I've never been a huge fan of Taylor Swift but a couple of years ago I started listening to her occasionally, and at some point I just realized I really enjoyed her music. I got used to listening to her while I was at work, because she relaxes me, and sometimes my job, specially with the pandemic (I work as a HR manager, writing articles like this one, and everything is being overwhelming lately), can get really stressful. However, a few months ago she released a whole new album, Folklore, and even though I've been listening to it a few times, it doesn't get me as much as other of her albums. Does this happen to somebody else? Do you think I just have to keep listening to it, or I should just keep listening to the songs I already like?

[Edited 9/21/20 6:02am]

I'm just getting into her and so far I think Folklore is one of her very best albums. Lover is nother one good album, specially the title track

I was never a fan of Taylor Swift, except I realized there were a lot of songs that made me feel good that I heard while walking through a store/mall or just listening to a local radio station on the job.

I decided to check out her last album just because the packaging caught my eye, and I liked it.
I followed up for Folklore, and it feels very mature and introspective. I actually like it.

Betty sounds very Bob Dylan specially with that harmonica at the very beginning.

[Edited 10/14/20 14:51pm]

Really nice album and although there isn't much variation in pace or style it manages to hold my attention throughout. Well done Tay.

I looooove the new songs I heard - Betty and August!!! Will check out the others!

By far her best album ever and a candidate for best album of the year. Her songwriting it top notch here now that she is not aiming for the preteens. She always has had some talent in that area, but really didn't utilize it when she was shooting for the huge hits. In addition to her songwriting, the influences of Bon Iver and the National take this album to a new level for her. I have always really have liked The National and Bon Iver, but some of their work can be a real downer (esp. The National). Their melancholic yet gorgeous music here provides the perfect backdrop to highlight the lyrics and her singing. No, she doesn't have the best voice but without her typical sugary pop vocalizations she does the music and lyrics justice.

A duet with Bob Dylan in this album should have worked great.

It started with imagery. Visuals that popped into my mind and piqued my curiosity. Stars drawn around scars. A cardigan that still bears the scent of loss twenty years later. Battleships sinking into the ocean, down, down, down. The tree swing in the woods of my childhood. Hushed tones of "let's run away" and never doing it. The sun drenched month of August, sipped away like a bottle of wine. A mirrored disco ball hovering above a dance floor. A whiskey bottle beckoning. Hands held through plastic. A single thread that, for better or for worse, ties you to your fate. Pretty soon these images in my head grew faces or names and became characters. I found myself not only writing my own stories, but also writing about or from the perspective of people I've never met, people I've known, or those I wish I hadn't.

— Swift in the primer for Folklore, Billboard



The photos for the album, shot by photographer Beth Garrabrant, are characterized by a grayscale, black and white filter. Swift styled herself for the photoshoot, including her own hair and makeup. The digital cover artwork depicts Swift in a misty forest with a morning fog in the distance, standing alone, wearing a long, double-breasted plaid coat over a white prairie dress, gazing "in awe" at the height of a trees-meadow. On the backside cover, she stands turned away from the camera, wearing a slouchy flannel-lined denim jacket slumped around her arms, and a white lace frock, with two loose braided buns low towards her nape, similar to the American Girl doll Kirsten Larson. The album title is written in an italicized roman font, reminiscent of a "Chronicles of Narnia scrawl", indicating the folk atmosphere of the album.

https://www.youtube.com/w...sdoLjUNFnA

Taylor Swift – exile (feat. Bon Iver) (Official Lyric Video)

I only know her pre-2012 "country" albums are unlistenable; bland crap, irritating, not country, but "candy guitars+drums" bubblegum. Weak.

JoeTyler said:

I only know her pre-2012 "country" albums are unlistenable; bland crap, irritating, not country, but "candy guitars+drums" bubblegum. Weak.

YEP, clear you haven't listened to her latest one. Nothing bubblegum or country about ti.

gandorb said:

JoeTyler said:

I only know her pre-2012 "country" albums are unlistenable; bland crap, irritating, not country, but "candy guitars+drums" bubblegum. Weak.

YEP, clear you haven't listened to her latest one. Nothing bubblegum or country about ti.

I listened to it Saturday again, its beautiful. Almost feels like she is repentent.

OldFriends4Sale said:

gandorb said:

YEP, clear you haven't listened to her latest one. Nothing bubblegum or country about ti.

I listened to it Saturday again, its beautiful. Almost feels like she is repentent.

What do you mean by repentent?