Officially Stefny

Damn Stef, back at it again with another Taylor Swift (double!) album review! And for the record, I’m gonna do TWO passes of all the songs.

Second listen looks like this. Also doing it with headphones for a different experience. I also read the liner notes before the second pass and it gives a lot more perspective to the rebound aspect of this album/relationship with Matty.

Fortnight

Good synth. Alcohol reference #1.

“Your wife waters flowers, I wanna kill her” oh damn Tay okay

“I love you, it’s ruining my life” relatable though

Second listen was the music video premiere and can I just say… video elevates the song and also I think I ship her with Posty now.

The Tortured Poets Department

She said the thing!

lol okay so this song is definitely about Matty

LOL NOT THE GOLDEN RETRIEVER LINE

I know this is a Jack joint but I would buy it if you told me Matty participated

Sometimes, I wonder if you’re gonna screw this up with me
But you told Lucy you’d kill yourself if I ever leave
And I had said that to Jack about you, so I felt seen
Everyone we know understands why it’s meant to be
‘Cause we’re crazy
So tell me, who else is gonna know me?
At dinner, you take my ring off my middle finger
And put it on the one people put wedding rings on
And that’s the closest I’ve come to my heart exploding

GIRL THIS WAS LIKE A 2 WEEK RELATIONSHIP

Girl is as dramatic as me with David in 10th grade

This starts out SOOOOO 80s. Also using headphones really makes this song pop.

My Boy Only Breaks His Favorite Toys

Awww yeah this beat

AWWW YEAH THIS BEAT

Okay… look. I’m gonna be real honest here. There are many, many T.Swift lyrics that hold deep meaning for me. They describe me. They are relatable to me. These ain’t it.

Okay I think I just needed to listen to this album with headphones. So far I think this is my favourite.

Down Bad

Yo second song with “fuck”

Okay THIS song is very relatable to me. Especially 10th grade me. looooool

Now I’m down bad, cryin’ at the gym
Everything comes out teenage petulance
“Fuck it if I can’t have him”
“I might just die, it would make no difference”
Down bad, wakin’ up in blood
Starin’ at the sky, come back and pick me up
Fuck it if I can’t have us
I might just not get up, I might stay

Yeah this is definitely still the most David song there is lol 16 year old me is VIBING

So Long, London

Okay after that intro I didn’t expect the synth

Have I mentioned how much I love Jack’s production? It elevates so many of her songs

Dude were her and Joe just like the most toxic couple of all time?

I also like this song a lot more upon second listen. I also like the Joe songs more than the Matty songs. Fight me. It really sounds like she was miserable in this relationship though. Like she clearly was in love with him and wanted kids and marriage but he was like “nah.”

Living up to track 5 lore.

But Daddy I Love Him

Aaron Dessner let’s go

Lyrics here are very reminiscent of old Taylor

Fuck song #3!

Now I’m dancin’ in my dress in the sun and
Even my daddy just loves him
I’m his lady
And oh my God, you should see your faces
Time, doesn’t it give some perspective?
And no, you can’t come to the weddin’
I know it’s crazy, but he’s the one I want

Clearly in the first pass I was excited about Aaron songs but after listening to 17/31 songs being collabs with him, I gotta say, I’m over it. I am down for more Aaron/Jack team ups in the future, though.

This is kind of the grown up version of “Love Story” though right?

Fresh Out The Slammer

Immediately this is not what I expected this song to sound like

Okay so… did she like ~enjoy Matty’s company prior to her relationship with Joe and then pine over him in the back of her mind for 6+ years and then ran right to him when it was over? Am I hearing this right?

At the park where we used to sit on children’s swings
Wearing imaginary rings

Okay so yes right?

Just popping in to add that this teenage angst she felt over Matty once again reminds me of David. See: photo of the two of us literally at a park. I would’ve thrown it all away for this fool. lol

Florida!!!

I haven’t even heard a note of this yet but the title kills me

Oh hey Flo(rence)

And your cheating husband disappeared
Well, no one asks any questions here

Woah wait is that a throwback to Fortnight?

Wait no is this a sequel to No Body, No Crime? lmao

Fuck #4

So I looked it up and there was a Hurricane Florence that hit the Carolinas in 2018. Also I’m sorry but “fuck me up Florida” is the funniest line of all time.

I love the drums in this song so much.

Guilty as Sin?

Okay dude like 100% every song about Matty feels like me in 10th grade

Was she like dicknotized to no end by this dude?

Who’s Afraid of Little Old Me?

If you wanted me dead, you should’ve just said
Nothing makes me feel more alive

This might be one of my faves so far

“I was tame, I was gentle ’til the circus life made me mean” – relatable

Bro her voice in this bridge

You wouldn’t last an hour in the asylum where they raised me
So all you kids can sneak into my house with all the cobwebs

First line: Fortnight video, second line: Grandma Death

I Can Fix Him (No Really I Can)

LMAO okay another one about Matty

Yo another shoutout to Texas

“good boy” lol is that another reference to him as a golden retriever

‎loml

Aww yeah another Aaron song. I recognize that piano vibe.

Okay this one is DEFINITELY about Joe

I wish I could unrecall
How we almost had it all

I’m still just sad. *spongebob voice* I’M READY, DEPRESSION.

I Can Do It With A Broken Heart

Yes give me that sweet synth

So is this about like the beginning of the Eras tour before we knew about the breakup?

YES RAISE THAT BEAT

Or wait is this about MATTY AGAIN

“I cry a lot, but I am so productive, it’s an art” relatable content

“I’m so obsessed with him, but he avoids me like the plague” bro just ghosted her huh

The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived

Another Aaron joint

Fuck count #5?

Another song about Matty lol dude please explain how she was so obsessed with this man

“And I don’t miss what we had” okay I call bullshit on that because according to every song on this album you actually do

“They just ghosted you, now you know what it feels like” so yes he did

I love the quote that came out earlier today where Matty said he was relieved by this album. Buddy have you actually listened to it? You seem like a stoned piece of shit.

The Alchemy

Why did I think this was Lana?

Oh woah was this the first alcohol reference since the beginning?

“He jokes that ‘It’s heroin, but this time with an E’” – that line is hilarious

Oh okay so THIS song is about Travis right? Like there’s too many football references for this to be a coincidence.

Okay but why the word “blokes?” Also I want to believe that the “heroin/e” line is a reference to Cute Without the E (Cut From the Team).

Clara Bow

Another Aaron track

Yes I love this guitar

You look like Stevie Nicks
In ’75, the hair and lips
Crowd goes wild at her fingertips
Half moonshine, a full еclipse

*screaming*

You look like Taylor Swift
In this light, we’re lovin’ it
You’ve got edge, she never did
The future’s bright, dazzling

What an excellent way to end the album. OH WAIT THERE’S STILL 16 MORE SONGS.

The Black Dog

oh my GOD she referenced The Starting Line

oh my GOD it’s another Matty song

She really is an emo kid deep down huh

“I just don’t understand how you don’t miss me” yas queen

imgonnagetyouback

Joe Alwyn is literally sitting in his living room wiping the sweat from his brow because like none of these songs are about him lmao

Bygones will be bygone, eras fadin’ into grey (Fading into grey)

Eras tour = tour of many colours

TTPD = black and white

The Albatross

Is this seriously only like the 3rd reference to alcohol?

I really like the guitar in this one.

Chloe or Sam or Sophia or Marcus

This title???

I’m convinced every time she talks about drugs it’s about Matty.

I crashed into you, like so many wrecks do
Too impaired by my youth to know what to do

Taylor you’re 34 years old

Okay so whose kids’ names are these?

How Did It End?

This one is DEFINITELY about Joe.

“Sitting in a tree D-Y-I-N-G” kills me. Think about the “first comes love, then comes marriage, then comes baby in a baby carriage” she REALLY WANTED ALL THAT WITH HIM OKAY

So High School

“I feel so high school every time I look at you” LOL so now she’s just leaning into it

“Are you gonna marry, kiss, or kill me (Kill me)” LMAO THIS IS ABOUT TRAVIS STOPPPPP

lol I actually like this song a lot and I’m mad about it

Something about this song reminds me of like late-90s alternative like “Teenage Dirtbag” or “Popular.”

I Hate It Here

The second half of the double album is mostly Aaron songs

You see, I was a debutante in another life, but
Now I seem to be scared to go outside

Lines like this make me confused about her relationship with Joe. Did she want to be private or was she held back by his desire to be private?

I dreamed about it in the dark, the night I felt like I might die
No mid-sized city hopes and small-town fears
I’m there most of the year ’cause I hate it here
I hate it here

RELATABLE. So much LRA subtweeting.

Just dropping in to say that I LOVED The Secret Garden as a kid. That is all.

thanK you aIMee

Gee I wonder what those capitalized letters mean…

Fuck alert #6

“All that time you were throwin’ punches, I was buildin’ somethin’” is giving “Cause baby I could build a castle out of all the bricks they threw at me”

I know this is directly referencing Kim but also it’s such a fuck you to every high school bully

And maybe you’ve reframed it
And in your mind, you never beat my spirit black and blue
I don’t think you’ve changed much

🖕🏻 you AHS mean girls

I Look in People’s Windows

Taylor, don’t do that. That’s illegal.

Oooh finally another wine reference

“I’m afflicted by the not knowing so” I too am nosy and suffer from FOMO

The Prophecy

Tay I’m begging you please give up on Matty. Also I will gladly take some of your money if you don’t want it.

“Gathered with a coven ’round a sorceress’ table” – *willow plays in the background*

Has anyone else ever used the word “greige” in a song before?

This is definitely one of my faves from The Anthology.

Cassandra

Oh snap it’s another Kimye diss track

Reputation 2: Folkmore Boogaloo

They’re burning all the bitches even if you aren’t one.

“The family, the pure greed, the Christian chorus line… Blood’s thick, but nothin’ like a payroll.” 👀 drag ’em, Tay

Peter

So Peter Pan right?

istg if this is also about Matty…

The Bolter

Fuck alert #7?

This song is sooooo British

But it always ends up with a town car speeding
Out the drive one evenin’

A getaway car, if you will

Robin

I think this is a letter to her child self?

Something about this song is just so sad. Also, probably just from proximity, but I picture “Ranking of Kings” when I hear it.

The Manuscript

Taylor really did want kids with Joe huh?

Wait then it talks about dating boys her own age… wait who is this about?

Final thoughts

After one listen: I’m not saying I’m disappointed in this album but after just one listen there’s not a lot here that I feel like I’m going to have on repeat, you know? Maybe it’s because I’m overwhelmed with 31 tracks and also work and also I need to take a nap. I also feel like, despite Aaron Dessner’s IG post saying these are some of the most lyrically complex lyrics ever… I think for the most part they’re kind of childish. I’ll revist them a second time and reassess.

Second listen: Okay, maybe I will retract my previous opinion about childish lyrics. There DEFINITELY are some, but for the most part the lyrics are well-written. I don’t think it’s her strongest work but they’re better than, say, “Gorgeous.” Overall, I think the OG album is better than The Anthology. A lot of the songs on The Anthology kind of sound similar and not really special. A lot of the album is kind of boring sonically. There aren’t a lot of stand out bops for me and it’s disappointing. But my opinions did change somewhat upon second listen so maybe it’ll just take time. Also I recommend listening with headphones if possible because it does really let you focus on the production and brings out extra layers.