And as long as that isn’t your entire existence, that’s fine. A real grownup can acknowledge that sometimes, they are the bad guy (a lesson Billie Eilish was clearly taking notes on throughout). You might be the messy one, the lost sheep, the sinner, the seducer. On Reputation, Swift has finally realized that being right or getting the last word isn’t the most important thing. She’s been brilliant since Speak Now, but there’s a difference between intelligence and emotional intelligence. More important than her pen remaining pointed, however, is the fact that for the first time on an album, Taylor sounds like an honest-to-god human. Which is a shame, because on Reputation, Swift’s words deliver vivid Polaroid shots directly to your brain: “The ties were black, the lies were white” “We can’t make any promises now, can we, babe? But you can make me a drink” “I bury hatchets but I keep maps of where I put ’em” and “Please don’t ever become a stranger whose laugh I could recognize anywhere.” While some bemoaned the loss of Swift the Poignant Couplet Composer starting with her shift to straight-up pop on 1989, the truth is that Swift’s deft turns of phrase never disappeared - it’s just that we’re preconditioned to privilege lyrics when they’re paired with acoustic guitars vs. But while those albums are fixated on love and loss, Reputation sinks its teeth into something far more interesting: the thrill and purpose of an artist hellbent on freeing their mind from the expectations of others.Īdmittedly, part of Reputation‘s genius lies in context - you need to know the public image battle that preceded it to fully appreciate the maturation Swift shows as a lyricist. Are the peaks quite as high? If we’re talking karaoke sing-alongs and wedding dancefloors, no - the best cuts on those two K.O. And while the tone is darker, the machine-precise hooks and indelible choruses from 1989 and Red return on Reputation, too. Most of Reputation caters in reflective synth-pop that isn’t a far cry from 1989: the lilting “Delicate,” the coyly seductive “Dress” and the playful “Gorgeous” are far more representative of the overall LP. In truth, the album openers are sonic red herrings - the Old Taylor wasn’t quite as dead as she’d tell us on that lead single.
Of course, if Reputation had been one stylistic detour after another, it would leave you with whiplash.
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