If there was one positive element to pick up this past, bizarre period then perhaps it was that people had a little more time for themselves and for others. Although an abundance of time is not optimal for everyone, it certainly gave a creative impulse to many artists
One artist who has gratefully made use of this abundance of time is Taylor Swift. On the eve of 2020, she unexpectedly released a second beautiful album. An album in the vein of the amazing Folklore that touched me personally tremendously in recent months. However, this new album also deserves the necessary attention. The new album Evermore was again produced by Aaron Dessner of The National and it must be said, the man knows what he is doing. Above all, he is a master of dosage. The instrumentation on this album is almost perfect and technically everything is back to normal.
Evermore
The dark, even pitch-black tone of this new album immediately stands out. Where there was still some hope on Folklore, here we are looking for a glimmer of light. In a way, this album perfectly expresses how a lot of people must have felt lately. The beauty of this album is to be found in the music itself and of course in the great voice of Taylor Swift.
Justin Vernon contributes once again on the title track Evermore which is a great closing track of the album. Matt Berninger provides fine support on Coney Island and Marcus Mumford, yes the one from Mumford and Sons, we find very strong on Cowboy like me. Swift remains a gifted storyteller and touches us again and again with her voice. On Evermore Tay Tay again mixes autobiographical elements with fictional characters which often leads you astray.
After a few weeks of listening, a number of songs stand out for us. Opening track “Willow” for example which is almost the perfect pop folk song due to its catchy chorus. “Champagne Problems” is texturally very strong and Tolerate it makes us shuffle uncomfortably in our seats.
“My love should be celebrated but you tolerate it”
she sings full of reproach. The song Happiness makes us anything but happy, tell me when did your winning smile, start to look like a smirk. Or how you look at someone completely differently after a breakup.
Surprise
Although the surprise effect is a bit gone on Evermore, it is too easy to describe this record as less good. After all, good music touches the soul and becomes a part of you. Lyrics haunt your mind for days and the feeling you have when you hear a song settles unexpectedly into your thoughts.
There are plenty of songs on Evermore that succeed in this. It is too early to say whether this record is better or worse than Folklore but the quality is definitely there. In any case, we are happy with this sequel and eagerly look forward to more.
