By Ellis Frederick ’12, Contributor
It’s almost impossible to not be biased while listening to and reviewing a Taylor Swift CD. I am a seventeen-year-old girl and I should fall perfectly under Swift’s spell. She’s this sweet, curly-haired girl who just wants to find love and gets upset when her heart is broken. Her songs are a teenage girl’s diary put to music. Speak Now, her third release, is not much different from these other albums, but it shows noticeable lyrical and musical developments. The problem is that Swift has decided to reveal everything, including names and dates, on this record, which doesn’t put her in a good light.
The album’s lead-off track and first single, “Mine,” is Swift at her finest. Her lyrics have improved since 2008’s Fearless and she is as adorable as ever. “Sparks Fly” and “Speak Now” are similar in that they use the Taylor Swift formula: catchy songs that teenage girls can relate to. This is Swift doing what she does best. She also shines on “Enchanted” and “Mean.” “Enchanted” is an absolutely beautiful arrangement of violins and pretty lyrics, and Swift’s vocals are stronger than ever. “Mean” is a perfect return to what Swift should be doing: country. Her country twang temporarily returns to her voice and there is banjo and fiddle from beginning to end. It fits her surprisingly well, and is a standout on the mostly pop album.
The problem lies in songs like “Dear John”, “Back to December”, “Better Than Revenge”, and “Innocent”. With a guitar line similar to John Mayer’s and mentions of an age gap (Swift was 19, Mayer was 32), the song is quite obviously about Mayer, who featured Swift on his song “Half of My Heart.” “Back to December” is about Taylor Lautner, which is easy to figure out, since Swift and Lautner broke up in December of 2009 and he has tan skin that Swift admits she misses. “Better Than Revenge” is allegedly about Camilla Belle, who “took [Joe Jonas] faster than you can say sabotage” and “is an actress.” Swift performed “Innocent” at this year’s VMAs with a montage of the Kanye West incident playing on a screen behind her. If that’s not a hit-you-with-a-brick kind of hint that Swift uses increasingly, I don’t know what is.
It’s almost disturbing to hear Swift sing about her personal life so openly, for it destroys the relatable image she’s created. She tries to convey that she’s a normal girl who goes through the same guy-related troubles as any other girl. But, as another girl, I must say that I have not dated a bluesy guitarist or the werewolf in Twilight. I have never had to deal with a somewhat-famous actress stealing my boyfriend and Kanye West has yet to interrupt me at the VMA’s . I understand that Swift has had these issues and wants to let her feelings out, but she could at least respect the privacy of those that inspired her songs. Mayer should be especially mad because Swift makes him out to be a horrible person. In that respect, isn’t she as bad as him? She seeks revenge on everybody who wrongs her, and it’s quite childish for the now-adult Swift.
Despite some great songs, Speak Now is inconsistent. It seems that Taylor Swift has lost her down-to-earth charm. She has given up her country roots in favor of a more marketable sound. She’s had high-profile relationships and scandals, most of which she uses to further her career by shamelessly name-dropping them in her songs. In some of them, she comes off as rude and selfish. Most importantly—and most unfortunately—she has failed to relate to her young, female fans. And once she loses that fan base, she may never recover.
Photo courtesy of http://justjared.buzznet.com/2010/08/18/taylor-swift-speak-now-album-cover-revealed/