FIRST REVIEW: THE TORTURED POETS DEPARTMENT
★★★★★
ON first listen, The Tortured Poets Department could be the first time Taylor Swift’s crown has slipped in years.
However, while there is no immediate “radio-friendly single”, that doesn’t mean her reign as queen of the music industry is over.
In fact, far from it.
It’s fair to say most, if not all, the songs are growers which quickly become stuck in the head after a couple of plays with infectious hooks and loops.
Lead single Fortnight, featuring rapper Post Malone, has all the markings to recreate the success of her juggernaut 2022 hit Anti-Hero and then some.
Lyrically, Taylor has never been stronger either.
In keeping with its name, Tortured Poets is essentially the past two years of Taylor’s life retold as poetry.
Peppered with similes and metaphors, the album is easily the most vulnerable, and brutal, Taylor has ever released.
Standout tracks include pop number I Can Do It With A Broken Heart, The Prophesy, So High School and heartbreaking ballad Loml.
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The bridge in savage track Smallest Man Who Ever Lived is also one of the best of her career.
As she sings on the final track of the standard edition, Clara Bow: “The future’s bright… dazzling”.
And so her reign continues. I predict a 12th UK No 1 album is just around the corner.
