“You know you are good when you can even do it with a broken heart,” sings Taylor Swift on her 11th studio album. It would be easy to jump to the conclusion that, yet again, we are being presented with another break-up album. However, one thing we have come to expect from Swift is the unexpected. With no lead single or pre-launch teasers, the world eagerly awaited the opening of the doors to THE TORTURED POETS DEPARTMENT.
The first surprise came just after the album dropped, when she revealed it is a secret double album. Everything else is present and correct, with Jack Antonoff and Aaron Dessner returning to split producing duties, and each co-writing some of the tracks with Swift. The sound also appears familiar, retaining the broody synth stylings of 2022’s Midnights. However, such a comparison does THE TORTURED POETS DEPARTMENT a huge disservice. This is a record with far greater lyrical depth than Midnights, while distinct musical styles define the two halves of the double album.
As we have come to expect with a new Swift release, there has been plenty of social media chatter about the origins of the title and the expectation songs would reference her six-year relationship with actor Joe Alwyn. The surprise is that there appear to be more signposts to her brief fling with The 1975’s Matty Healy. However autobiographical some of the songs, it is clear that this anthology is much more than emotional outpourings and lyrical dissections of a failed relationship. This is an intense poetic journey into the deep psychological complexities of human relationships and the dark tortured thoughts that dance in the shadow of the minds of those who have loved and lost.
The album opens with ‘Fortnight’, which features Post Malone. The hallmarks of brooding drum beats so prevalent on Midnights are here but brightened with some 1980s-sounding swirling synths. The song recounts the story of a woman having a brief fling after a failed relationship, “I took the miracle move-on drug, the effects were temporary.” If this is about Matty Healy, the connection is even more obvious on ‘The Tortured Poets Department’. The title track opens with a drum beat that sounds like the introduction to Cameo’s ‘Word Up” before easing into a breezy synth-pop number. It is peppered with falsetto hooks and some wonderful observations: “You’re not Dylan Thomas, I’m not Patti Smith / This ain’t the Chelsea Hotel / We are modern idiots”.
Despite similarities to Midnights because of the Antonoff-inspired soundscape, the lyrics hit harder even on songs that feel poppier. ‘My Boy Only Breaks His Toys’ shares some musical similarities to 1989’s ‘Out Of The Woods’ but the dark theme describes being played with and left even more broken. THE TORTURED POETS DEPARTMENT sees Swift baring her soul wide open. On ‘Who’s Afraid of Little Old Me’ the singer screams the chorus as she turns her hurt on the world and her life in the public eye: “I was gentle till the circus life made me mean.” Sonically, the track has a gentle synth rhythm boosted by dramatic percussion, with nods to folklore, yet the gentle vocal delivery doesn’t hide the powerful messaging. The standard album closes with ‘Clara Bow’, an observation of hero worship and life in the public eye but more cutting than Red’s ‘The Lucky One’. Over a soothing gentle electric guitar and subtle synth accompaniment, Swift employs an unusual vocal delivery of short punchy lines. She recounts two starlets from the past, ending with a humorous reference to a third star: “You look like Taylor Swift in this light / We’re loving it / You’ve got edge / She never did.”
Swift reserves the harshest lyrics for others. On ‘The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived’, the album’s strongest track, Swift takes the emotional hurt of Red’s ‘All Too Well (10 Minute Version)’ and ups the ante. Beginning like the sister track to evermore’s ‘Tolerate it’ the song builds to a powerful crescendo. With lyrics delivered against a pounding backbeat, this is a cathartic release for all who have found themselves manipulated and who are taking back their self-esteem. Swift nods to the track being autobiographical, which is a heartbreaking testament to what the artist has endured.
‘So Long London’ also feels autobiographical. It covers Swift’s relationship with Joe Alwyn and the sadness many people feel after realising that they have given many years to an ultimately failed relationship: “I’m pissed off that you let me give you all that youth for free”. The sad irony of this song is that the percussive synth beat builds in a similar way to Midnights’ ‘Mastermind’ which described how she engineered meeting Joe Alwyn. Here, the promised crescendo never appears as, like the relationship, the song fades away.
Swift finds time to take a break from the emotional turmoil by travelling to ‘Florida!!!’ with Florence + The Machine. With the crashing percussive beats and rhythmic heartbeats, seen on Dance Fever, this feels as much a Florence + The Machine song as a Swift one. Their distinct vocal styles combine to brilliant effect on some of the funniest lyrics on the album, with lines such as “all my friends smell like weed or little babies”.
The album isn’t all about tortured emotions. On ‘The Alchemy’ Swift gives us a gentle love song filled with echoing drums and vocal layers. The sports references suggest this is written for her latest love, Travis Kelce, but this is more about the healing power of love as a drug: “I’m making a comeback to where I belong”.
If there is any fault to be found with the standard edition of THE TORTURED POETS DEPARTMENT it is that the sound on some of the tracks bleed together. Antonoff’s production cleverly adds nuances to the lyrics, but at times the synth rhythm feels repetitive. The second album adds a change of pace and tone. The electronic drum beats and synth highlights morph into the organic soundscape of folklore and evermore, heavy on piano and acoustic guitar, as the influence of Dessner shines through. Everything feels lighter, particularly on tracks such as ‘Chloe or Sam or Sophia or Marcus.’
The second album lacks the big emotional canvas of despair, longing, happiness and hope of the first. The songs are more understated both in terms of sound and lyrics. ‘Cassandra’ uses the mythological priestess to reference the fallout from the West/Kardashian controversy; ‘Peter’ uses Peter Pan to emphasise a difference in maturity. The latter is a beautiful piano ballad that already feels like a concert staple.
Yet, the second album is not without its thought-provoking gems. The fact that ‘The Black Dog’ uses the metaphor for depression, represents death in English folklore and is a real London pub adds so many nuances. The song builds to a screaming crescendo as it tackles the idea of memories being distorted once trust is broken. The closing track, ‘The Manuscript’, with its sparse piano accompaniment, is a truly poetic observation of memories of a relationship which ended too soon.
Throughout history, poetry has been used as a tool to convey powerful emotions. On THE TORTURED POETS DEPARTMENT, Swift has used poetry to take us on a journey into the tortured mind. She has not only laid bare her own experiences but has managed to create imagery and emotions that are rarely conveyed by music. The track that binds the album is the bouncy bop ‘I Can Do It With a Broken Heart’ which serves as a testament to both the strength and humanity of Taylor Swift.
Even after all her success, this is not only Swift’s most poetic, powerful and honest album but her most human.
Words by Andrew Butcher
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