By Mads Rayment
The Album
Midnights was sung and made by world-renowned singer-songwriter, Taylor Swift. Midnights is her 10th studio album and is about reflecting, not reinventing. It is a collection of songs that were written at midnight, which talk about both good and bad dreams. In one day, Midnights was streamed over 184 million times, setting the world record for the most streamed album in a single day. Good on you Taylor!
What Makes a Good Album?
According to Chris Gliddon, an amazing album has to follow certain criteria. Some of these categories are replayability, flow, theme, and energy/atmosphere. Based on these factors, I have assessed Midnights and have come to an appropriate conclusion.
Worth the Wait or Dead Weight?
After careful consideration, I have classified Midnights by Taylor Swift as a bop. Why is this you may ask? There are multiple reasons why Midnights is a bop. However, there are some things that are pulling it back from a perfect score.
Midnights gets “Swifties” to reminisce about her previous albums. Specifically, it has tracks that have a similar atmosphere to 1989 and Reputation. Bringing these elements back together makes each track have a certain emotion, such as self-confidence or sadness. Her songwriting also has a significant impact on her album, making it sound like she is telling a story, which is more than just an average pop song.
A limiting factor of Midnights is inconsistency. While her songs sound great, they don’t have a consistent emotion, which doesn’t help if you want to cry your heart out or have a lively party. Some of her tracks such as Vigilante Shit or Bejeweled have a more “Bad Bitch” vibe, while songs such as Maroon and Snow on the Beach have a more cinematic, calm atmosphere.
Another factor is what I like to call “Overpromise, Underdeliver.” This is when a song has a lot of hype but does not live up to the expected outcome. One example of this is the song Snow on the Beach (Featuring Lana Del Rey). This song brought two music communities together, the Lana Stans and the Swifties. There was so much bonding over this one song, and almost everyone was disappointed with the outcome.
The reason for this is that Lana had barely 5 seconds of her voice in the song, and even then you had to put in a serious effort to make out if it was even her, or Taylor. It has gotten to the point where people make funny comments such as “Lana was on the wrong beach” and “Were you silent, or were you silenced?”
To sum up the everlasting question, “Is Midnights by Taylor Swift a bop or a flop?” Based on the criteria followed, and both mine and other people’s opinions, it is safe to say that Midnights is a bop. It is simply a great album with interesting stories with some rough edges. The drama with Snow on the Beach ended up bringing two communities together, instead of tearing them apart.