Taylor Swift

       I hate that I like, at times love, Taylor Swift; abhor it, really. She does not have an actual genre; she cannot decide between country or pop, and she can be placed in neither of these categories. Her songs are usually about the same thing and, every once in a while, she tries to write a song about something she has no real grasp on. I apologize to anyone who might think it's pathetic to like Taylor Swift, but I'm sure that person is secretly addicted to her and, as disappointing as my love of this pop country singer may be, it cannot be as bad as the gaffe I made when announcing I loved Ke$ha; or when, in the future, I admit that I am addicted to anything by, or that features, B.o.B (that future is about eight songs down).

   "Picture to Burn" I might like burning things a little too much, but this is the first Swifty song I bought and it is so fucking stupid and her producers hadn't yet decided to autotune her voice, but it is so damn catchy. Plus, guys who love their trucks that fucking much make me want to run them over with my Daewoo. Same goes for "Should've Said No"; the 'first song' thing, not the vehicular homicide bit.

   "Love Story" Even though Taylor Swift obviously never read "The Scarlet Letter" or the end of 

"Romeo and Juliet," the song is still awfully catchy. "You Belong With Me" falls under that same category; it may be about an unhealthy stalker-esque relationship, but it is the best song to sing in the car with your friends. 

   "Forever & Always" This song is kind of great and it's about time someone let Swifty know that happy endings don't exist. "Last Kiss" and some of the songs on her newer albums allude to that fact, but Taylor Swift spent a lot of time in a happy, all-is-perfect, world.  
  "Enchanted" I actually really love this song. A lot. The same goes for most of the songs on her album, Speak Now. "Back to December," for instance, was played on repeat for about half an hour on the highway once, and "Sparks Fly" is somehow great to me; I think it must be that line about "green eyes". And though I don't think Taylor Swift has ever been in an abusive relationship, "Mean" is still ridiculously addictive. 

   "Mine" She kind of fell a little short on the (previously stated) album here, because she does not know what she is talking about; we all know Taylor Swift did not recently live in some small town and fall in love with a guy, have kids, and live happ-fuck-ily ever after. 

  "Better Than Revenge" She redeemed herself on Speak Now with this song; I think I played it more than any other song my freshman year (no one likes the first sorority girl they befriend in college, unless maybe they're in a sorority...no, those girls are all bitches; they'd be the type of girl that would hate other girls...). "Speak Now" was also kind of awesome, I mean, completely unrealistic, but in a slightly good way. And I love "Long Live"; I have no explanation for this.

   "If This Was A Movie" I listened to this song far too often last year... around winter break? Anyways, Swifty does sing about waiting for guys in the rain an awful lot, but the song is too catchy and was a nice hold over between her album in 2010 and Red. The same goes for "Ours," even though it's sickeningly adorable, you have to love the music video. 

   "Both of Us" It's actually B.o.B's song (he is great; his lyrics are better than Taylor Swift's, and so much more fun to sing), but Taylor Swift's appearance should not be overlooked too much; it's her first really good summer release song and she has to be given credit for being anywhere close to B.o.B. Honestly, I fucking love this song. 

   "I Knew You Were Trouble." It's one of those songs where I sit there with iTunes asking me if I'm really sure I want to buy the song thinking, "why do I like Taylor Swift," but damn this song; I love it. And all of her singles, well, most of her singles, coming from her new album. "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together" is awful, but Rolling Stone describes why I love it, perfectly, as they usually do. I held back on purchasing "Red" for a while actually, but when I listened to it again while writing this, I broke down. 

       Taylor Swift is the epitome of an abusive relationship; I don't want to love her, but I'm sucked in by the promises she makes with her catchy songs and lyrics, so I forget all of the shit she gave me on her first album and a few of the other songs along the way. Her songs have gotten progressively better over the years though; there's a big jump from "Picture to Burn" to "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together". Judge me if you want, but if you listen to any of these songs, you'll be singing them for a week. Red comes out October 22nd, and there is no doubt in my mind that I will be just as excited to get this album as I was to get Lightening. 

- E