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For the last few days since the release of Taylor Swift's eleventh studio album, THE TORTURED POETS DEPARTMENT, my mind has been reeling about how to process and articulate a creative work of art this colossal, this magical, and this utterly Taylor.
Despite its over-two hour run time and diaristic lyrical density, the true genius of TTPD lies in what can be read between the lines. It's a culmination of all the pieces that have created the astronomically successful puzzle that is Taylor Swift music over the last 18 years while also breaking ground into something brand new. Tapping into the lyrical chaos of Taylor Swift, the devastatingly beautiful heartbreak of Red, the devil-may-care attitude of Reputation, the grounding indie-acoustic storytelling of Folklore and Evermore, and the glittery haze pop of Midnights, THE TORTURED POETS DEPARTMENT emerges as something that transcends an album-- it's a collection of songs that is tangible rather than describable. And this is not a project that can be consumed and understood in a single go; it unearths a new gift with each listen, revealing poetic melodies, lyrics that explain the unexplainable, production that mimics emotional turmoil (or should I say torture?), and the liberating hope that even the deepest heartbreak can foster a masterpiece.
Stand-out tracks: "So Long, London" "But Daddy I Love Him" "Who's Afraid of Little Old Me?" "I Can Do it With a Broken Heart"
My favorites: "My Boy Only Breaks His Favorite Toys" "Guilty as Sin?" "loml" "The Alchemy"
While I was one of those people who not-so-delusionally stayed up until 2am on TTPD release night to witness the surprise release of THE ANTHOLOGY half of the album, I didn't have the composure to do anything but run around and shriek and listen to the additional fifteen tracks with bleary eyes when they hit streaming. Therefore, this review will focus on the original TTPD album. (THE ANTHOLOGY review is coming, but I need more time to process the other half of the album. Taylor may be super-human enough to release a double album while on The Eras Tour, but she overestimated my ability to process 31 songs all at once. Taylor, I love you, it's ruining my life.)
I Love You, It's Ruining My Life
"It's the worst men I write best." Virulent love that disguised itself as true love inspires album opener "Fortnight (feat. Post Malone)" and solo-written "My Boy Only Breaks His Favorite Toys." The prior is understated yet sharp, with stunningly complimentary Post Malone harmonies and scathing lyrics like "All my mornings are Mondays stuck in an endless February" and "What about your quiet treason?" The building production coupled with the effectively repetitive "I love you, it's ruining my life" makes Taylor's turmoil-turned-freedom palpable. "My Boy Only Breaks His Favorite Toys" sees the duo of Taylor and longtime collaborator Jack Antonoff flexing their metaphorical pop-banger wings to deconstruct the destruction of a tactless lover who "saw forever so he smashed it."
Taylor finds herself intoxicated with affection for worse or for better in "But Daddy I Love Him" and "The Alchemy." As she's "telling him to floor it through the fences" despite the fact that "He was chaos/He was revelry," "But Daddy I Love Him" gives the first taste of how Taylor's massive stardom has unpleasantly crept into her relationships: "I'd rather burn my life down than listen to one more second of all this bitchin' and moanin'." This almost feels like a nod to 2010's "Mean," with Taylor reminding that she'll always rise above the cacophony of criticism from those who don't even know her. However, intoxication doesn't always lead to tumultuous love; the stars finally align on "The Alchemy," with Taylor finding an indubitable, "once every few lifetimes" love after all the doubts and scars of her past: "I haven't come around in so long/But I'm making a comeback to where I belong." To the guy we can conclude this track is about: you know who you are, I love you.
Old Habits Die Screaming
Whether longing for comfort or trying to escape from loneliness, Taylor spins her diaristic tales in the style of the fictional characters from Folklore on tracks like "The Tortured Poets Department," "Fresh Out The Slammer" and "I Can Fix Him (No Really I Can)." These tracks feel like a reflection back on those lethal loves well after the chapter has closed, dissecting the little things made the heartbreak worth it.
Am I Allowed to Cry?
Infamous in the world of Taylor Swift, track five "So Long, London" embraces its role on the album as heartwrenching, reflective, and completely devastating. Folklore and Evermore collaborator Aaron Dessner lends pulsing, haunting production that illustrates the anxious tragedy of losing love: "I stopped CPR, after all, it's no use/The spirit was gone, we would never come to/And I'm pissed off you let me give you all that youth for free." While "So Long, London" is laced with some resentment, Aaron-produced "loml" vulnerably bares a heartbreak that will haunt her forever: "Your arson's match, your somber eyes/I'll see until I die/You're the loss of my life."
You Don't Get to Tell Me About Sad
While so many would cower in the face of heartbreak, Taylor emerges ferocious on tracks like sardonic "Down Bad," scorching "Florida!!! (feat. Florence + The Machine)", and fiercely triumphant "Who's Afraid of Little Old Me?" The latter is a different kind of heartbreak: "Cause you lured me, and you hurt me, and you taught me/You caged me, then you called me crazy/I am what I am cause you trained me/So who's afraid of me?" While a romantic heartbreak usually heals with time, life as a constant topic on people's tongues seems to have left Taylor feeling dehumanized and powerless. So no, we don't get to tell her about "sad."
Though spectators of The Eras Tour might believe“She’s having the time of her life/There in her glittering prime/The lights refract sequin stars off her silhouette every night," the cheeky, sparkly pop smash "I Can Do It With a Broken Heart" mimics the facade of putting on a smile on the biggest stage (physically and metaphorically) while coping with the most human of emotions. Composed as if it's Taylor's mental mid-show monologue, "Breaking down, I hit the floor/All the pieces of me shattered as the crowd was chanting 'More!,' and coupled with production elements like in-ear backing track and the bubbling of backstage chatter, this track will be added to the list of Songs Only Taylor Swift Could Write.
In Summation
As a Member of the Tortured Poets Department, I hereby declare that our Chairman, armed with quills and daggers, glitter and lace, pain and power, has penned one of the most noteworthy achievements of her illustrious career.
AM I OBSESSED?
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