On Black Friday some people decide to become early holiday gift getters, others are bargain shoppers, and some become so overcome with the holiday spirit that they morph into mall tight-ends who will tackle a 90 year old grandmother to score the most desired toy of the holiday season for their even more obnoxious brats. I, myself, don’t buy into the whole giving and receiving dynamic, instead I choose self-gratification. This year for Black Friday, I chose to spoil myself and became a Swifty.
Taylor Swift was selling the “in the trees” edition of her Folklore album for just $13.00 on her website (at the time of this post, it was still available for that price). I enjoy her music on the radio but never bought a Taylor Swift album before, however she had me with limited edition and signed. Taylor’s reputation preceded her and the relationship angst-filled lyrics on Folklore don’t disappoint.
The thing that attracted me most to the sound and story telling of Folklore is how much Taylor reminds me of Anna Nalick. She’s an old soul who tries to get by in the modern world, her bonus track “the lakes” is the perfect example, with it’s antique sound and old-school demeanor. This mature adult-contemporary album is full of beautiful balladry, from the strong female revenge song “mad woman” to the girl-on-girl vibes of “betty.” However my jam is “mirrorball” with it’s smooth head-swaying groove and story of a longing love.
Taylor is a diva because of her talent and honest lyrics. I mostly know Taylor because of her battle with the music industry to gain the rights to her music by rerecording all her previous albums. The only other artist I know who did that was Paula Cole with her song “Where Have All The Cowboys Gone.” To some men in the music industry I’m sure that makes Taylor a bitch in their opinion, but in my gay opinion, that makes her an icon.
