Red (Taylor’s Version) becomes a new fan favorite
In Taylor Swift’s re-release of her 2012 album, Red, she not only re-recorded the whole album, but made public 13 new tracks that didn’t make it on the album “from the vault.”
December 2, 2021
“Just between us, did the love affair maim you too?” Because it sure as hell maimed me, and every other listener of Red (Taylor’s Version).
In Taylor Swift’s re-release of her 2012 album, Red, she not only re-recorded the whole album, but made public 13 new tracks that didn’t make it on the album “from the vault”, including an extended 10 minute version of All Too Well, the emotional big-guns of the album and a fan favorite.
The pure emotional intensity of the album makes it one of Taylor Swift’s best releases to date. Swift’s reclamation of her old music and revisitation of those times in her life puts an interesting new lens on songs that we’ve already heard and adds further perspective with the ones that we hadn’t. At the time of release, Swift was often labeled as shallow, boy-crazy or vanilla, with her giant teen girl fanbase and her slew of poppy relationship songs, but those same songs looked at in retrospect, with a newfound wave of anger, vindication, and hurt, brings an undeniably powerful edge.
One thing Taylor Swift has always done phenomenally is connect. Fans have never struggled to find themselves in her lyrics, and this release is no exception. With multiple TikTok trends surrounding this album and countless related posts from emotionally stirred listeners, the impact is lost on no one. The emotional rawness of the album nearly grabs you by the neck and forces you to relate and feel the impact of someone else’s breakup so entirely you almost forget it’s not your own.
As Swift grows older, her fanbase does too. The feelings presented by this album are only intensified through a lens of nostalgia and introspection. We’re offered a fuller, rawer version of the truth accompanied by a more mature narrator. This allows the listener to really soak in and understand the narrative being told throughout the album.
Red (Taylor’s Version) is a passionate tear-jerker of an album, that simultaneously shakes up and comforts any broken heart. “Sad Beautiful Tragic.” This is an album I’ll listen to a million times.
