Midnights, Taylor Swift’s 10th studio album, released on October 21st at midnight, is already breaking records by selling 800,000 records on the first day in the US. As well as the most streams on day one on Spotify and Apple Music. According to the artist herself, , the 13-track album was announced as, 

A “Collection of music written in the middle of the night, a journey through terrors and sweet dreams. The floors we pace and the demons we face. For all of us who have tossed and turned and decided to keep the lanterns lit and go searching – hoping that just maybe, when the clock strikes twelve… we’ll meet ourselves. Midnights, the stories of 13 sleepless nights scattered throughout my life, will be out October 21st. Meet me at midnight.”

Since its release, listeners have been conflicted about whether they like it or not with its upbeat sound reminiscent of 1989, Lover, and Reputation. All of the songs have the same type of energy and run together in a similar way. While some would say that they all “sound the same;” in reality, if you listen to each individually, they all have a different story and very different sounds. 

The following is a breakdown of each track and how different they really are. 

“Lavender Haze”- Really fun first track, I definitely could see this playing in the back of a party or at the beginning of a teenage movie. I would put this song in the same category as “I Think He Knows” from the Lover album in 2019. 

“Maroon”- Great play on words with the chorus consisting of red shades, such as: burgundy, wine, blood, scarlet, and maroon. 

“Anti-Hero”- Definitely feels like the main single of the album, and it feels very relatable to some. The story telling is immaculate, and you can very much visualize what she’s saying. The first music video for this album being Anti-Hero really sets the tone for how powerful this album will inevitably be.

“Snow on the Beach”- After being announced on Midnights Mayhem With Me, A TikTok series where  Taylor spins a bingo cage, revealing the track titles one at a time.  The song is a feature with Lana Del Rey. Fans were expecting her to have a full verse like Phoebie Bridgers on Nothing New from Red (Taylors Version) (From The Vault). Instead, it’s mainly backing vocals that you can ever so slightly hear. Most were disappointed by this and insisted she was more apparent. Dylan O’Brien was also featured on drums in this track. Taylor revealed they were having wine one night and tested it out with him on the instrument,  “it just stuck.” Aside from this, the song felt very pretty and bouncy. It sounded like “Snow on the beach,” almost perfect. 

“You’re On Your Own, Kid”- At first, fans expected this piece to be more slowed down, almost like Matilda by Harry Styles. Even though it’s more bubbly and upbeat, the meaning did not disappoint. It represents growing up and the journey with love, fame, gain and loss. First time listeners describe this as, “Pumpkin spice latte vibes.” 

“Midnight Rain”- This one was a complete switch up from the rest of the album. Some are envisioning the lyrics as Taylor’s significant other wanting the perfect American Dream. Meanwhile,Taylor wants to live their life together, traveling and living it up. 

“Question…?”- Severely underrated. that’s all. 

“Vigilante Sh*t”- Ultimate Reputation comeback. Fans went the most wild for this track name when it was announced. And while it lived up to the hype, the song didn’t get as much recognition as it deserved. 

“Bejeweled”- the beats give almost a video game sound. The most recent music video released for the song had a Cinderella/Fairytale-esque and was visually very pretty. 

“Labyrinth”- Hands down best song, very mystical and seductive. A music video for this track would be very entertaining as well. 

“Karma”- Great pop tune, on the most recent Coming of Age movie soundtrack for sure. 

“Sweet Nothing”- Like the title itself, this track was very sweet. It was co-written with Taylor’s fiance, Joe Alwyn, which makes it so adorable and links it to their own relationship. 

“Mastermind”- Taylor Swift is very much a mastermind. She sneaks in Easter Eggs to future projects that no one even knows about. This album shows the growth from a simple pop star to a more matured and grown lyricist. 

Some will argue that the album sounds “over produced” and “too poppy” but when, really, have any of Taylor Swift’s albums sounded the same? Besides her sister albums, Folklore and Evermore, they’ve all had different moods. Her audience changes by the day, while she’s more popular than she’s ever been, and there’s so many different audiences she’s catering to at the same time. Midnights is an excellent example of what music should be about and how storytelling will either make it or break it. 

How do you feel about Midnights? Let us know in the comments below!