Taylor Swift - reputation (Album Review)

While better than initially expected, Taylor Swift releases the worst, and most "personal", album of her career.

Release date: 10 November 2017
Record label: Big Machine
Genre: Pop
Best songs: "New Year's Day", "Dancing With Our Hands Tied", "Getaway Car"
Worst songs: "Dress", "Gorgeous", "End Game" (ft. Future and Ed Sheeran), "This Is Why We Can't Have Nice Things", "King of My Heart", "So It Goes..."
Rating: 4/10

See, I love Taylor Swift. She's not only my all-time celebrity crush (I guess), but she's a really good musician, with a knack for good hooks, a good instrumentalist and songwriter, and has a lot of charisma and personality in her voice. But just because you have all that, it doesn't mean the album is going to be good. Now, I knew this was going to happen. She'd find someone, and she'd be all lovey-dovey about it. But is it actually good? Well...

I suppose we'll talk about the good songs first. We get the beautiful piano ballad "New Year's Day", about holding on to the good and bad memories, as they're both valuable. While the production is sparse, and her voice isn't the greatest (my main issue is it's a bit airy), but really I don't have too much issue with this track. It's kind of being appreciative of her past, and not letting that bring her down. The issues of the past can often help you improve and I think she's finally realized that. Another song I really like is "Getaway Car". It's pretty damn catchy, and the comparison to how being in a getaway car is similar to a certain relationship in the fact that "nothing good happens at the end". The references to Bonnie and Clyde actually work here, she knows it isn't going to work out between them, it's going to end badly. And is there perhaps some admittance to cheating on here? Now, this is speculation, don't attack, but labeling yourself a "traitor" and that you turned him in is pretty alarming, especially when you connect to other songs, indicating she was interested while she was still in a relationship. And really, "Look What You Made Me Do" fit nowhere on this record. Doesn't match the theme, and it's far more dark than really... anything. Now, Taylor often has this issue constantly on this record, and I'll get to it later, when she talks about Joe Alwyn, her boyfriend, and it really just misses the mark. Well, one where I feel it does actually work is "Dancing With Our Hands Tied". Granted, there is that line about a "sacred oasis", which is just really gross. That aside, while she kept dating guys, I remember her saying (can't remember when to be honest), that due to her celebrity status, she'd likely remain single. Which does make me sympathize, because she seems like an awesome person. Well, now, she seems to have found "the one", even though the odds may seem against them in this industry, as being in the spotlight seems to hurt a lot of couples. She was able to keep this under wraps for quite a while and she seems to love this guy more than ever.

And I say this because I wouldn't be surprised if Swifties go and call me jealous for not liking the sex songs on this album. And I guess that could be part of it. Blatant sexuality like the lyrics of "Dress" or "So It Goes..." just come off as really too try-hard. "I only bought this dress so you could it off", how much your hands are shaking from all this moaning, and the "scratches on your back". But she does look hot in black, so I appreciate the imagery I guess? But seriously, first off, I don't need to hear how much good fucking you're getting, and really, it sounds like it comes from a Disney star who just turned 18 and discovered she can be "sexy" now. I mean, come on. She's even making alcohol references a whole lot more now, and it comes off as lot more mature and lot less corny. A lot of this sexiness seems forced. And while "...So It Goes" is a bit catchy, the spareness of the instrumentation at points can show off just how bare-boned her vocals can be. Not much weight to them. And the airiness of "Dress"'s vocals do make sense with the message, but she sounds far sensual and sexy in her lower range, and it has this awkward rhythmic cadence. Look, "This Is Why We Can't Have Things" was fine for a bit, but it does sound like it could have come from '1989'. And the vocal quirks, especially that laugh, was cringey as fuck. Or some of the odd "Drama!" sounds to her voice. Same with "Gorgeous", which starts off with that irritating baby voice which annoys me every time I hear it. "I Did Something Bad" was alright, how she kinda acknowledges she liked being bad, but the "da da da" just... no.

On "End Game", Future is uninteresting in his typical mumble rap drawl that's very uninteresting. And it's just as very generic except for the parts that aren't great. Ed Sheeran's more melodic "rap" delivery may come off as better as than Future's, but he did it better on "Galway Girl" on his latest album. Plus, why get them on a song? I get Sheeran's your friend, but he's been boring for quite a bit for the most part, and Future's one of the worst hip-hop artists with a big following right now. And "King Of My Heart", while I like the sentiment, those robotic vocaloid-esque vocals are a huge turn-off for me. They're usually only good on an actual vocaloid song. And really, besides the references to exes and their expensive cars, there is nothing that puts this outside generic territory.

And really, that's my problem throughout a lot of this record. Her tracks towards Joe, all this lovey-dovey stuff, it just doesn't work for me, they're often pretty by-the-numbers. Usually when there's references like this, I can at least put myself in her shoes, and feel like it's believable for the most part. I couldn't do it often here. I can't believe I'm doing this, but... 4/10, and I think I'm being generous. The lyrical content is decent this time around (save some cringey as hell lines). If it gets a lot of listens for me, it'll be just for filler. But check out "New Year's Day", "Dancing With Our Hands Tied". and "Getaway Car". I can't recommend this. It's bad when you're trying to like songs because they're from Taylor Swift and not because they're good. She's completely manufactured, and seems to have become a product of her label, which is disappointing. There's not much for a normal person to grab onto here. And I'm astonished how this is her most well-received record (at least from the public given its debut sales), because as someone who is kinda toting the fan/not fan line at this point... this is very much trying my patience.

So yeah. This'll be controversial. If you heard it, let me know what you think. Respectfully disagree please, if you're going to disagree. But feel free to call me a faggot, and out of touch if you want, I guess.

Drake Bell Is A Sellout... And I'm Disappointed

Ah, Drake. How I respected you. 

Drake Bell, known for his role as Drake Parker as the hit Nickelodeon series Drake & Josh (of which won him 9 Kids Choice Awards), the voice of Spider-Man on Disney XD's Ultimate Spider-Man, as Timmy Turner in the Fairly Odd Parents live-action trilogy, and his starring role in the feature film Superhero Movie, has officially sold out. He has also released legitimately great albums like the pop rock/alt rock "Telegraph", the powerpop "It's Only Time", and the EP "A Reminder". And while the rockabilly mostly cover album "Ready Steady Go!" was underwhelming for me, it was still a good album, and he got a lot of fan and critical support with this, like all of his releases so far. 

Then... he released this.

Which seemed to divide his fans. While the like/dislike ratio is overwhelmingly on the like side like all his videos are, looking at the comments tell a different story. Why the backlash? Well, while Drake does explain to fans with a smug and arrogant attitude that "we play all the instruments", and "If you had any idea what kind of musicianship is needed to make what you just heard you'd get it". I get people had an issue with the more electronic pop/dance sound. Now, me personally, I'm fine with that. If he wanted to branch out like he's done that's fine. You can make pop music and still be good. But then this comment he made, just shit all over whatever positive thoughts I had for these upcoming songs.

In the image above, Bell states when referring to the more rock and roll side he's played the past couple of years: "Remember when no one buys that kind of music anymore? If you guys actually went out and bought my records I'd be able to make the kind of records you want but until you guys actually support me I gotta play the game". And apparently, that's also why he left Surfdog Records, because of the low sales of Ready Steady Go! (it sold 2,000 copies in its debut week). Because not a lot a people bought the album. Now... I remember him saying when he was making his rockabilly album, he said this: "I don't care if people buy it or not, or come to see the shows or not... I'm gonna make the record I've always wanted to make". (Video here for reference)

So, it's clear Drake Bell has officially sold out, and is a huge hypocrite, as in that interview posted above, he talked about how other child stars fall off the rails and criticized Justin Bieber for his DUI, then... got a DUI. While I can't confirm this, as I don't know him personally, but from these comments, his whole "nice guy, happy all the time" attitude... is fake as hell, and is just to keep up his public appearance in the media, keep it positive, because not only did he sell out and constantly judged pop music, while later heading in that direction to make money, he comes off as a huge... well, I don't wanna say asshole, that's not that accurate. I can compare him to Kanye West - someone who often makes good music, but their ego turns them into massive pricks. He responds to me on YouTube and others with comments like: "They will be out very soon! THank You!!" and "Thank You! I'm really excited about these new songs!", like he's appreciative, when his other comments say otherwise. He's either two-faced, or bipolar. If the latter, I apologize and should not be ranting on you for your mental illness. But all in all, I'm still a fan... for now. I appreciate the fact he's still using real instruments and still keeping some artistry there. But man, this is not a good sign going forward. And I'm not so sure how much longer I can deal with his bullshit. You keep saying you want to collaborate with Paul McCartney, but is he really going to want to do anything with you? Well, he worked with Kanye West and Rihanna, so actually maybe. This album better be good Drake, or me, along with likely many other fans, will leave you, and you can sellout to make pop music for the general public, losing all your artistic integrity along the way. He tries to liken himself to a street musician (as evidenced in his video "I Know"), and really, one of those street musicians would kill to have the success you've had! And you're not even appreciative! You know... the funniest thing is, I left a comment on that video of the new song saying I hope it becomes a hit. But Drake... if you're doing this for money like it shows... I wish you the best of luck, but at the same time, I kinda hope it does worse than your older music, so he'll go back to the older stuff. Or maybe if and when he gets mainstream popularity, he can try doing more of his older music again.

Sorry, I may have come off as a little bitter, especially since I'll probably not care and like the songs anyway, but I haven't had a great past couple of weeks, and this just... man, to see a great entertainer like Drake Bell fall so far... it's just sad, you know? Let me know of what you think about this, either in the comments below, or in the replies on my posting of this article to Billboard.

Taylor Swift - 1989: Album Review

Taylor Swift goes even more so into pop, with a better performance, but still lukewarm.

Release date: 27 October 2014

Genre: Pop/Synthpop

Best songs: "Style", "How You Get The Girl", "I Wish You Would", "Clean"

Worst songs: "Welcome To New York", "Shake It Off"

Rating: 6/10.

Let me start out by saying, I was a huge fan of Taylor Swift. I loved “Tim McGraw”, “Our Song”, “Love Story”, “Dear John”, “Mean”, pretty much her entire discography. She always had a knack for good hooks, so I don’t see why she had to turn to pop. She was successful enough in her previous genre.

So, 1989. The album that sold over 1.2 million in the United States in its first week alone. The review is obviously going to be contentious, so just respect my opinion here. I tend to talk about the singles first, so “Shake It Off”. While not being outright terrible, it honestly was a disappointment. I heard that Taylor was going full pop, and I didn’t mind that, if she could do it well. Sure, it has a catchy melody and the hook, while repetitive, sticks in your head well, the production is basic, and the “white-girl rapping” is not all that great. Also, I don’t tend to like anti-hater anthems, because making the song just shows how much it affects you. We do get a good follow-up with “Blank Space”, nice production, good hook, and it shows a more “adult” tone. Problem being, it doesn’t seem like her. It doesn’t seem honest, and that is what I always loved about her. She didn’t have to make a cover-up, she was herself, at least that’s the impression I got. Third single “Style” is a pure gem. It tells about how both partners are realizing that they screwed up, and they both have problems, shows a great deal a maturity. The 80s style guitar carries a very nice melody. Now we get to the polarizing “Bad Blood”, which honestly, I didn’t hate the album version, carrying a much more darker tone, it’s an alright song. Now the Kendrick Lamar featured remix, now I could go on about how bad that one is, but it’s not part of this album, so no bitching there. Then we get “Wildest Dreams”, a low-key sex song that really isn’t to my taste, though it could be, knowing Taylor as a teenager, I just can’t see her being 24 like she is here. It’s a good version of say, Lana Del Rey. It isn’t bad, but again, not for me. After is “Out Of The Woods”, which I like, but not as a single. The echoing vocals and 80s production works fine enough. Finally, we get the final and seventh single, “New Romantics”. I actually like quite a bit, with the synth and just being a feel-good anthem with the line “the best people in life are free” (though it should be pointed out she likely does not even know what the “New Romantics” is).

Now we have to get to the album tracks and… “Welcome To New York”, the opening track. Overproduced, cheesy, and just for the most part, boring. I had fun with it at first, but now… it’s just filler. Then we get “All You Had To Do Was Stay”, and really, it’s a pretty good song, but I will say the high head voiced “Stay!” on the hook… I’m going to paraphrase Shane Dawson here and say it sounds like someone is shoving something big up her ass. “I Wish You Would” sounds great, saying that she knows the relationship wouldn’t work, and she wish it did. Though the “You always knew how to push my buttons” line is kinda goofy, whatever. “How You Get The Girl” is a nice acoustic track that could’ve fit on her other albums. I like the heartfelt, stripped-back sentiment of giving advice to a guy who wants a girl back. “Clean” is a gorgeous cut as well.

All in all, this album could have been great, but it’s barely good. She’s playing a persona it seems and doesn’t seem too honest most of the time. She's playing off other artists rather than being herself and what makes her unique. It’s a strong 6/10 and I’m recommending it, but really it’s a modest one, and she could do better.

Your own rating of 1989?