As if I didn’t think that Taylor Swift Midnights week couldn’t get any better, I woke up this morning to find out that Blondie revealed a Vault-esque surprise – seven extra songs! The Midnights (3am Edition) tracks release combo has me (and probably you) simultaneously screaming, crying, and throwing up.
Although Taylor’s newest album isn’t chock-full of sad songs like the ones in Evermore (she seems happy with Joe Alwyn, cut her a break!), there still lie some notable lines within the lyrics. If you’re looking to pinpoint areas in the album that evoke even more screams, tears, and wails, I’ve compiled a list of the top ten most gut-wrenching lines from Taylor Swift’s Midnights album (and the 3 a.m. tracks). Hold onto your red scarves and star-patched elbow knit cardigans, Swifties, because sh*ts about to get real sad.
- From “Would’ve, Could’ve, Should’ve:”
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“I would’ve stayed on my knees,
And I damn sure never would’ve danced with the devil
At nineteen
And the God’s honest truth is that the pain was heaven.”
This is the embodiment of sad lyrics but an upbeat tempo, this line screams to all of those looking back, sadly, at their younger selves in toxic relationships.
- From “Would’ve, Could’ve, Should’ve,” Again:
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“God rest my soul —
I miss who I used to be.
The tomb won’t close,
Stained glass windows in my mind,
I regret you all the time.
I can’t let this go,
I fight with you in my sleep.
The wound won’t close.
I keep on waiting for a sign,
I regret you all the time.”
She does it again, folks! Another gut-wrenching bridge! The part where she says “I miss who I used to be.” I felt that one. Hard.
- From “Would’ve, Could’ve, Should’ve,” Again:
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“Give me back my girlhood, it was mine first.”
How very reminiscent of Dear John. And, honestly, this entire song is very reminiscent of Dear John. In my opinion, it’s one of the saddest on the album. Okay, I can’t keep crying about “Would’ve, Could’ve, Should’ve.”
- From “Maroon:”
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“The lips I used to call home —
So scarlet, it was maroon.”
Remember All Too Well? When Taylor remembered him almost running the red because he (you know the one) was looking over at her? The vibes are like that, except now they’re in New York.
- From “Snow On The Beach:”
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“And time can’t stop me quite like you did.”
This line made my jaw drop. Although “Snow On The Beach” is a sweet one (I want it played at my wedding), it’s definitely sad if you look at it through a longing lens, like if you’re reminiscing about how you and an ex met — which is totally not what I did…
- From “You’re On Your Own, Kid:”
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“I gave my blood, sweat, and tears for this.
I hosted parties and starved my body
Like I’d be saved by a perfect kiss.”
The! Bridge! News Flash: your insecurities won’t go away if he ends up liking you back. That’s a tough pill for me to swallow, TBH.
- From “Midnight Rain:”
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“I broke his heart ’cause he was nice.
He was sunshine, I was midnight rain.”
Midnight Rain perfectly encompasses the guilt you feel on those random Tuesday or so nights, when you can’t sleep because you remember what you did to that one guy. We can’t always be the victim, after all.. to that one dude from high school, I’m sorry, you know who you are.
- From “Mastermind:”
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“No one wanted to play with me as a little kid.
So I’ve been scheming like a criminal ever since
To make them love me and make it seem effortless.”
Although the song as a whole is pretty scheme-y (I’m guilty of being a Mastermind in many instances, myself), this line really just digs at the insecurities driving the behavior. Mastermind, like Midnight Rain, perfectly describes feelings and instances that once seemed ineffable. That is, until Blondie brought words to them.
- From “Dear Reader:”
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“You wouldn’t take my word for it if you knew who was talking,
If you knew where I was walking —
To a house, not a home, all alone ’cause nobody’s there
Where I pace in my pen and my friends found friends who care.
No one sees when you lose when you’re playing solitaire.”
Dear Reader encompasses the feeling of loneliness, even if you’re in a crowded room. And I feel that.
- From “Anti-Hero:”
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“It’s me,
Hi.
I’m the problem, it’s me,
At teatime,
Everybody agrees.
I’ll stare directly at the sun, but never in the mirror”
Ouch. You’re not the problem, Taylor, we swear it!
This is all a matter of opinion — my opinion! You can totally interpret these however you want, and that’s what’s so great about music, right?