Whether you love or hate her, everyone has an opinion of Taylor Swift and her music. Swift recently embarked on the most successful tour of all time, the Eras Tour, which spanned 149 shows in 51 cities, 21 countries, in 2 and a half years, with over 10 million tickets sold. And with her most recent move, Taylor Swift has stayed at the top of her industry and continues to climb with the release of her 12th studio album, The Life of a Showgirl.
Swift returns to two of her previous collaborators, Max Martin and Shellback, who she collaborated with in 2014. In doing so, she abandons long time collaborator Jack Antonoff for the first time since 1989, released in 2014.
This shift in collaborators is immediately noticed with the change of production in Showgirl; gone are the overtly shimmery synths and reverb, and in comes 70s-like guitars and drums. Almost more shocking compared to records from the past, Showgirl holds a humble 12 tracks and 41-minute length, with no deluxe edition or bonus tracks; a dramatic change for the Taylor Swift of the 2020s.
The album starts with the radio-ready lead single, “The Fate of Ophelia,” a catchy kickoff to the album. “Saved my heart from the fate of Ophelia,” sings Swift, referencing Shakespeare’s heroine in Hamlet, in which Ophelia tragically drowned. An undeniable highlight off the record and in Swift’s single run, with a slick chorus and a grooving melody. On “Elizabeth Taylor,” Swift returns thematically and musically to her 6th studio album, Reputation. Swift sings charismatically in the hook “Be my NY when Hollywood hates me//You’re only as hot as your last hit baby.” . With feminine and soft verses and a punchy chorus, “Elizabeth Taylor” sells not only the Showgirl aesthetic featured across promotions, but the character Swift seems to play with across the record. “Opalite” is a groovy track with slick guitars and a sticky melody, with very Swiftian themes in the writing. “Ruin The Friendship” sees a return to form on the record and places Taylor back in a familiar setting:high school. This entire track reads as “classic Taylor,” from the Abigail mention to the passing of advice in the last chorus; it’s a breath of fresh air. “Father Figure,” one of the more interesting songs on the record, features an interpolation of George Michael’s song with the same name.
Sadly, the album’s highs can’t save it from a large portion of it feeling confused, lost, and awkward. “Eldest daughter,” the coveted track five sees a song with sweet and endearing sentiments conflicting with awkward and corny lyrics. The bridge, which should be a beloved moment on the record, is immediately overlooked in favor of cringing when she says “But I’m not a bad bitch//And this isn’t savage.” The pretty progression, melody, and lush instrumentation aren’t enough to keep you invested after hearing the lyrics. In attempting to modernize a cliché idea on “Wi$h Li$t,” the song ends up with fragmented and boring writing. “CANCELLED!” has some of the record’s darkest and dramatic production and sees another reference to the themes of Reputation: “Now they’ve broken you like they’ve broken me// But a shattered glass is a lot more sharp.” Swift doesn’t rehash anything in an interesting way here; Swift herself has done the commentary better and the production is an amalgamation of tracks on Reputation. Though the track is executed well enough, there’s nothing special about this song that supports the space it’s taking up on this album or in her discography.
The curtain call of the album, the titular track “The Life of a Showgirl” featuring fellow pop star Sabrina Carpenter, sees Taylor embracing the life of a showgirl all good and bad: “Now I know the life of a showgirl babe//Wouldn’t have it any other way.” With a bridge reminiscent of a showtune, a theatrical feature on behalf of Sabrina Carpenter, though anticlimactic and straightforward in production, it’s an acceptable ending to an acceptable project.
Overall, The Life of a Showgirl is a good pop album, but a strange addition to Swift’s discography. The existence of this album is a direct response to the criticism that have been plaguing Swift for the past couple of years, no Jack Antonoff, shorter track list, and a cohesive vision. Yet it’s still not “just right”. It feels as though there is a disconnect between Swift’s artistry and ambition. Making an album for mass consumption when you’re so disconnected from the average consumer seems to be the cause of the awkwardness emanating from this record. There is either a misunderstanding of what made Swift such a compelling writer to begin with or a forgetfulness of how to be that writer again. In trying to maintain the momentum of the Eras Tour and being the most prominent artist of modern times, Swift’s artistry has taken the biggest hit. Though Showgirl is a fine pop record, it signals that Taylor Swift has finally plateaued, artistically speaking.
Highlights: The Fate of Ophelia, Father Figure, Ruin The Friendship, Elizabeth Taylor, Opalite
Low points: Eldest Daughter, Wi$h Li$t, CANCELLED!
Rating: 6.9