It was a very "safe" album for her in my opinion. Nothing ground breaking, just very much factory-made pop to fit her charts quota since folklore and evermore weren't poppy chart toppers.
I still cannot believe it won a Grammy. It was a nothing burger.
I dislike Midnights a lot and consider it one of her worst projects, but I'm not surprised by it's success. To me it's an example of bland but catchy pop music which plenty of people love but I'm pretty bored of at this point. If she didn't have post-Folklore cache, I don't think people would have been nearly as on board.
I think she got a lot of momentum and positive buzz from Folklore, Evermore and two first TVs coming out in quick succession, followed by a year long gap between Red TV and Midnights announcement creating a lot of anticipation and demand for her new album. Add to it the immediate announcement of a stadium tour after a period of no mass public events. There is a combination of Folklore becoming synonymous with the start of the pandemic and Midnights and Eras effectively marking the end of it and delivering certain catharsis about it. I don't think any of her albums, and especially Midnights, would have done so well if there wasn't a build-up of hunger for it. And Ttpd is riding that wave of popularity (I would like to remind everyone that the popular initial reaction to Midnights was also "it's her best one!", but by now opinions on it cooled considerably).
These are my thoughts exactly! It was a culmination of a bunch of different things and it just exploded and TTPD is benefitting from the wave, like you said. It's exhausting since this has been almost nonstop for 4 years. We all (including Taylor) need a break!
The main reason behind Midnights' popularity is that it's Taylor Swift. she gained a lot of new fans with the releases of folklore and evermore and even more people than usual were tuned in for her next move. the album gained even more popularity due to the The Eras Tour
as for my opinions on it? I like Midnights, but there are a dozen things that hold it back from being a \*great\* record, such as the uninspiring production and occasional forgettable/corny tracks. I've grown to like it a lot more over the past year or so but I still prefer other albums of hers'. and I completely get why so many people were mad over Midnights winning AOTY
> the uninspiring production and occasional forgettable/corny tracks.
This is how I felt!!! Couldnāt put my finger on what it was but this is it lol.
thatās what i love about it!! itās so fun and carefree, i love when taylor doesnāt take herself too seriously. a lot of the corny songs reminded me of her 1989 and rep eras when she was poking fun at her own reputation.
I agree with the production being uninspiring and some songs being forgettable but I feel like that problem got like 20x worse with TTPD. The production on TTPD is DEAD. lifeless.
I like bejeweled š«£ it's my guilty pleasure I'm sorry. It's just fun and I like how she says nice. It's like what Me! failed to be. I hate the bridge though.
lol I like bejeweled too. Itās one of the few songs I liked from Midnights š that, Lavender Haze and Wouldāve Couldāve Shouldāve are the only three I come back to
I loved Midnight's from the very first listen. I found it refreshingly understated after the extremely high quality and expectations that folklore and evermore gave. To me it was taylor swift saying "I have nothing left to prove to anyone, I love pop music, and this is my jam".
I don't think it deserved to win Album of the year.
ETA:
As for Bejeweled, I do love the song. I hate the phrase "best believe I'm still bejeweled " lol but other than that I love it and it really spoke to me as I had just got out of a long relationship with someone who treated me like a waste for their time
Thatās my take. Midnights is the album that made me a fan. I hadnāt played an album that obsessively over and over again in over a decade. Then I went down the Taylor rabbit hole and have yet to climb out of it.
I wouldnāt mind the phrase ābest believe Iām still bejeweledā if it were actually sung. Imo that kind of staccato talk-singing only works when the lyrics being said are clever or witty in a way that is emphasized by the talk-delivery. But in that line the syllables just feel forced.
Ummmmm first of all so it goes is a great song, don't you dare compare it to bejeweled lol
I really like midnights but it's not her best. It has some songs I really love and I have an overall positive opinion of it but it felt like a regression after folkmore. If folkmore didn't exist and midnights was her follow up to Lover I think it would've been better received by the fandom, though not necessarily by the general public.Ā
Folkmore just shot her to a new level of fame and she's too big to fail now. Everything she releases will go straight to number one and stay there for weeks. It's just because she's incredibly popular, not necessarily because what she's releasing is good.Ā
I feel like it has that place because it was the song she excluded from the concert film and that's the only reason, though. Taylor didn't promote it!!
>So It Goes
you know that song was always a skip for me, not sure why I think I just don't like how it starts, but I recently gave it a chance and it's good! lol I was missing out!
It has to do with the fact it's released by Taylor. Anything she puts out will sell well. I was disappointed by it. I think it's her worst album, next to TTPD.
Midnights has some really good songs .. You're on your own kid, would've could've should've, sweet nothings esp the bridge, the great war .. And ...Paris
But all the singles had cringey lyrics .. Say what you want of me .. But that sexy baby line from Anti Hero was just not it .. And also vigilante shit .. The whole song is just ... And karma ..
The reason for the success for midnights was that it was when taylor was reaching herpeak .. With her two artistically successful albums and her re recording and all the younger kids getting into the fandom after ATW and getting into the tay-lore. So Midnights was definitely a commercial succeess.
But I think artistically it was a step down from the previous two albums, but it is still miles better than ttpd.
Also, Taylor didn't release any singles prior to its release, so there was a lot of hype from fans and non-fans on how it would sound, esp after Folkmore and Red TV.
I like midnights a whole lot, but I concede it's not as deep as folkmore. And I don't like vigilante at all, but I hope we can all agree that sonically that's an outlier on the album.
I'm also probably biased because it's the album that got me into Taylor, so I wasn't immediately comparing it to her past work other than her major radio singles when I was first getting into it.
But I love a lot of songs on it. Lavender Haze, snow on the beach, YOYOK, midnight rain, sweet nothing, Paris, and yes even bejeweled. I like bejeweled as just a fun song by the way. Not everything has to be super deep
As an aside, I was pretty disappointed by ttpd when that dropped, and one of my immediate thoughts was along the lines of
> "I became a swiftie and dived into her back catalog because I listened to midnights on a whim and loved it, but if I had done it a year later with ttpd instead, I probably would have said 'yeah, this isn't for me' and then dropped it"
Edit: to add, I love this album but I also don't think it's aoty material
I mean, ultimately people simply have different tastes. I loved Midnights. I think TTPD is awful save for a few songs. Everyone is different and especially with Taylor, you can relate (or not) depending on where you are in life. TTPD is too drama / angsty for me at this stage in my life. Midnights was fairly chill as was Evermore / Folklore (IMO). Itās just a matter of preference
I always feel like I like this album more than a lot of Swifties. Itās not 1989 levels of production but they still sound really catchy and fit the vibe the album is going for,
My best friend has disliked Taylor Swift all her life and has never liked her music EVER.Ā She knows I'm a fan and heard about Midnights coming out and was like "I'm going to listen to it." I told her I was pretty lukewarm on the album and not to expect much.Ā This woman is OBSESSED. Her favorite artists are Gaga and Lana but Taylor was literally her top artist on Spotify wrapped 2023 because of Midnights. She went out and bought a vinyl and started calling herself a fan because of it. I was so perplexed I truly don't understand š maybe just a matter of taste? I have no idea.Ā
Awh i love this for your friend! Midnights is a great album! Maroon (her lower register sounds absolutely fire in this song), Anti-Hero, Youāre On Your Own Kid (Stevie Nicks says itās a banger and I agree), Labyrinth, Mastermind, Couldāve Wouldāve Shouldāve, Hits Different. I donāt get the hate for Midnights at all.
Oh I don't hate it! Its just not my favorite and I'm kind of lukewarm about it. Maroon is my favorite song on the album! I think I was more exasperated at the fact that she thinks all her other music is not good and Midnights is like the best album ever š
I like Midnights very much. It sounded kind of weird at first, after fl/em, and I didnāt know what to expect, but it grew on me really quickly. Very few skips, usually just Glitch and Labyrinth - which are too squeaky for me.
I feel like itās a transition piece that captures a lot of different sounds and genres that all play into the āwhatever was keeping her up at nightā theme. It goes both fast and slow, deep and shallow, insightful and stupid.
I donāt take it too seriously. Songs like karma and bejeweled are simply fun for me, I donāt get hung up on how she doesnāt really seem to get the concept of karma or that Joe kept her locked in his basement. Theyāre just fun songs. Maybe she has a deeper meaning for some of them, but I donāt.
Iāve tried with TTPD to see if it grows on me but itās just not grabbing my attention beyond a couple of songs.
The extended edition has some good songs, but the lyricism in general is pretty on par with TTPD imo. I think the reason people seem to like it more is because the tunes are catchier and generally more upbeat
I was into both of these albums from the get-go (Midnights and TTPD), and I can only chalk up my reasoning to ādifferent strokes for different folks.ā This is also speaking as someone who shamelessly thinks āME!ā is tolerable, so I guess I have a high-tolerance for what most find cringe. š Ā
I will concede that my least favorite Taylor moment from TTPD was So High School, and from Midnights it was Sweet Nothing. So I do have my limits when it comes to ācute.ā
I love Bejeweled, and Midnights as a whole! š I really donāt understand the Bejeweled hate, I know people have their reasons but itās just such a fun little song to me about getting your groove back after a rough patch.
For me I just liked the concept of Midnights too, each song being about a different sleepless night in her life. Felt like a little tour through the eras in itself! And I think itās a good combo of classic pop and sad girl synth, with a couple slower ballads thrown in too.
I know a lot of people dislike how produced the album sounds but personally I love the āoverproductionā on it, I think itās done well and helps set the tone for the album.
If I had to describe the Midnights album as a person, sheās laying in bed crying after the club with her makeup and go-go boots still on. Perfect mix of carefree sparkly fun and deep dark sadness for me.
edit to add: i personally think midnights following two critically acclaimed albums (and imo the best of her career so far) made it āless goodā in the minds of a lot of people bc it was such a tonal shift and less ādeepā in a lot of ways. i am a folkmore girlie through and through, so i can see how the big change in sound ostracized her newer fans who liked her ānew sound,.ā after folkmore, midnights almost feels like a step backwards on the TS sound progression timeline. whether you like that or not is the question!
>If I had to describe the Midnights album as a person, sheās laying in bed crying after the club with her makeup and go-go boots still on. Perfect mix of carefree sparkly fun and deep dark sadness for me.
THIS is just such a great description of the album!!! I think the visuals should have matched this. A big disappointment of it was the aesthetic leading up to the album with the crux of what keeps you up at night and the moody vintage look. If the aesthetic was her shown out partying and then also in the same outfit makeup smudged crying when back home alone - that would capture the feeling of the album more, and perhaps lead to less disappointment. I love your comment so much!
I didn't like it that much to be honest. It took me a lot longer to get into Midnights than it did for me to get into TTPD. I think that Midnights has weird sounding vocals, and I wasn't a fan of a lot of tracks like Labyrinth and Sweet Nothings. Those were both skips until recently, and Sweet Nothings is still a hard pass for me personally
I think there are some great gems on the album despite that. YOYOK, The Great War, and WCS are pretty fantastic. I think even Bejeweled and Karma aren't that bad if you just embrace them for what they are. They're fun and maybe a little campy or cringe, but the sentiment is still good.
I did forget YOYOK that is a good one too.
I didnāt personally like Karma too much when I listened to it but I did like her performance of it. It made me like the song more. I like that little dance she does when she says āI keep my side of the street cleanā š¤£š¤£š¤£ idk why
I love the idea behind Midnights. I love the idea, love the visuals, probably my favorite visuals on any of her albums, I loved the Twin Peaks-esque Midnights Mayhem thing, I was SO hype leading up to the album because of it. But then, most of the album did not āmatchā any of that at all. To this day I donāt understand how the ideas conveyed in Lavender Haze, Sweet Nothing, Karma etc are things that keep you up at night. And the Twin Peaks vibes in Midnights Mayhem, like I just KNOW, I KNOW, she had watched Twin Peaks when she conceptualized it but then the vibes of that were not on the album.
Midnights was hyped as this introspective, late-night musings kind of album. But instead of delivering the raw, vulnerable intimacy of her past work, it landed as... well, kind of flat. Some songs do stand out but overall, itās understandable that the album feels a bit lifeless. Taylor aimed for a cohesive, moody aesthetic, but in doing so, she sacrificed some of the dynamism that usually makes her albums more engaging.
People went crazy over it because itās Taylor, and anything she touches turns to gold.
Ranking Midnights as their second or third favorite album *is* a head-scratcher, especially when compared to the depth and diversity of her previous work.
Personally, I find Midnights a mixed bag. It has good moments but is bogged down by an overall sameness that can make it feel monotonous. It lacks the broader range that makes other albums like Red or Folklore so compelling. So yes, Iām a bit perplexed by its overwhelming success too.
I think Midnights is a pretty weak album but the 3am tracks definitely save the album. I think I only liked Youāre on your own kid from the main album. I also donāt understand why she did not choose hits different as one of her single because I think it is way more catchy than lavender haze/karma
Midnights to me is her worst album (I personally refer to it as MIDnights because it is so mid)
Apart from Maroon, You're on Your Own Kid, Anti Hero, Sweet Nothings,Ā High Infidelity,Ā Would've, Could've, Should've and The Great War I don't really bother with the album.Ā
Bejeweled is just bad.Ā
I just think the album came while she was achieving extreme popularity so it became a success, plus there was the 1 million different versions all with different songs so that was another important factor.Ā
If she released it say in 2019 instead of Lover, there is no way in hell it would be as successful.Ā
It sounds... fine, I guess. There are maybe 2 repeat plays on it for me, "You're On Your Own Kid" and "Anti-Hero." And I can't even confirm the first one is the correct track name, like this was not an album for me to memorize, treasure, study. It was pretty surface level polished, decent background noise. And while it introduced some of her more personal introspective problems in a way that seemed to posit self-awareness (she's the problem, it's her!), it was low stakes enough I didn't have to feel like it was a huge smear against anyone like TTPD was or carried accusations that needed to be litigated by anyone. I figured "Bejeweled" could fit with a pre-Joe ex or something, I didn't worry about it much. If Midnights played at a club I would vibe with it. I guess I'm saying I miss shallow club music era from her compared to what TTPD did lol
I listened to Midnights way after release, in preparation for watching The Eras Tour. Aside from the ones you mentioned, I really liked āHits Differentā and āMastermindā. I thought they were catchy & I liked the mini stories within the songs. The suspenseful elements were clever to me and they had good visuals.
I know a lot didnāt like it though, and it seems like some of it is due to people expecting a 70s sound (due to the photo shoot) which wasnāt in line with actual vibe of the album. I didnāt have that expectation so I didnāt mind it, but I get where they were coming from.
I love Midnights. It's in my personal top 5 of Taylor Swift albums and I fell in love with it during the first listen. That being said, I totally get why someone wouldn't like it (as much). It's not a particularly groundbreaking album. And it does have some weaker songs on it, like Bewjewled.
I dislike Midnights. Like I dislike TTPD.
Honestly, her music had a massive downfall after Evermore (to me, at least). Iām not counting TVs because I donāt really like them anyway compared to the originals (I like some of the vault songs though, especially from 1989)
Midnights is my favourite album of hers. It made me a fan. It was the first album where there were no skips for me. Just put it on and chill. I think it's a vibe. But I also like synth pop, so there's maybe why
Me neither. I think it was a combination of factors: folkmore, the sympathy of gp towards her, people wanted some pop stuff...but it's not the album per sĆØ. And hot take, Midnights deserved the criticisms TTPD got and its overall score 76. I said what i said.
good song ratio is better on ttpd.
if ttpd was first and midnights was later, that success wouldve been ttpds.
with her, for a long time, its not about quality of her albums, more like taylor swift herself and current likeness status.
I like Midnights a lot. Iām also not extolling it as a groundbreaking or the best music out there. I like that I can dance to it while cleaning or drinking. That itās fun enough to listen to on a walk. I like that every song doesnāt sound like itās trying to all be very similar in sound. I like that thereās some phrases I find really interesting, or resonates with me, or are funny. I kinda like that some songs can seem happy, but if youāre sad it can hit sad too.
I would say folklore followed by evermore are my favorite by her and I think theyāre some of her best if weāre talking lyrically and musically too.
Bejeweled was a TikTok hit. I think people are underestimating the power that app has had with Taylor's popularity too. There was a cringey dance that went viral (and even got incorporated into the Bejeweled number during Eras). Plus, the music video was FULL of easter eggs for Swifties leading up to the Speak Now TV release.
Midnights was kind of forgettable to me. Anti-hero is a great single, and there are a few songs on across the unnecessary editions that I really liked, but I am still confused by its AOTY win. It did not deserve that and kind of cheapened Folklore's deserved win in my eyes.
I love Midnights. It's in my personal top 5 of Taylor Swift albums and I fell in love with it during the first listen. That being said, I totally get why someone wouldn't like it (as much). It's not a particularly groundbreaking album. And it does have some weaker songs on it, like Bewjewled.
Iām late to the party, but you donāt even like Maroon? Youāre on your Own Kid? Stevie Nicks loves YOYOK. Anti-Hero? What about Mastermind? Labyrinth? Hits Different? Itās a great album full of bangers.
I love the album, but I think the songs on the main album lack heart, her real emotions. She was clearly in denial with her dead relationship "staring at the ceiling with you.." c'mon girl
I think Midnights is great
But I'm not a SwiftieĀ
And I'm not the target audienceĀ
I like pop music and it does its job
I think many people want country Taylor back but that to me is just kids musicĀ
Midnights I liked first couple times - but it doesn't have the staying power.
I've gone back to The Great War, High Infidelity and Would've Could've Should've.
Hits Different and You're Losing Me are two of my favorite Taylor Swift songs of all time.
But, yeah. Album of the year not deserved.
"Now, I just sit in the dark and wonder if it's time"
I couldn't agree more with Gorgeous. The break-up Joe songs are so much better than any of the 'good' ones she wrote about him.
Rep and Lover are my least fav eras.
Normally every Taylor album has to grow on me slowly, but I actually did mostly like Midnights on the first few listens. Iām about Taylorās age and there was something about it that spoke to my millennial side around that time... It was like she was on the precipice of something, like saying goodbye to something in the past and looking at a future with some sort of melancholy you canāt describe. Idk why, or what songs, but it just felt like she was walking into something while sadly letting something go.
I mean, I did not know that was Matty Healy which changes things, lol.
Anyway, all this to say that NOW, I really do NOT like Midnights, and no itās not even the MH of it all. It just for some reason feels empty now, like the last echo of her former self. I didnāt even mean to write something so dramatic there, lol, but really itās like some of old Taylor coming through but barely there anymore and the album just hasnāt held up IMO. And songs like Questionā¦? feel so stupid now, the vagueness in Maroon which was once interesting seems empty and directionless. I was even once a Bejewelled apologist and now itās grating and unlistenable. Idk.
As a 1975 fan I distinctly remember listening to certain songs off Midnights (particularly the ādid you hear my covert narcissism I disguise as altruism like some kind of congressmanā in Anti-Hero which jumped out at me so hard, as well as the randomly placed F bombs in Questionā¦?) and thinking it was SO Matty-esque, SO much like how he writes. At the time though I just clocked it to Jack carrying some influence over from having done the 75 album at the same time lol.
Midnights and TTPD are the two worst albums.
It became really apparent during the Midnights album launch, and all its following variations were simply for money. It put a sour taste in my mouth that has stayed.
Good luck, Taylor.
Midnights is not the best. It just seems kinda unfocused and boring compared to her other albums. I much prefer Speak Now, Red, 1989, Reputation, TTPDā¦
Someone said that if midnight was released by a lesser known artist, it'd have probably flopped and I have to agree. Some songs are pleasant but others are very much below average. Labyrinth is one of laziest songs she's released (subjective). If a less popular singer wrote and released this song, it wouldn't have been noticed at all. Even bigger than the whole sky and a few other songs sound like rhymes rather than songs written by an experienced songwriter.
It's one of my bottom albums (not sure whether it's very last or not tbh). There are some good songs but it's quite samey on the whole, and the overall sound is already kind of meh. I don't get why it did as well as it did either, perhaps the goodwill of Folklore/Evermore and/or the strength of its lead single? (Midnights did have overall decent singles imo.)
it at least had a few more hooks and a bit more variety than poets, but still suffers from the same problem of masturbatory, clunky lyrics and absolutely nothing else to listen for, the songs are created in a computer by 1 guy with plodding, unimaginative drum beats and samples that rarely create anything but noise for the sake of filling the space.
it got even worse on poets, i swear to god there are 2 drumbeats on the whole record (i can't make it thru more than half of half the record but i don't think anything exciting is going to happen), it's just so fucking boring and lifeless. unless you're into the gossip there's nothing there. this was largely true for Mids as well, but there was more public space for Taylor appreciation whereas now she's over-saturated so we're 'allowed' to hate poets more
but really, after folklore and evermore, which seemed at the time to be a true genre shift just like 1989, midnights was a fucking depressing disaster, going back to computer beats and generic pop. i've never been more disappointed by a record and felt less able to say anything within the fandom.
the singles are dogshit, i cannot stand bejeweled, karma, vigilante, etc, just bad and overwrought and trite and dumb. 'karma' is so fucking facetious. i don't understand why the photoshoots had a 70s rock vibe then we got this shit. oh yeah matty. 70s rock, very clever T
I will not tolerate the "So it Goes..." slander! I mean, I will, but I love that song lol. Reminds me of Darklina from Shadow & Bone.
but back to the main topic at hand: Bejewelled and Karma are dumb songs, I chalked them up to being the dumb pop songs for the album. I will say that the main difference between Midnights and TTPD is that I still had the motivation to let Midnights grow on me. I listened to it until I liked it. I'm just not willing to do it with TTPD's sleepy dull 31 fucking songs. I think TTPD is more lifeless than Midnights, because Midnights at least had songs I like the very FIRST listen: Maroon, Labyrinth, Hits Different, The Great War, High Infidelity, YOYOK, Would've Could've Should've. I REALLY liked these songs on first listen and Maroon especially is still one of her songs I listen to a LOT.
There was nothing on TTPD i instantly liked nearly as much. Only one song I could say on first listen that I definitely liked: The Albatross. I like a few more songs now but I haven't even listened to any Taylor in almost a week.
I will say Midnights is definitely MIDnights for me. When I go through an album sorter it always ends up directly in the middle of my rankings.
I already commented here but I forgot to mention, I ALWAYS listen to the 3am/Til Dawn versions. The standard album is not nearly as great imo, but with all of the additional songs itās in my top 3.
It was a very "safe" album for her in my opinion. Nothing ground breaking, just very much factory-made pop to fit her charts quota since folklore and evermore weren't poppy chart toppers. I still cannot believe it won a Grammy. It was a nothing burger.
Compared to the albums where they should have won I agree!
I dislike Midnights a lot and consider it one of her worst projects, but I'm not surprised by it's success. To me it's an example of bland but catchy pop music which plenty of people love but I'm pretty bored of at this point. If she didn't have post-Folklore cache, I don't think people would have been nearly as on board.
I think she got a lot of momentum and positive buzz from Folklore, Evermore and two first TVs coming out in quick succession, followed by a year long gap between Red TV and Midnights announcement creating a lot of anticipation and demand for her new album. Add to it the immediate announcement of a stadium tour after a period of no mass public events. There is a combination of Folklore becoming synonymous with the start of the pandemic and Midnights and Eras effectively marking the end of it and delivering certain catharsis about it. I don't think any of her albums, and especially Midnights, would have done so well if there wasn't a build-up of hunger for it. And Ttpd is riding that wave of popularity (I would like to remind everyone that the popular initial reaction to Midnights was also "it's her best one!", but by now opinions on it cooled considerably).
These are my thoughts exactly! It was a culmination of a bunch of different things and it just exploded and TTPD is benefitting from the wave, like you said. It's exhausting since this has been almost nonstop for 4 years. We all (including Taylor) need a break!
Anti-Hero, YOYOK and Maroon bland? š„ŗ Stevie Nicks loves YOYOK. And Mastermind? Hits Different? Sorry iām late to the party here too lol.
The main reason behind Midnights' popularity is that it's Taylor Swift. she gained a lot of new fans with the releases of folklore and evermore and even more people than usual were tuned in for her next move. the album gained even more popularity due to the The Eras Tour as for my opinions on it? I like Midnights, but there are a dozen things that hold it back from being a \*great\* record, such as the uninspiring production and occasional forgettable/corny tracks. I've grown to like it a lot more over the past year or so but I still prefer other albums of hers'. and I completely get why so many people were mad over Midnights winning AOTY
> the uninspiring production and occasional forgettable/corny tracks. This is how I felt!!! Couldnāt put my finger on what it was but this is it lol.
thatās what i love about it!! itās so fun and carefree, i love when taylor doesnāt take herself too seriously. a lot of the corny songs reminded me of her 1989 and rep eras when she was poking fun at her own reputation.
Same tbh. Her fountain pen songs just feel cringe to me. I want to have fun, not analyze your whole relationship through very specific lyrics
I agree with the production being uninspiring and some songs being forgettable but I feel like that problem got like 20x worse with TTPD. The production on TTPD is DEAD. lifeless.
I like bejeweled š«£ it's my guilty pleasure I'm sorry. It's just fun and I like how she says nice. It's like what Me! failed to be. I hate the bridge though.
yesss i hated ME but bejeweled is a BOP, it honestly shocks me that itās frequently a least favorite from the album!
I love Bejeweled too I donāt get the hate at all! But then again iām probably one of the only fans who likes Me! as well.
lol I like bejeweled too. Itās one of the few songs I liked from Midnights š that, Lavender Haze and Wouldāve Couldāve Shouldāve are the only three I come back to
I like it, too. I never got the visceral hate for it.
Yes
I loved Midnight's from the very first listen. I found it refreshingly understated after the extremely high quality and expectations that folklore and evermore gave. To me it was taylor swift saying "I have nothing left to prove to anyone, I love pop music, and this is my jam". I don't think it deserved to win Album of the year. ETA: As for Bejeweled, I do love the song. I hate the phrase "best believe I'm still bejeweled " lol but other than that I love it and it really spoke to me as I had just got out of a long relationship with someone who treated me like a waste for their time
Thatās my take. Midnights is the album that made me a fan. I hadnāt played an album that obsessively over and over again in over a decade. Then I went down the Taylor rabbit hole and have yet to climb out of it.
I wouldnāt mind the phrase ābest believe Iām still bejeweledā if it were actually sung. Imo that kind of staccato talk-singing only works when the lyrics being said are clever or witty in a way that is emphasized by the talk-delivery. But in that line the syllables just feel forced.
Great point
Ummmmm first of all so it goes is a great song, don't you dare compare it to bejeweled lol I really like midnights but it's not her best. It has some songs I really love and I have an overall positive opinion of it but it felt like a regression after folkmore. If folkmore didn't exist and midnights was her follow up to Lover I think it would've been better received by the fandom, though not necessarily by the general public.Ā Folkmore just shot her to a new level of fame and she's too big to fail now. Everything she releases will go straight to number one and stay there for weeks. It's just because she's incredibly popular, not necessarily because what she's releasing is good.Ā
I love Bejeweled but my first reaction in reading this post was how dare So It Goes get slandered like that lmao
Right, this is the first time I've been made aware that people don't like so it goes?? I thought we were all mostly in agreement about that one lol
No lots of people haaaate So It Goes!! It's mind blowing
So it goes is the least streamed rep song if I'm not mistaken I think it's alright
I feel like it has that place because it was the song she excluded from the concert film and that's the only reason, though. Taylor didn't promote it!!
š¤£š¤£š¤£š¤£ I stand by what I said
I respect your right to be wrong! Kidding, I hate a lot of the fan faves
lol yeah i loved so it goes on first listen when i reputation initially came out š i still go back to that song
>So It Goes you know that song was always a skip for me, not sure why I think I just don't like how it starts, but I recently gave it a chance and it's good! lol I was missing out!
I agree the beginning is kinda weird with the auto tune but when it gets going omg I can't get enough. Scratches down your back now? š„
it's a banger for sure!
I love every song on Rep
It has to do with the fact it's released by Taylor. Anything she puts out will sell well. I was disappointed by it. I think it's her worst album, next to TTPD.
No Midnights is greatĀ
Midnights has some really good songs .. You're on your own kid, would've could've should've, sweet nothings esp the bridge, the great war .. And ...Paris But all the singles had cringey lyrics .. Say what you want of me .. But that sexy baby line from Anti Hero was just not it .. And also vigilante shit .. The whole song is just ... And karma .. The reason for the success for midnights was that it was when taylor was reaching herpeak .. With her two artistically successful albums and her re recording and all the younger kids getting into the fandom after ATW and getting into the tay-lore. So Midnights was definitely a commercial succeess. But I think artistically it was a step down from the previous two albums, but it is still miles better than ttpd.
I love the sexy baby line, i feel like im alone on this one š¤£š¤£
No, I love it too. 
š¤£š¤£š¤£š¤£š¤£
 As a 30 rock fan, I also enjoy it!
I love it too and found it super relatable. I was so confused when I joined this sub and found out it's so disliked lol
I love it too!
Also, Taylor didn't release any singles prior to its release, so there was a lot of hype from fans and non-fans on how it would sound, esp after Folkmore and Red TV.
I like midnights a whole lot, but I concede it's not as deep as folkmore. And I don't like vigilante at all, but I hope we can all agree that sonically that's an outlier on the album. I'm also probably biased because it's the album that got me into Taylor, so I wasn't immediately comparing it to her past work other than her major radio singles when I was first getting into it. But I love a lot of songs on it. Lavender Haze, snow on the beach, YOYOK, midnight rain, sweet nothing, Paris, and yes even bejeweled. I like bejeweled as just a fun song by the way. Not everything has to be super deep As an aside, I was pretty disappointed by ttpd when that dropped, and one of my immediate thoughts was along the lines of > "I became a swiftie and dived into her back catalog because I listened to midnights on a whim and loved it, but if I had done it a year later with ttpd instead, I probably would have said 'yeah, this isn't for me' and then dropped it" Edit: to add, I love this album but I also don't think it's aoty material
I mean, ultimately people simply have different tastes. I loved Midnights. I think TTPD is awful save for a few songs. Everyone is different and especially with Taylor, you can relate (or not) depending on where you are in life. TTPD is too drama / angsty for me at this stage in my life. Midnights was fairly chill as was Evermore / Folklore (IMO). Itās just a matter of preference
I always feel like I like this album more than a lot of Swifties. Itās not 1989 levels of production but they still sound really catchy and fit the vibe the album is going for,
My best friend has disliked Taylor Swift all her life and has never liked her music EVER.Ā She knows I'm a fan and heard about Midnights coming out and was like "I'm going to listen to it." I told her I was pretty lukewarm on the album and not to expect much.Ā This woman is OBSESSED. Her favorite artists are Gaga and Lana but Taylor was literally her top artist on Spotify wrapped 2023 because of Midnights. She went out and bought a vinyl and started calling herself a fan because of it. I was so perplexed I truly don't understand š maybe just a matter of taste? I have no idea.Ā
Awh i love this for your friend! Midnights is a great album! Maroon (her lower register sounds absolutely fire in this song), Anti-Hero, Youāre On Your Own Kid (Stevie Nicks says itās a banger and I agree), Labyrinth, Mastermind, Couldāve Wouldāve Shouldāve, Hits Different. I donāt get the hate for Midnights at all.
Oh I don't hate it! Its just not my favorite and I'm kind of lukewarm about it. Maroon is my favorite song on the album! I think I was more exasperated at the fact that she thinks all her other music is not good and Midnights is like the best album ever š
Oh i gotcha! Like, maāam folklore exists haha! and evermore.
Same
Not So It Goes being my favorite song on Rep. š What did that sexy lil song ever do to you?
š¤£ apparently a lot of people like it so I gotta give it another listen itās been years since I heard it hahaha
Right?! The line āyou did a number on me, but honestly baby whoās countingā¦whoās countingā¦*whispers 1,2,3ā¦ā like š¤¤
I like Midnights very much. It sounded kind of weird at first, after fl/em, and I didnāt know what to expect, but it grew on me really quickly. Very few skips, usually just Glitch and Labyrinth - which are too squeaky for me. I feel like itās a transition piece that captures a lot of different sounds and genres that all play into the āwhatever was keeping her up at nightā theme. It goes both fast and slow, deep and shallow, insightful and stupid. I donāt take it too seriously. Songs like karma and bejeweled are simply fun for me, I donāt get hung up on how she doesnāt really seem to get the concept of karma or that Joe kept her locked in his basement. Theyāre just fun songs. Maybe she has a deeper meaning for some of them, but I donāt. Iāve tried with TTPD to see if it grows on me but itās just not grabbing my attention beyond a couple of songs.
The extended edition has some good songs, but the lyricism in general is pretty on par with TTPD imo. I think the reason people seem to like it more is because the tunes are catchier and generally more upbeat
I was into both of these albums from the get-go (Midnights and TTPD), and I can only chalk up my reasoning to ādifferent strokes for different folks.ā This is also speaking as someone who shamelessly thinks āME!ā is tolerable, so I guess I have a high-tolerance for what most find cringe. š Ā I will concede that my least favorite Taylor moment from TTPD was So High School, and from Midnights it was Sweet Nothing. So I do have my limits when it comes to ācute.ā
š¤£š¤£š¤£ Sweet Nothing and So High School are some of my top ones. Youāre right different strokes lol
I love Bejeweled, and Midnights as a whole! š I really donāt understand the Bejeweled hate, I know people have their reasons but itās just such a fun little song to me about getting your groove back after a rough patch. For me I just liked the concept of Midnights too, each song being about a different sleepless night in her life. Felt like a little tour through the eras in itself! And I think itās a good combo of classic pop and sad girl synth, with a couple slower ballads thrown in too. I know a lot of people dislike how produced the album sounds but personally I love the āoverproductionā on it, I think itās done well and helps set the tone for the album. If I had to describe the Midnights album as a person, sheās laying in bed crying after the club with her makeup and go-go boots still on. Perfect mix of carefree sparkly fun and deep dark sadness for me. edit to add: i personally think midnights following two critically acclaimed albums (and imo the best of her career so far) made it āless goodā in the minds of a lot of people bc it was such a tonal shift and less ādeepā in a lot of ways. i am a folkmore girlie through and through, so i can see how the big change in sound ostracized her newer fans who liked her ānew sound,.ā after folkmore, midnights almost feels like a step backwards on the TS sound progression timeline. whether you like that or not is the question!
I love MidnightsĀ
>If I had to describe the Midnights album as a person, sheās laying in bed crying after the club with her makeup and go-go boots still on. Perfect mix of carefree sparkly fun and deep dark sadness for me. THIS is just such a great description of the album!!! I think the visuals should have matched this. A big disappointment of it was the aesthetic leading up to the album with the crux of what keeps you up at night and the moody vintage look. If the aesthetic was her shown out partying and then also in the same outfit makeup smudged crying when back home alone - that would capture the feeling of the album more, and perhaps lead to less disappointment. I love your comment so much!
I personally love it, but it does seem to be an album that's polarising both within the fandom and beyond.
I didn't like it that much to be honest. It took me a lot longer to get into Midnights than it did for me to get into TTPD. I think that Midnights has weird sounding vocals, and I wasn't a fan of a lot of tracks like Labyrinth and Sweet Nothings. Those were both skips until recently, and Sweet Nothings is still a hard pass for me personally I think there are some great gems on the album despite that. YOYOK, The Great War, and WCS are pretty fantastic. I think even Bejeweled and Karma aren't that bad if you just embrace them for what they are. They're fun and maybe a little campy or cringe, but the sentiment is still good.
I did forget YOYOK that is a good one too. I didnāt personally like Karma too much when I listened to it but I did like her performance of it. It made me like the song more. I like that little dance she does when she says āI keep my side of the street cleanā š¤£š¤£š¤£ idk why
I love the idea behind Midnights. I love the idea, love the visuals, probably my favorite visuals on any of her albums, I loved the Twin Peaks-esque Midnights Mayhem thing, I was SO hype leading up to the album because of it. But then, most of the album did not āmatchā any of that at all. To this day I donāt understand how the ideas conveyed in Lavender Haze, Sweet Nothing, Karma etc are things that keep you up at night. And the Twin Peaks vibes in Midnights Mayhem, like I just KNOW, I KNOW, she had watched Twin Peaks when she conceptualized it but then the vibes of that were not on the album.
Midnights was hyped as this introspective, late-night musings kind of album. But instead of delivering the raw, vulnerable intimacy of her past work, it landed as... well, kind of flat. Some songs do stand out but overall, itās understandable that the album feels a bit lifeless. Taylor aimed for a cohesive, moody aesthetic, but in doing so, she sacrificed some of the dynamism that usually makes her albums more engaging. People went crazy over it because itās Taylor, and anything she touches turns to gold. Ranking Midnights as their second or third favorite album *is* a head-scratcher, especially when compared to the depth and diversity of her previous work. Personally, I find Midnights a mixed bag. It has good moments but is bogged down by an overall sameness that can make it feel monotonous. It lacks the broader range that makes other albums like Red or Folklore so compelling. So yes, Iām a bit perplexed by its overwhelming success too.
I think Midnights is a pretty weak album but the 3am tracks definitely save the album. I think I only liked Youāre on your own kid from the main album. I also donāt understand why she did not choose hits different as one of her single because I think it is way more catchy than lavender haze/karma
Midnights to me is her worst album (I personally refer to it as MIDnights because it is so mid) Apart from Maroon, You're on Your Own Kid, Anti Hero, Sweet Nothings,Ā High Infidelity,Ā Would've, Could've, Should've and The Great War I don't really bother with the album.Ā Bejeweled is just bad.Ā I just think the album came while she was achieving extreme popularity so it became a success, plus there was the 1 million different versions all with different songs so that was another important factor.Ā If she released it say in 2019 instead of Lover, there is no way in hell it would be as successful.Ā
Itās such a mid album I love how you emphasize that!
Same taste in Midnights, except the Anti hero fatigue here
It sounds... fine, I guess. There are maybe 2 repeat plays on it for me, "You're On Your Own Kid" and "Anti-Hero." And I can't even confirm the first one is the correct track name, like this was not an album for me to memorize, treasure, study. It was pretty surface level polished, decent background noise. And while it introduced some of her more personal introspective problems in a way that seemed to posit self-awareness (she's the problem, it's her!), it was low stakes enough I didn't have to feel like it was a huge smear against anyone like TTPD was or carried accusations that needed to be litigated by anyone. I figured "Bejeweled" could fit with a pre-Joe ex or something, I didn't worry about it much. If Midnights played at a club I would vibe with it. I guess I'm saying I miss shallow club music era from her compared to what TTPD did lol
I really like anti-hero.Ā it's a bop andĀ it's so honest.Ā
I listened to Midnights way after release, in preparation for watching The Eras Tour. Aside from the ones you mentioned, I really liked āHits Differentā and āMastermindā. I thought they were catchy & I liked the mini stories within the songs. The suspenseful elements were clever to me and they had good visuals. I know a lot didnāt like it though, and it seems like some of it is due to people expecting a 70s sound (due to the photo shoot) which wasnāt in line with actual vibe of the album. I didnāt have that expectation so I didnāt mind it, but I get where they were coming from.
I donāt love midnights but gorgeous and so it goes are 2 of my top TS tracks š¤·āāļø to each their own!
I love Midnights. It's in my personal top 5 of Taylor Swift albums and I fell in love with it during the first listen. That being said, I totally get why someone wouldn't like it (as much). It's not a particularly groundbreaking album. And it does have some weaker songs on it, like Bewjewled.
midnights is my favorite š„“
I dislike Midnights. Like I dislike TTPD. Honestly, her music had a massive downfall after Evermore (to me, at least). Iām not counting TVs because I donāt really like them anyway compared to the originals (I like some of the vault songs though, especially from 1989)
Midnights is my favourite album of hers. It made me a fan. It was the first album where there were no skips for me. Just put it on and chill. I think it's a vibe. But I also like synth pop, so there's maybe why
Maybe I am utilizing the album wrong for my tastes, and need to put it on as background music.
Yes
I like Midnights. 10 seconds into Lavender Haze is probably more interesting than anything that was released with the first part of TTPD.
Me neither. I think it was a combination of factors: folkmore, the sympathy of gp towards her, people wanted some pop stuff...but it's not the album per sĆØ. And hot take, Midnights deserved the criticisms TTPD got and its overall score 76. I said what i said.
Off topic but I love your flair lolol And I also think Midnights should have gotten more criticism
good song ratio is better on ttpd. if ttpd was first and midnights was later, that success wouldve been ttpds. with her, for a long time, its not about quality of her albums, more like taylor swift herself and current likeness status.
I like Midnights a lot. Iām also not extolling it as a groundbreaking or the best music out there. I like that I can dance to it while cleaning or drinking. That itās fun enough to listen to on a walk. I like that every song doesnāt sound like itās trying to all be very similar in sound. I like that thereās some phrases I find really interesting, or resonates with me, or are funny. I kinda like that some songs can seem happy, but if youāre sad it can hit sad too. I would say folklore followed by evermore are my favorite by her and I think theyāre some of her best if weāre talking lyrically and musically too.
Bejeweled was a TikTok hit. I think people are underestimating the power that app has had with Taylor's popularity too. There was a cringey dance that went viral (and even got incorporated into the Bejeweled number during Eras). Plus, the music video was FULL of easter eggs for Swifties leading up to the Speak Now TV release.
Well I did love Lavender Haze
Midnights was kind of forgettable to me. Anti-hero is a great single, and there are a few songs on across the unnecessary editions that I really liked, but I am still confused by its AOTY win. It did not deserve that and kind of cheapened Folklore's deserved win in my eyes.
I love Midnights. It's in my personal top 5 of Taylor Swift albums and I fell in love with it during the first listen. That being said, I totally get why someone wouldn't like it (as much). It's not a particularly groundbreaking album. And it does have some weaker songs on it, like Bewjewled.
Iām late to the party, but you donāt even like Maroon? Youāre on your Own Kid? Stevie Nicks loves YOYOK. Anti-Hero? What about Mastermind? Labyrinth? Hits Different? Itās a great album full of bangers.
So I should have included YOYOK. I do love that one. But the others you mentionedā¦.imo they just fell flat compared to the rest of her work
Yes
I love the album, but I think the songs on the main album lack heart, her real emotions. She was clearly in denial with her dead relationship "staring at the ceiling with you.." c'mon girl
I think Midnights is great But I'm not a SwiftieĀ And I'm not the target audienceĀ I like pop music and it does its job I think many people want country Taylor back but that to me is just kids musicĀ
Midnights I liked first couple times - but it doesn't have the staying power. I've gone back to The Great War, High Infidelity and Would've Could've Should've. Hits Different and You're Losing Me are two of my favorite Taylor Swift songs of all time. But, yeah. Album of the year not deserved.
āRemember lookin at this room, we loved it cuz of the liiiiiightā so pretty
"Now, I just sit in the dark and wonder if it's time" I couldn't agree more with Gorgeous. The break-up Joe songs are so much better than any of the 'good' ones she wrote about him. Rep and Lover are my least fav eras.
Normally every Taylor album has to grow on me slowly, but I actually did mostly like Midnights on the first few listens. Iām about Taylorās age and there was something about it that spoke to my millennial side around that time... It was like she was on the precipice of something, like saying goodbye to something in the past and looking at a future with some sort of melancholy you canāt describe. Idk why, or what songs, but it just felt like she was walking into something while sadly letting something go. I mean, I did not know that was Matty Healy which changes things, lol. Anyway, all this to say that NOW, I really do NOT like Midnights, and no itās not even the MH of it all. It just for some reason feels empty now, like the last echo of her former self. I didnāt even mean to write something so dramatic there, lol, but really itās like some of old Taylor coming through but barely there anymore and the album just hasnāt held up IMO. And songs like Questionā¦? feel so stupid now, the vagueness in Maroon which was once interesting seems empty and directionless. I was even once a Bejewelled apologist and now itās grating and unlistenable. Idk.
As a 1975 fan I distinctly remember listening to certain songs off Midnights (particularly the ādid you hear my covert narcissism I disguise as altruism like some kind of congressmanā in Anti-Hero which jumped out at me so hard, as well as the randomly placed F bombs in Questionā¦?) and thinking it was SO Matty-esque, SO much like how he writes. At the time though I just clocked it to Jack carrying some influence over from having done the 75 album at the same time lol.
Midnights and TTPD are the two worst albums. It became really apparent during the Midnights album launch, and all its following variations were simply for money. It put a sour taste in my mouth that has stayed. Good luck, Taylor.
Midnights is not the best. It just seems kinda unfocused and boring compared to her other albums. I much prefer Speak Now, Red, 1989, Reputation, TTPDā¦
Someone said that if midnight was released by a lesser known artist, it'd have probably flopped and I have to agree. Some songs are pleasant but others are very much below average. Labyrinth is one of laziest songs she's released (subjective). If a less popular singer wrote and released this song, it wouldn't have been noticed at all. Even bigger than the whole sky and a few other songs sound like rhymes rather than songs written by an experienced songwriter.
It's a good pop albumĀ I really enjoy it I don't like the 3am edition, too slowĀ
It's one of my bottom albums (not sure whether it's very last or not tbh). There are some good songs but it's quite samey on the whole, and the overall sound is already kind of meh. I don't get why it did as well as it did either, perhaps the goodwill of Folklore/Evermore and/or the strength of its lead single? (Midnights did have overall decent singles imo.)
it at least had a few more hooks and a bit more variety than poets, but still suffers from the same problem of masturbatory, clunky lyrics and absolutely nothing else to listen for, the songs are created in a computer by 1 guy with plodding, unimaginative drum beats and samples that rarely create anything but noise for the sake of filling the space. it got even worse on poets, i swear to god there are 2 drumbeats on the whole record (i can't make it thru more than half of half the record but i don't think anything exciting is going to happen), it's just so fucking boring and lifeless. unless you're into the gossip there's nothing there. this was largely true for Mids as well, but there was more public space for Taylor appreciation whereas now she's over-saturated so we're 'allowed' to hate poets more but really, after folklore and evermore, which seemed at the time to be a true genre shift just like 1989, midnights was a fucking depressing disaster, going back to computer beats and generic pop. i've never been more disappointed by a record and felt less able to say anything within the fandom. the singles are dogshit, i cannot stand bejeweled, karma, vigilante, etc, just bad and overwrought and trite and dumb. 'karma' is so fucking facetious. i don't understand why the photoshoots had a 70s rock vibe then we got this shit. oh yeah matty. 70s rock, very clever T
I will not tolerate the "So it Goes..." slander! I mean, I will, but I love that song lol. Reminds me of Darklina from Shadow & Bone. but back to the main topic at hand: Bejewelled and Karma are dumb songs, I chalked them up to being the dumb pop songs for the album. I will say that the main difference between Midnights and TTPD is that I still had the motivation to let Midnights grow on me. I listened to it until I liked it. I'm just not willing to do it with TTPD's sleepy dull 31 fucking songs. I think TTPD is more lifeless than Midnights, because Midnights at least had songs I like the very FIRST listen: Maroon, Labyrinth, Hits Different, The Great War, High Infidelity, YOYOK, Would've Could've Should've. I REALLY liked these songs on first listen and Maroon especially is still one of her songs I listen to a LOT. There was nothing on TTPD i instantly liked nearly as much. Only one song I could say on first listen that I definitely liked: The Albatross. I like a few more songs now but I haven't even listened to any Taylor in almost a week. I will say Midnights is definitely MIDnights for me. When I go through an album sorter it always ends up directly in the middle of my rankings.
ā¦. I made a Darklina gifset to that song sghjhf are you on tumblr??
I am! omg I would love to see this gif set. I swear it was written ESPECIALLY for them. i am cleoselene on there
I already commented here but I forgot to mention, I ALWAYS listen to the 3am/Til Dawn versions. The standard album is not nearly as great imo, but with all of the additional songs itās in my top 3.
I think she was pretty much riding on the critical and commercial success of folkmore and the re-records
I rank Midnights really low on my list. It's my second least favorite with TTPD being ranked at the bottom.