Review: Taylor Swift’s ‘Evermore’ is vivid, impactful and echoes ‘Folklore’
Taylor Swift is one of the biggest stars on the planet. Time and time again, she has refused to drop out of sight or be defined by constancy, repetition and doing whatever works.
Her latest reinvention came with this summer’s release of “Folklore,” marking her venture into so-called indie music. That album was largely a hit, a well-polished and wonderfully composed set of tracks that seized on the indie world’s greatest successes, all while remaining very Taylor.
“Evermore,” the surprise album released last Friday, was described by Swift as ” ‘Folklore’s’ sister album.” It was, like “Folklore” before it, produced by Aaron Dessner, guitarist of indie group the National.
As a sort of extension of those recordings, it sounds very similar to “Folklore.” In fact, it’s pretty much more of the same. That’s not a bad thing, though, since the same, in this case, is properly excellent music.
In her post about the album’s release, Swift wrote, “In the past, I’ve always treated albums as one-off eras and moved onto planning the next one after an album was released. There was something different with ‘Folklore.’ In making it, I felt less like I was departing and more like I was returning.”
It’s an interesting observation coming from an artist who – as she says – reinvents herself at every turn much in the way of superstars like David Bowie. And it’s clear in listening to “Folklore” and “Evermore” that Swift is very much at home in this musical environment.
Her story-oriented lyric writing melds well into the backdrop of gentle composition, guitars and pianos. Tracks like “Gold Rush” take advantage of Swift’s compositional resources a little more, expanding the sound to include a larger set of instruments.
But this album is definitely at its best when it is at its most intimate, when it boils its sound down. The gentle touch of the National’s feature, “Coney Island,” is perhaps the album’s greatest moment. The song is stunning, vivid and instills a sense of loss, which Matt Berninger’s tenor accompanies well.
“Coney Island” is just one of the album’s three features. Haim features on “No Body, No Crime,” a catchy, narrative murder-mystery. Bon Iver returns on closing track “Evermore.” His feature is a building and bursting piano ballad. Swift and Bon Iver frontman Justin Vernon have serious on-track chemistry in spite of the track’s two rhythmic faces.
As the winter months kick into full swing, it’s difficult to imagine a better soundtrack than “Folklore” and “Evermore.” Swift’s stories seem made for the fireside, the wandering and trickling guitars aligned just so with the indoor atmosphere of everything. It calls to mind indie greats like Sufjan Stevens at his less esoteric.
Perhaps “Evermore’s” greatest trouble is that it doesn’t expand much on the previous album. It also shares a drawback with that album, which is that it’s sonically unoriginal. What Swift brings to indie music is not the music, but her songwriting. She captures with great success much of what has come before her, but she certainly isn’t pushing the envelope with this album.
That said, not pushing the boundaries of a genre can’t be held against her much. She has sufficiently mastered the sound she seeks, and the result is wonderful. Not only does she sound at home on these tracks, the listener also feels at home hearing them.
Overall, “Evermore” is another impactful and vivid album riddled with moments of colored melancholy, engaging storytelling and warm intimacy. Swift is an undeniably talented singer-songwriter, and it still amazes what she can accomplish with a guitar, her voice and a lot of hard work. And she keeps listeners on their toes, always asking, “What will come next?”