Taylor Swift has just released her newest album Evermore on December 11, and fans can’t get enough. This album was dropped as an absolute surprise, with the announcement the day before it happened. It was such a wonderful holiday gift to receive, as it dives deeper into her self described ‘witchy’ era, and piggybacks off of her last surprise release Folklore.

The album has a total of fifteen songs. None were released as singles, but the first song off the album entitled “willow” has had three remixes within it’s first five days of release; 2 done by Swift herself, and one done by Elvira.

The song that I have on repeat on this album is “champagne problems.” At first listen, I really wasn’t sure on how I would feel about this song. The intro wasn’t really to my liking, and had too much piano in my opinion. However, as the song crescendoed to the chorus and beyond the song really gained my favor. The vocals became much more ethereal and smooth, and the piano ballad became much more echoey and heavenly, and added more strings into the mix. The song feels like sitting next to a fire on a cold snowy day, and brings me much joy with each listen.

A song similar to the last is “gold rush.” The first thing I noticed was the beautifully placed strings in the first four seconds of the song. It highly reminded me of the first few seconds of Lana Del Rey’s “Love song.” Both have this slow rise of a folky violin that leads to an incredibly elegant vocal lead. While Del Rey’s is a much more of a lullaby vocally, Taylor’s is this incredible harmony of airy grace. The song is much more upbeat than “champagne problems” and has an ecstatic feel of hope to it. As she sings, “What must it be like to grow up that beautiful? With your hair falling into place like dominoes/ My mind turns your life into folklore/ I can’t dare to dream about you anymore,” the song has a heavy and confident beat, with a celestial melody of strings in the back. It gives the energy of riding horseback through a fantasy forest in a sparkling gold dress. It’s stunning.

“willow” is also an incredible song, and so far is the most popular off the album, and there’s a good reason why. The song is a perfect mix of relaxing folk and upbeat pop. Its incredibly virtuoso in the fact it can blend its genre between the two distinct categories. This is one of the songs with a more earthy vibe. It’s one that is a perfect representation of the photo’s from the album; those of Taylor in oversized woolen clothes in a large spacious field. She is really serving the whole Stevie Nicks vibe. Even though it’s a great song, I much rather prefer the “lonely witch version” that Swift released. It fits much more into my personal taste, with its removal of some of the tech backing beats, and replacement of them with more tangible instrumentals.

Recently added to my personal playlist, “ivy,” comes up as a great song as well. It has a stronger country vibe, but doesn’t stray too far from the folk genre the album is clinging to. The mix of diverse instrumentals like the jingle bells with the acoustic guitar create a perfect taste of the feelings of a lush green forest. The mix of harmonizing vocals from Taylor and an unknown male voice are drenched in a gossamery feeling of comfort and safety. It feels like an auditory representation of the Cottagecore aesthetic.

Shattering my heart into pieces, the song “marjorie” is due credit. This song is an homage to Swift’s grandmother, and is all about how much she meant to her and how she can still feel her presence. It’s heart-wrenching, and dripping with the melancholic taste of a passed loved one.

Taylor sings, “And if I didn’t know better/ I’d think you were talking to me now/ If I didn’t know better/ I’d think you were still around/ What died didn’t stay dead… You’re alive, so alive.” The vocals on this song seem to have a resounding reverb to them that ring throughout your head as you contemplate just how painful loss is, and how desperately people crave back what isn’t there. I feel absolutely gutted with each listen of this song. It’s one that will definitely be a song I will cry to in the future.

Each album has its own fair share of good and bad songs, and this album is no different. Although my overall opinion of this album is that it’s astounding, I can’t help but point out some songs that don’t really resonate with either the tone of the album, or my own particular taste.

“no body, no crime” is a song that I truly do enjoy. I love the inclusion of HAIM, as they are a band I am fond of. However, this song doesn’t fully fit with the aesthetic of the whole album. It is much more filled with country-esque stylings, and is strongly like a classic Taylor Swift song. It’s filled with the overdone, ‘I’m going to murder this man for cheating’ trope, which while invigorating and empowering has been brought up in many country songs for decades now. Do not get me wrong though, I really do like this song; as do many others. It’s just that I don’t think this song is well mixed in with the vibes of this album.

Something worth a skip is the song “happiness.” This song isn’t bad per-say; it’s incredibly peaceful and simple. But that’s really all. The song doesn’t really pick up it’s pace in any major way, and stays at the same calmed tempo for the entirety. It’s also very long. At a bit over 5 minutes, it’s the longest song on the album. It is just incredibly drawn out, and a bit dull in my opinion.

Ranking as my least favorite song off this album- and my least favorite song in Taylor’s whole career- is “closure.” I don’t want to be rude, but this song is just inherently bad. The song has so many different instrumentals going on that absolutely do not mix well together. There’s what sounds like banging on pans mixed with a slow piano melody, and an electronic buzz that whirls through certain parts of the song. The pacing of the vocals are also simply weirdly done. It sounds as if the song is skipping on a vinyl record. It’s incredibly overwhelming, and to be honest, feels like the equivalent of having a stroke. There is just so much happening in a short amount of time that doesn’t fit together. I’m sorry, but I hate it.

This album is definitely one of Swift’s better albums to date, and the fans agree. With her recently turning 30, Taylor has tapped into a more mature side of herself. Its something she’s flown into with flying colors. She’s left her over-the-top and lulling hyper pop in her past, and has delve into her roots and core emotions, and beautifully pushing it out through glimmering music. The quarantine that the world has been put under for the past 200+ days has been a turning point for her. She’s been able to absolutely hone in on who she wants to be, and how she feels about life.

Even though this album is fantastical and diaphanous, I don’t think this album is better than her last album Folklore. I give this album an 8/10. If you’re in need of something relaxed, melancholic, and exquisite to listen to, I highly recommend you give this album a listen.