Review Summary: Couldn't be more enchanted to hear Ms. Swift's third offering...
I reviewed Taylor Swift's Red a short while ago with a small amount of shame. I openly admit to having a fascination with Ms Swift's music that, to echo SowingSeason, transcends all logic and gender stereotypes. I am, however, of the belief that my musical travels have led me to develop an ear that does not discriminate; I started out in the wonderful world of folk, stumbled through garage rock and nu-metal, cut class and burned herb with the prog nerds, stacked cash with the rap kids, and had a long and violently passionate affair with the stunning goddess that is post-rock (I've still got her number; she's the most consistently satisfactory booty call I've ever had).
I've never quite been able to get into pop, though. Sure, I'll download a radio single every now and then, but whole albums have never really stuck with me. “I Kissed A Girl” and “Teenage Dream” attracted me to Katy Perry, but I was never able to sit myself down and listen to the entirety of any of her albums. Pop was just never really able to hold my attention for the duration of a whole album.
And then came Speak Now.
As amazing as Fearless was before it and as unique as Ms Swift's self-titled was before that, Speak Now captured me from the moment “Mine” sang its way into my eardrums. That's the first thing I noticed about Speak Now; a sense of urgency that shows up, in one way or another, throughout the entirety of the album.
“Mine” grabbed me right from the get-go. The lyrics are pretty spot-on here (“you made a rebel of a careless man's careful daughter” is subtle in its brilliance, but it shines nonetheless) and feature some wonderful moments that could easily be inserted into a skilled pick-up artist's slick repertoire.
“Mine” splashed some water in my face, for sure, but “Sparks Fly” picked up the empty glass, smashed it to the ground, and stabbed me in the chest with the shards. The pacing here is absolute dynamite, with a relatively moderate verse dropping out for just a second and then the chorus smacking you down with a brilliant right hook. The urgency and desperation contained in this song are carried across absolutely wonderfully and never really seem to fade, even after the song ends. The first two songs definitely set a pace and an expectation for the rest of the album.
The next few songs are toned down a little, which is not as bad as it sounds. It's great to have an album full of powerful songs, but if they take up the majority of the album, you start to lose your breath. “Back To December,” “Speak Now,” “Dear John,” and “Mean” retain the quality of the opening songs but tone town the energy just a little. “Dear John,” despite being almost seven minutes long, never really gets boring or monotonous, and “Speak Now” and “Mean” don't take themselves too seriously, which is always a neat little spot of fun on an album that could lend itself very easily to the self-worship that can come with an overserious album.
The energy of the whole album continues much like this; with powerful country-pop like “The Story Of Us” and “Haunted” (which could turn up on a Skillet album and not sound out of place) alternating with softer or less serious songs like the adorable “Never Grow Up” and the punky “Better Than Revenge” to keep the momentum rolling. It's a solid album and it holds your attention to the end. It's hard to pick a standout track here, and even though I have a few songs I've listened to a couple more times than the others, I'd be hard-pressed to pick a favourite.
One common theme on this album is this little thing she does with her lyrics that really gets me excited. She has a tendency to cram some of the best turns of phrase into these tiny little sections. This practice pops up here and there throughout this album and when it does, it always shines. I don't know if it's a common thing in country or pop lyricism; I haven't heard it used that often if at all, so at the very least, Taylor can do it in a way that doesn't sound forced or even conscious.
I have a few nit-picky things to say about Speak Now, of course (notably about “Mean,” but most of these are non-sequiturs and I shall thus leave them out of this review), but nothing that hasn't been said before and nothing that I think transcends personal taste. Are there far too many songs about love? Yes. It's Taylor Swift, of course there are! But, as they say, write what you can write, and Taylor Swift can write a bloody fantastic love song.
Be wary, however; Speak Now will most certainly alienate anyone who still expects to hear pure country music, but it's almost guaranteed to bring in anyone who's just looking for a good time. Speak Now is an album sure to impress Taylor Swift die-hards and newbies alike - although it, like any good album, may take a few listens to really stick.
Key Tracks:
“Speak Now”
“Dear John”
“The Story of Us”
“Enchanted”
“Haunted”
