You know, I pretty much had my mind made up when I picked up the latest release by Taylor Swift titled Fearless . It’s easy for anyone to categorize Swift as an over-glamorized cross-over princess, hyped up and marketed by the big corporate machine. In fact, her record label is even called “Big Machine”. heh. And yes, she’s only nineteen and her vocals on the album are auto-tuned to death. So, as you can see there’s a lot going against her at least on the surface. But interestingly enough, it turned out tha
I do have to mention though that her lyrics are filled with cliches and “young love” angst that sort of limits the scope a bit on these songs but obviously they connect with millions of teenaged girls across the U.S. looking at her incredible sales figures in 2008. Having said all that, the girl knows how to write a big hook. The big choruses and the sing-a-long simplicity in her songs sink right into your skull and remain there for days on end. The whole album is pleasant to listen to with no obvious clunk
Lastly, if I did have to nitpick, I would have left things a bit more open-ended in the song “Love Story” instead of tacking on the happy ending in the last chorus. It feels a bit hokey especially since the tragic love stories “Romeo and Juliet” and “The Scarlet Letter” are referenced in the song. But it’s a moot point I suppose since the song is a number one hit.