The Life of a Showgirl

I’ve previously been known to compare Taylor Swift to Alex Turner in the sense of their writing: both as great poets of our time (see previously analysis series). I simply could not pass up the opportunity to write about Swift's highly anticipated album.

My first thought was 'hotel evening entertainment show' - but in a classy way. - That is something I think Swift does well: she is a strong female role model, especially for young girls.

Working our way through the album, the 'show' opens with Swift's number one hit single, 'The Fate of Ophelia'. With a Shakesperean undertone, it sets the theme for the complex love affair that is her relationship with 'The Life of as Showgirl'. At times tragic, other times tragically beautiful, this song really does lay the foundations for the journey about to be embarked upon.

Following suit, is another of my favourites on the album, 'Opalite'. An uplift of energy and positivity, this track really comes back to the root of Swift being a role model for people everywhere: the moral of the song? It doesn't matter how hard things get, take the negative energy and turn it into something positive.

This song segways nicely into an interview that I watched following the release of the album: Swift was on a talk show, and she mentioned that she felt that now she was in an exceptionally good place in her life, that she was concerned her writing abilities would dwindle (having been known largely for her breakup songs). Yet, she believes it has been the complete opposite, and that she has actually captured 'lightning in a bottle' with this - showing that she really was 'dancing through the lightning strikes'.

There were a couple of other stand out points for me in this album. Dark moments of the industry are captivated in songs such as 'Father Figure', while Swift appears to have some fun with the double entendre used throughout the track 'Wood'. 'Cancelled' and 'It's Actually Romantic' are classic Swift revenge songs - these just seem to get cleverer each time and more calculated, in a slight and tasteful manner.

However, the icing on the cake for me, is the closing title track.

Throughout the album, we have been on a journey: one of fighting the industry, being ourselves, and finding true happiness through the love of showbusiness. The culmination of two very popular female artists in this track, is the perfect demonstration of the girls supporting girls in the industry. Having seen Swift and Carpenter's friendship across the press in the past couple of years, their bond is clear through the seamless blending of their tonalities and complementary harmonies. The song is a story in itself, and is a beautiful and empowering, feel-good full circle moment.

All in all, I respect Swift as an artist massively. She’s evolved her style over the years, from country, to pop and most things in between, but all done with exceptional thought and direction. As an artist that has recently been on tour exploring all of these eras, the most impressive nugget for me, is her attitude.

When on Graham Norton, she opened up that she wrote this album while on The Eras Tour, at the point where she felt she was running on muscle memory and needed to stimulate her brain: on the tour, she wanted to overdeliver - and she certainly did, both in front of fans and behind the scenes working on the album.

To conclude, Swift's work ethic and passion for performance is something that really shines through in this album. She has struck a beautiful balance of raw truth and a resilent, hard-working role model. I for one, can't wait to see what the next tour will entail.