Jovan S.

I can't...I frankly cannot believe that Swift managed to outdo herself once again. By now, it is absolutely clear to everyone that there is nothing she cannot achieve as long as she puts her heart and soul into the work, and that has certainly been an indispensable component of her works. This is the album that quite literally altered my brain chemistry; from the first day I heard it and the melody of "Fortnight" poured through my ears into the nervous system and enchanted me from the inside, and such a feeling continued through every subsequent song of this record, with the greatest delight that this is a MASSIVE work with as many as 31 songs in total. Swift definitely had a lot to write – a plethora of poetry infused with personal suffering and despair is an integral part of the album. From heartbreak in "The Black Dog" and "loml" to embracing a brand new future while saluting the past in "So Long, London", each song has its own narrative that fits the album together magnificently cohesively. While the standard version of the album is mostly soft synth-pop, "The Anthology" feels like a throwback to the days of Swift's quarantine albums "Folklore" and "Evermore" with many songs in the indie folk and chamber-pop style. Certain songs also feel like direct sequels to songs from those two earlier sister albums, like "Peter" to "cardigan" or "Cassandra" to "mad woman," though they can undoubtedly be seen as individual gems with separate themes in Swift's prolific discography. Lots of poetry, stylistic figures, unadulterated openness and honesty, and the well-known rollercoaster of emotions are what await you in this record. For me, "Tortured Poets" is in Swift's top 3 best albums.

Met with widespread acclaim, Red (Taylor's Version) was lauded for Swift's vocals, significantly improved from the original, enhanced production quality, and the new tracks – branded as "From The Vault". Contemporaneous critics described it as a classic pop record with a country core, infusing rock and electronic flairs, whilst examining various dynamics of love, life, loss and heartache. As Swift put it herself, "Musically and lyrically, Red resembled a heartbroken person. It was all over the place, a fractured mosaic of feelings that somehow all fit together in the end. Happy, free, confused, lonely, devastated, euphoric, wild, and tortured by memories past" – I believe that this album has the capacity to heal its listeners. Another point to mention is the carefully curated aesthetic of the album: a strong feeling permeates through each song that we, the listeners, are also part of the autumn atmosphere. From the leaves falling down like pieces into place and the bright colors of autumn to the glistening of the first snow, this album beautifully encompasses the wide range of emotions humans are endowed to experience in all their glory and pain.

Just a few months after releasing her eighth studio album "folklore", Taylor Swift was back with new music. While "folklore" resembled a rainy summer afternoon, "evermore" is more reminiscent of snuggling under a blanket on a cold winter's night. “Evermore” strongly clings to the acoustic-minimalistic palette of its predecessor, with homey piano and imperturbable guitar patterns. Swift and Dessner enlisted more backup musicians for mini-orchestral arrangements by Bryce Dessner, also of the National, but for most of “evermore,” Swift turns even further inward, away from her pop past, drifting toward elegant but cerebral craftsmanship. In my opinion, it remains Swift's most cohesive work and best album to date.

From the depths of the global pandemic caused by the coronavirus emerged this album, which will be remembered as one of the brightest moments of the epidemic and Taylor Swift's masterpiece. Folklore asserts something that has been true from the start of Swift’s career: Her biggest strength lies in her storytelling, her well-honed songwriting craft meeting the vivid whimsy of her imagination; the music these stories are set to is subject to change, so long as it can be rooted in these traditions. This is also the first time that Swift has ventured into new genres such as alternative rock and indie folk, previously underexplored sounds in her discography. Every single song on this album fits like a puzzle piece and explores complex emotions of love, grief, regret, hope and despair all intertwined. The only thing certain is that this album will go down in history.