It s a fleeting moment and a telling one. In the video for Shake It Off the lead single from her new album 1989 Taylor Swift crawls under the legs of a row of women twerking in denim cutoffs. As their butts bounce and jiggle Swift peers up with a look of dismay. The punch line is obvious This is not Taylor Swift s world never has been never will be.
She doesn t want to be an industry driven pop star dependent on showing some skin featuring cameos by rappers and borrowing beats from hip hop and indie rock. Her pop intentions are more old fashioned she doesn t need to be edgy or provocative in her pursuit of a good time.
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That much is clear on Swift s fifth studio album which was released on Monday. 1989 a reference to the year she was born and also a shout out to the album s vague resemblance to music from that era is her first release to definitively shed the country twang of her past. It s proudly middle of the road infectious yet anonymous and will surely go down as this year s commercial juggernaut.
But 1989 also feels like her most inscrutable effort. The music is a bright shiny and bland pastiche of electronic pop and faint nods to new wave and RB. And the songwriting feels generic a departure from the personable details that have made her a unique voice. Take Fifteen from 2009 s Fearless back when Swift was considered a country pop princess. Even if you weren t that age or swore you disliked country music you could probably relate to that song s isolation and heartache because we ve all been there. 1989 has few moments that draw you into the storytelling.
As anthems go Shake It Off is unequivocally brilliant and absurdly catchy. For good reason There s no better mantra for a big bubblegum pop song than shaking off your troubles The haters gonna hate hate hate hate hate Swift sings as if on a merry go round.
The opening Welcome to New York too will surely hook the masses. Over a synthesized beat and clattering drum machine the 24 year old Swift waxes wide eyed about the Big Apple where the lights are so bright/But they never blind me me. This being a pop song in 2014 there s the requisite message about self acceptance and empowerment You can want who you want/Boys and boys and girls and girls.
Co written with Jack Antonoff of fun. and the rising band Bleachers Out of the Woods has a propulsive drive that s hard to resist like a runaway Haim hit. This Love shows a more sensual side to Swift s singing and it s an interesting gamble that pays off.
Mostly under the direction of Swedish producers Max Martin and Shellback these 13 songs (on the album s standard edition) are flawless confections with little nuance. Swift initially enlisted the hitmakers for her 2012 album Red which was her first big step into pop music. I Knew You Were Trouble a hit from that album was a departure for Swift but a delicious one that split the difference between Joan Jett and Katy Perry.
This time out they turn Swift s songs into faceless hits. She doesn t want to draw comparisons to Miley Cyrus or Perry the latter of whom was supposedly the inspiration for the kiss off Bad Blood but Swift occasionally encroaches on other pop star terrain. The chorus of Wildest Dreams has the windswept grandeur of Lana Del Rey s Young and Beautiful even Swift s vocal is suddenly more sullen.
Got a long list of ex lovers/They ll tell you I m insane/Because you know I love the players/ And you love the game she sings on Blank Space semi shouting that last line to a very Icona Pop effect.
It s a cruel irony that in Swift s quest to sound like no one else she doesn t sound like herself either.
Watch the music video for Swift s single Shake It Off
James Reed can be reached at james.reed globe.com. Follow him on Twitter GlobeJamesReed.
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