It’s the 13th year of Taylor Swift’s music career and, for anyone who doesn’t know about her not-so-subtle obsession with the number 13, this was always going to be a big year for the star. The hype for her 7th album, Lover, has been huge and it does not disappoint.
Lover is an album which expresses love in all its forms: romantic, self and friendship. As a die hard Swiftie who never fails to scream along to ‘Love Story’ when it is inevitably played at PopTarts, finally getting to hear an album from Taylor that is about true love and happiness rather than heartbreak fills me with so much joy. The album takes you on a gentle journey of discovering love and Taylor’s lyrics at the end of the final song ‘Daylight; truly encompass what Lover is all about: “you are what you love”.
The album is filled with soft, romantic songs such as the titular ‘Lover’ and ‘The Archer’ that feel perfect for slow dancing on summer nights and they set the tone for Swift’s most loved up album to date. Yet the album also doesn’t fail to include some empowering bops like ‘You Need To Calm Down’ and ‘The Man’ which highlight Taylor’s focus on LGBTQ+ and women’s rights. The album also features collaborations with Brendan Urie (on ‘Me!’ the most fun song of the album) and The Dixie Chicks (on ‘Soon You’ll Be Better’, the saddest song of the album) as well as a surprise voice cameo from Idris Elba in ‘London Boy’.
A favourite album track is ‘Paper Rings’ (although this will probably change on a daily basis!). The song mixes the romantic message of the album with the more uplifting beats of her lead single ‘Me!’. It’s a classic love song that you can’t help but dance along to.
Lover is an album that proves how Swift’s music is always going to evolve but also how it’s not going to fit into a cookie cutter, pop mould. It’s exciting, uplifting and beautifully romantic. It’s an album that can be played over and over again (and that’s exactly what I’ll be doing!).
5/5 stars
Image: Republic Records
