Taylor Swift’s highly awaited album The Tortured Poets Department has arrived. As a fan, I wanted to note my live reactions to the entire project, track by track during my first listen. Read and listen below.
1. Fortnight
– lowkey the ai tiktok version was better (or at least more my vibe). i need to read the lyrics for the whole album before i make a full verdict but i didn’t love this one also post’s feature was a lot less than i expected it to be.
– the chorus is incredibly catchy. definitely see why this has become the album’s lead single.
2. The Tortured Poets Department
– “I scratch your head, you fall asleep” is such a fucking cute lyric.
– oh come on. “now you take my ring off my middle finger and put it on the one people put wedding rings on and that’s the closest i’ve come to my heart exploding”. about Matty Healy? REALLY!? HIM!?!?!? AFTER A 6 YEAR RELATIONSHIP? idk man. weird vibes (to me personally).
3. My Boy Only Breaks His Favorite Toys
– my favourite by far at this point.
– i’m only 20 seconds in but yeah my fav so far.
– incredible
– cést magnifique
– living rent free in my head for the next week
– lyrically and sonically the first song in the album to make me want to hit repeat
4. Down Bad
– i think i really like the lyrics, from what i can tell, but i don’t love the tune/melody.
– “now i’m down bad crying at the gym” and “fuck it if i can’t have him i might just die it won’t make no difference” are such relatable lyrics.
– I can see myself playing this on loop during a solo late night drive.
5. So Long, London
– the way the opening vocals sound like wedding chimes/bells. She’s insane.
– love how much this links back to her previous lyrics on older work like “i’d marry you with paper rings”, “give you my wild, give you a child” and “i wouldn’t marry me either” etc.
– ok this is another favourite for me.
– “i kept calm and carried” the british-ism of it all.
– “my spine’s split from carrying us up the hill” hurts my heart.
– ok yeah i love this one. this is the 2nd one that has instantly been a hit for me.
– AKJSFDKULWYERLFDKJH “AND YOU SAY I ABANDONED THE SHIP BUT I WAS GOING DOWN WITH IT” FUCK OFFFFFF
– “MY WHITE KNUCKLE DYING GRIP” SHUT THE FUCK UPPPPPP THIS SONG IS SO GOOD.
– “and you’re not sure if he wants to be there” oh yeah fuck my heart is hurting with this one.
– “how much tragedy” “just how low did you think i’d go before i’d self implode” oh fuck this might be my favourite song now
– the stacked harmonies is probably another reason i love this song specifically
– “had a good run” is such a simple and common phrase but still for me some of the saddest lyrics in this song
– yeah this song is a hit.
6. But Daddy I Love Him
– is not what i expected.
– “these people only raise you to cage you” is such a sad way for her to feel about her fans growing up alongside her but sometimes holding her back/stopping her from getting/having what she wants (as the consensus is this song’s about MH)
– “Stay away from her the saboteurs protested too much” where are all the swifties that screamed at Matty to leave her alone, y’all real quiet now huh
– “I know it’s crazy But he’s the one I want I’ll tell you something right now I’d rather burn my whole life down Than listen to one more second of all this bitchin’ and moanin’ I’ll tell you something ’bout my good name It’s mine along with all the disgrace” GREAT lyrics.
– i don’t like MH. and i didn’t like taylor with him (but whatever i didn’t really care just wasn’t my preference) but these lyrics are such a great fuck you to the fans who really tried to actively stop them being together (which is also wild)
7. Fresh Out The Slammer
– the intro guitar is pretty.
– i don’t love this. it’s very eh sonically (to me). i also don’t like my interpretation that she’s “fresh out the slammer” (i.e. jail / a bad relationship she felt trapped in or unhappy in) and now she’s already got a guy lined up she’s been waiting to call as soon as she gets out
– i know it’s not that literal. but the general idea of going from a long-term deep connection to feeling excited to run into someone’s arms you’ve been waiting for makes me feel icky.
8. Florida!!!
– SO GOOD! 5 SECONDS IN BUT GREAT
– stunning cadence.
– i miss her showing off her vocals a little more though. this whole album i’ve not heard super vocally impressive from her.
– FLORENCE!!!!! I FORGOT FLORENCE & THE MACHINE IS ON THIS SONG WTF SHE SOUNDS SO GOOD!!!!!
-“so i did my best to lay to rest all the bodies that had ever been on my body” is a crazy lyric
– Florida is definitely another favourite for me.
– florence’s voice adds so much to this song.
– LITTLE DID YOU KNOW !!!!!!! yeah. i’m here for it.
– is that a tambourine i hear? such a cute lil detail.
– i want to replay this song already but i want to finish the whole album first
9. Guilty as Sin?
– “they’re gonna crucify me anyway” stood out to me. i didn’t catch what came before so there’s zero context to the lyrics but it’s the only thing about this album that jumped out at me.
10. Who’s Afraid of Little Old Me?
– i’m already really excited for this just based off the title and what i’ve seen others say about it.
– 5 seconds in, i like the intro. it’s definitely one i like more. there’s potential for it to become a fav…
– ALKJSDLKFJSLF THE WAY SHE LIKE SCREAMED “WHO’S AFRAID OF LITTLE OLD ME” then paused and almost whispered “you should be”. YUH.
– she’s got me in a chokehold on this song. love.
11. I Can Fix Him (No Really I Can)
– “like a freight train through a small town” immediately made me think of a classic americana bruce springstein type lyric. she’s really coming for that miss americana title.
– “they shook their heads saying god help her when i told them he’s my man” has such a nice flow the way it rolls of her tongue.
– “but woah maybe i can’t” at the end finally admitting maybe she can’t fix him kinda had me gagged not gonna lie
– the drums are also really sending me. i feel this song in my bones.
– the way she screams “who’s afraid of little old me” is terrific. shoutout to all the girls who are gonna play this one and scream it in their cars.
12. loml
– hm. i saw a swiftie tweet a while ago it would be cool if she sung out different things loml could stand for in this song outside of the obvious love of my life and i really liked that concept so feel like i’m already coming into this with an idea which never helps
– “i felt a glow like this never before and never since” ooooft. that hurts
– “you said i’m the love of your life………….. about a million times” there it is.
– the piano is really nice. this sounds bad but this is the kinda song i wanna see swifties make their own renditions of with their own lyrics on tiktok.
– “i felt a hole like this never before and never since” taylor ilysfm but the abundant heartbreak songs that have come before this album (and will surely come after) indicate otherwise
– i’m sorry i can’t take her seriously when she sings “mister steal your girl”
13. I Can Do It With a Broken Heart
– why does the background sound like a festival/carnival? i feel like i hear kids laughing and people talking?
– “cause i’m a real tough kid i can handle my shit” ah ok maybe the connection?
– “he said he’d love me all his life” i like this alot too
– OOOOO THE LITTLE DISCO BITS
– is disco the next big pop trend? ariana did it alot on eternal sunshine and now some of taylor’s album has vibes of it. idk if any of this makes sense.
– i do really like the hook “cause i’m a real tough kid i can handle my shit”
14. The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived
– “Was any of it true?” has to be one of the most common questions asked at the end of romantic relationships.
– overall this song is a skip for me. Very eh.
15. The Alchemy
– did she say “these chemicals hit me like white lines” ???? or am i deaf?
– “i haven’t come around in so long, but i’m coming back so strong” is giving reputation vibes
– this song is very wordy and i can’t hear everything so i will be needing a lyric sheet to break it down for me to fully appreciate.
– melodically, it’s eh for me. i don’t mind. but slightly bland.
16. Clara Bow
– also really flat.
-I don’t want to be a hater but a lot of songs on this album, unless they have a strong drum beat, are super forgettable. They all kind merge into one after a while. And that’s coming from a swiftie who wants to love it.
– i’m struggling to keep my attention going during this song.
– i feel like nothing from this song is absorbing into my brain. and instrumentally nothing dramatic and interesting is keeping me attentive.
Overall, there are definitely some great songs that may become my favourites in her entire discography (such as Florida!!!; So Long, London; Down Bad; and My Boy Only Breaks His Favourite Toys) but as an overall artwork I fear the creative direction and promotion may be stronger than the work itself… I do tend to need multiple listens to fully comprehend and appreciate Taylor’s albums though so hopefully this grows on me.
