do) about how Taylor could be bisexual and how she could’ve had a thing with Karlie. I don’t really love how the public does so much speculation into someone’s personal life like that. I really did enjoy this song though. The lyrics slightly remind me of “the 1” from folklore, wishing you can go back and do it again differently, and hoping it would work in the end. I don’t think it’s getting enough love considering that it’s on the cusp of the top 10 on Billboard’s hot 100 (so is “Bejeweled”)
Vigilante Shit:
Vigilante Shit had me speechless while I listened to it. I immediately put this song in my Taylor Swift “Gaslight, Gatekeep, Girlboss’ ‘ playlist. It definitely stands out more than the rest of the songs in the album because it doesn’t have that strong pop vibe like “Bejeweled” or “Lavender Haze.” In a way, it reminded me of “…Ready For It?” from Reputation. The very first lyric, “Draw the cat eye sharp enough to kill a man” had my jaw on the FLOOR. I already knew this song would be amazing and it’s the track I claimed before the album came out (no regrets.) Vigilante Shit definitely seems to be about Scooter Braun, who bought the masters to her first six albums (which is why she’s in the process of re-recording them.) She mentions his divorce with his ex-wife, Yael Cohen, who he cheated on. This song is about getting revenge on a man and exposing him for his white collar crimes, and giving his wife proof about his affairs.
Bejeweled:
I didn’t really love bejeweled the first time I listened to it (I don’t know what was wrong with me at the time) but this song definitely grew on me! The instrumental reminded me of a video game for some reason. But “Bejeweled” is very much of a pop song and it’s very upbeat. It’s constantly stuck in my head and the lyrics are very memorable. The music video was also very interesting to watch. Taylor did mention that the music video contains many easter eggs for her fans to watch out for. I believe she’s hinting that she’s going to be dropping the re-recorded version of Speak Now sometime in the near future. This song is about how she was with a man who didn’t really appreciate her and tried to take her for granted. She realizes she can do better and doesn’t have to deal with a man like him if she doesn’t want to.
Labyrinth:
“Labyrinth” was not exactly one of my favorite songs on this album at first. I thought it was a bit slow for me, but I think it’s one of the cutest songs she’s written. I have grown to like it after playing it multiple times. In “Labyrinth,” She explains how she was feeling anxiety when she was starting a relationship. She was feeling tons of mixed emotions. She was expecting this relationship to go down quickly but she found herself falling in love and being happier than ever with him. It makes my heart so happy.
Karma:
WHERE DO I START WITH THIS ONE, OMG??? I had never been so EXCITED in my life when Taylor announced that “Karma” would be a song on this album. For those who don’t know, Swifties believe that “Karma” was a scrapped album that was supposed to come after her album 1989. But, because of the Kanye West/Kim Kardashian feud, she disappeared for a whole year and came out with Reputation (iconic album) in 2017 instead. We know that the song “Karma” is real but is there an actual album still? Anyways, this song took my breath away. I made the mistake of not bringing my INHALER. This track is also one of my top favorites (I love how I say that about every song.) I could sing and have a dance party to this song. “Karma” is explained by Taylor as “feeling like this must be a reward for doing stuff right and it’s a song that I really love because I think we all need some of those moments.” This song might just be aimed towards Kanye West, especially because he seems to be having the worst week of his life while Taylor is having the best week ever.
Sweet Nothing:
“Sweet Nothing” makes my heart MELT. She wrote this song with Joe Alwyn. Taylor has written multiple songs with him (he’s credited as William Bowery) on her previous albums and it’s so adorable. This track is about her feeling safe and at home with Joe. She feels happy to just be existing with him. “You’re in the kitchen humming/All that you ever wanted from me was/Sweet nothing.” makes me want to cry (in a good way.) I think everyone (including me) just wants someone who makes them feel this way, feeling appreciated and safe.
Mastermind:
Track 13, “Mastermind,” really had me questioning what this might be about. I couldn’t tell if it’s about tricking someone into falling in love with her using manipulation or being a marketing genius and knowing how to keep her fans hooked onto her music. It honestly could be both because this woman is definitely one hell of a mastermind. She’s worked so hard to get to where she is right now, especially breaking all these extreme records. In a way, she’s kind of acting as if what she’s doing is a crime because she’s scared to admit she’s a mastermind in the song. Her skills are what brought her to the top even while jumping over obstacles such as Kanye West, Scooter Braun, the media constantly body shaming her (honestly just picking on her for anything), her previous relationships, etc.
My song ranking (unfortunately one has to be last):
Midnight Rain
Maroon
Karma
Lavender Haze
Vigilante Shit
You’re On Your Own Kid
Anti-Hero
Bejeweled
Snow On The Beach
Sweet Nothing
Question…?
Labyrinth
I like how the Midnights album is more dream pop. It kind of reminds me as if Reputation and folklore had a child. I like how it’s not very synth-pop like 1989. She managed to return to pop without being repetitive. I’m so impressed with how she can be so successful in a variety of genres. I really love this album and I’m so excited to see what Taylor has in store for us in the future! I hope this encouraged you to stream Midnights!