MIDNIGHTS

Sophia Cook
Nov 5, 2022
6 min read

Updated: Apr 4, 2023

Midnights has thrown me for a big fat enormous loop. I’m not sure what I was expecting this album to sound like, but I didn’t think much of it before its release on October 21st. If I anticipated anything, it would’ve been a somber record. Here is my opinion: I really can’t tell if Midnights is good or not. Upon initial listening, I didn’t like it. There were a few songs that stood out and I only listened to those for a few days. I became stubborn and didn’t even try to give the album a second chance. However, I knew I wanted to write this, so I’ve been sinking into this new era, and after a few more listens, I’m still conflicted, but in a different way. I no longer abhor this record, but I’ve come very fond of many lyrics. On the contrary, I don’t quite like the way that a lot of these tracks sound. Yes I like a lot of what Miss Taylor Swift is saying, but I’m not particularly fond of the way she sounds when she says it.

I do think that this album is a huge representation of Taylor Swift revealing some of the darkest parts of her mind, in a subtle way. What pointed this out to me wasn’t just the entirety of “You’re On Your Own, Kid”, but this line in “Mastermind”: “No one wanted to play with me as a little kid/So I’ve been scheming like a criminal ever since”. I don’t think that the entire album feels lonely, but there are definitely those sad lines that poke out from the synth covered record.

Tracks like “Vigilante Shit” and “Karma” were very reputation-esque. I thought they were fine, but they didn’t have the same flare that was upheld in “I Did Something Bad”. The bridge of “Vigilante Shit” is exactly what I had hoped the entire track would sound like. “Karma” is much more upbeat pop. Still though, it possesses the theme of revenge, but in a way where she’s more careless about what happens to her ‘enemies’. Swift claims that “You wouldn’t know what I mean”, in regards to her keeping to herself. I do think that these songs are good reflection stories, but I wish that they had more of a darker tone in the way that reputation did.

I ultimately think that I was taken aback by this album because I had gotten so used to folklore and evermore, and the more subtle, emotional, and folk style that Taylor Swift changed up to do. After the high expectations that those albums met, this seemed like she had taken several steps back. I do think that this album will get across best when you imagine that it’s a compilation of Taylor Swift’s different eras. I especially heard her revert back to her younger self in “Bejeweled”. The song is extremely pop inspired– a bit too much for my liking. The echoing “Nice!” in each chorus reminds me of something that would come out of a 2000s video game. There are some lines on this song that I’m fond of, such as “Familiarity breeds contempt/Don’t put me in the basement/When I want the penthouse of your heart”. That line in the chorus has just found its way into my brain and I’m not mad about it. “Question…?” is a questionable track for me. The verses aren’t bad; I like the melody and the structure of them. Despite this, I really don’t care for the chorus or the bridge of this song. It sounds like it could be off of 2019’s Lover, which isn’t a bad thing, but it’s just a lot of pop for me. I'm also not the biggest fan of the auto tune used at the end of the bridge on this track (I apologize for being extremely picky).

I’ve found that I’m more drawn to the more gentle songs, such as “Snow On The Beach” and “Labyrinth”. I was a “Snow On The Beach” hater when I first heard it because I was optimistic about the Lana Del Rey feature, only to be let down by her vocals slightly peeking through. However as I listened to it more, I’ve come to admire the song. The floating vocals, the light melody, the Rocky Horror shoutout during the bridge (“Now I’m all for you like Janet”). The song can be interpreted as a new and stumbling love that is “Weird but fuckin’ beautiful”. “Labyrinth” is another lovely song, but one that I’ve liked since first listening. There’s something enchanting about Swift’s storytelling in this song. “Labyrinth”, at least to me, is about a relationship that’s plummeting– the love was lost. Regardless, they pick one another back up. Swift sings, “I thought the plane was going down/How’d you turn it right around”. The song shows me what falling in love should be like: “You would break your back to make me break a smile”. This song is just beautiful, with Swift’s melody being light on the ears, and it has small synth cracks that bring life to the song. It has a good balance of sentimental and energetic.

Track two, “Maroon” is another gentle song that still has passion. It’s a song revolving around a past love that Swift had experienced. Whether it’s the scarlet of her flushed cheeks, mentions of rubies and roses, or the burgundy of wine she was drinking, she makes it clear that her love for him is red (pun intended, see “Red (Taylor’s Version)"). The arc of this song is one that I adored since I heard it, and even more as I examined the meaning behind the song. “Maroon” begins as a song that you think is going to have a happy ending. This relationship is pure and the two people that Swift is writing about have a love “Like you were my closest friend”. The first chorus states, “And I chose you”. However, closing that chorus, we hear “The rust that grew between telephones/The lips I used to call home”, assuming that the love had faded. Swift compares their love to “Carnations you had thought were roses/That’s us”, referring to the confusion of what feelings they had shared. She admits that, “I wake with your memory over me”, telling us that she has in fact lost this love. “Maroon” may be my favorite song on Midnights, and it’s definitely one of my all time favorites from Taylor Swift’s catalog. If you listen to any songs on this record, let it be “Maroon” and “You’re On Your Own, Kid”.

When it comes to the bonus tracks off Midnights (3am Edition), I enjoyed the majority of them. The weaker two out of the 7 deluxe songs for me would be “Glitch” and “Dear Reader”. The obvious song to talk about is “Would’ve Could’ve Should’ve”, which is rumored to be a follow up track to 2010’s “Dear John”, off of Speak Now. We all know where that’s going. The song is incredible, relating back to her mistakes at age 19, that again, her fans are familiar with. Instead of being a sad power ballad of confusion and loss, “Would’ve Could’ve Should’ve” is more of a rock song about anger and regret.

“Paris” is a really fun pop song. Swift embraces solitude with her lover by singing, “Privacy sign on the door/And on my page and on the whole world/Romance is not dead/If you keep it just yours”. Upon first listen I didn’t think much and just danced along to the song, but after listening deeper, I realized that it’s a little story of how Swift is content with her life and that she doesn’t care to indulge in other people’s drama. There are a few digs at social media, where she sings that, “I want to transport you to somewhere the culture’s clever”. Overall the song is an amazing addition to the record.

I mentioned that I didn’t like the track “Glitch”. This song is about the inevitable telling yourself that you’re done with someone, and mistakenly going back to them for a night. There’s nothing wrong with this, but I don’t think that the song sounds like Taylor Swift. I’m not sure why I can’t get completely behind this song, but it could be, like I’ve said before, the too much pop sound enabled by the 808s on this track.

I was hoping that after writing this, I’d have a better grip of where I stand with this album, but I’m still stumped. The more I talk about Midnights, the more I enjoy it, but part of me is tugging against that. I don’t necessarily think that these songs all belong compiled together. During my first listen to this record, my friends and I had brought up that it sounds like 1989 and reputation mixed together. When you look at them in the perspective that they should all be on different Swift albums, it starts to make sense. I guarantee that my opinion on Midnights will change at least a hundred times before my feelings have settled. This album is far from Taylor Swift’s best, but it’s definitely not a boring record.