Tag Archives: 1989

Music

We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together (1989 Tour Remix)

If you were lucky enough to attend Taylor Swift’s 1989 World Tour last year, you undoubtedly witnessed the rock-inspired remix of her hit “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together.”  The second I heard it, I was hoping she’d release either a studio version or live version of it..theoretically she did because she released video footage of it on Apple Music.

Anyway, I was searching around for a studio version of it, and I found this remix a fan made, and it’s pretty close to what she actually did live (although I’m pretty sure the grunts we hear throughout the remix are actually Cher Lloyd from her song “Want U Back.”)

This DJ/remixer/fan has several other Taylor Swift remixes, which are pretty stunning, but I have to say his acoustic remixes of “Clean” and “Wildest Dreams” are pretty spectacular (see below).

To give you an idea of what Swift did during her 1989 World Tour, here’s a clip:

Music

OUT OF THE WOODS

Last night released her new music video for “Out of the Woods” and it is awesome!

I think it’s the most visually stunning out of all the music videos from 1989, which says a lot because they were all pretty spectacular.  I especially like how it visually tells the story of the struggle of the relationship: after the relationship ended (“she lost him”), she had to go through many struggles, as people do, to move on (“she found herself and that…was everything”).  She represents the struggles through the many different wilderness/weather problems.  Which I total relate to living in through the hell of New England winter.

Also, it was filmed in New Zealand, a place I’ve always sort of wanted to go to.  I had a teacher in middle school who once told me the toilets in New Zealand flush in the opposite direction as they do in the U.S.  I’m not sure if she was just pulling my leg or being honest, but that was the start of wanting to visit.  Since then, I’ve seen pictures and books where you can bike through canyons and valleys and it looks gorgeous.  This video just emphasizes the beauty of New Zealand…well…someday I’ll go…hopefully…maybe.

Anyway, do yourself a favor and start of 2016 on the right foot and watch “Out of the Woods” video!

 

P.S. Happy New Year.

Music, Personal Experience

Tricking Him into 1989

I have this friend who I think is the only person who is unaware of Taylor Swift’s record breaking album 1989, which officially spent a complete year in the top ten of the the Billboard 200.  He prefers more indie folk/jazz music, particularly if it’s rather unknown, so he doesn’t listen to pop radio or follow artists like Taylor Swift.  No judgement.  We all have different tastes in music.  I’m entitled to listen to T. Swift just like he’s entitled not to.  However, for years he would moan how she’s too “mainstream” and basically wouldn’t give her a chance.  I would tell him he might like one of her songs, but he never gave her a fair shot (in my opinion).

When Ryan Adams released his cover of 1989, naturally I listened to it and enjoyed it (I particularly like his cover of “All You Had to Do was Stay”).  Adams completely took Swift’s album and made it his own, but he made it a completely different genre and made it sound like something from the early nineties.  I knew my friend would like it.  So I sent it to him.

Yesterday we were talking about Ryan Adams and my friend was telling me all about how he listened to the album and actually liked it.  Turns out some of the songs were catchy to him and intrigued him.  Then I told him how Ryan Adams covered the whole album.  That in fact Taylor Swift created the original album  and had written the entire album.  Boy, was he shocked.

True, the performance styles between Taylor Swift and Ryan Adams are different and my friend probably responded to the more folksy sound of Ryan Adams than the bubbly pop of Taylor Swift, but the fact remains you cannot perform a song in any style without it being well written (or written at all).  And the fact Swift’s songs could stand up and still shine through Adams covers shows her incredible songwriting ability.  This is not to say Ryan Adams is not a quality musician – it takes great talent to do what he did.  My point is that instead of my friend writing off Taylor Swift as untalented or lackluster, he should have actually just listened to one of her albums before saying she was a waste of time.  Because whether or not he wants to admit, I know he liked an album Taylor Swift wrote.  And he can never take that away from me.

Music

Wildest Dreams Music Video

Last night, Taylor Swift released the music video for her latest single, “Wildest Dreams.”  The video shows Swift as a ’40s movie star, filming a movie; she falls in love with her character’s love interest and then realizes it was all a “dream” because they were just acting.  I especially though the cinematography was beautifully done.

There was one moment where she’s sitting in front of a lion, and I just kept wondering if she actually did that…I mean, if were me, I’d be praying it wouldn’t eat me.  I’m somewhat skeptically if the animals were actually there though because this music video was directed by Joseph Kahn, the guy who did her previous two videos (“Blank Space” and “Bad Blood”), and both those videos had such well-done effects.  In particular, I remember there’s a scene in “Blank Space” where Swift takes a golf club and destroys her love interest’s car, and I thought she literally was destroying the car because the effects looked so real.  I actually started wondering what they would do if she messed up the take and they had to shoot the scene again: would they buy another car?  But then I realized that it was all CGI.  So if that looked pretty realistic, they could’ve just plopped the lions, zebras, and giraffes into the background.

While I enjoyed the video and think it’s worth the watch (see video above), I don’t think it matches or surpasses the epicness that was “Bad Blood” (like anything could).  However, according to the music video, all of her proceeds from this video will be donated to the African Parks Foundation of America to help with wild animal conservation.

Music

Taylor Swift Brings Back “Smelly Cat” (!!!)

I woke up early this morning and for some reason had the urge to check Twitter.  It was as if the gods were telling me something amazing had happened.  And I saw that Taylor Swift had brought out Lisa Kudrow (as Phoebe Buffay) on her latest show of the 1989 World Tour to play “Smelly Cat.”

I don’t know how long this clip will last on Youtube (they’re bound to pull it down), but Taylor Swift introduces Kudrow as a “singer [who] has only performed in coffee houses before…this is Phoebe Buffay.”  Phoebe finally made it!

They then proceeded to recreate this scene from Friends:

Now, I’m happy to report, “smelly cat” is a top trending topic on Twitter and Facebook.  It’s crazy to think after like twenty years, people still remember Phoebe and her songs.

If you want to see more clips/read more about it, click here.

UPDATE:

I found a clip of the whole performance:

Music

Taylor Swift’s Fifth Single from 1989?

Taylor Swift’s latest album 1989 has launched four top ten hits, three of which went to number one on the Billboard Hot 100.  I was looking at the release history of her singles from this album, and they almost literally were released three months apart.  Since “Bad Blood” was released in May and it is now August, I think there is a very strong possibility the fifth single could be released.  Very soon.

But which song will Swift and her team choose?

I saw someone ask her (I think on Tumblr) what would be the next single, and she replied saying she didn’t know (which I suspect is a slight lie…Ms. Swift has a strong record of being ten steps ahead of everyone and having things planned out in great detail).  I read a lot of speculation from various blogs and Swift-fan Tumblr pages that “New Romantics,” a bonus song from the deluxe version of 1989, will be or should be the next single.  I think the speculation comes from the fact that it’s the only bonus song that is in the setlist of the 1989 World Tour; the others she has performed, but not at every show like “New Romantics.”  Why would she make a song that is not part of the standard version of 1989 (she performs all thirteen songs plus a couple of her past hits during the show) part of the setlist if it was not to be a single.  And she has made bonus songs singles previously (let us remember “Ours” from the deluxe version of Speak Now).

chart

Chart performances on the Billboard Hot 100 for the bonus songs from 1989

Personally, I wouldn’t choose “New Romantics” as the next single.  Don’t get me wrong, I love the song, it has a great beat, message, and it’s great to dance around to with your hands in the air (something I have in fact done).  The first reason is that when they released the bonus tracks as promotional singles a could months ago, “New Romantics” didn’t do the best.  Now, I don’t have the sales figures or anything, I just have the reported chart performances, so I’m using that to estimate that “Wonderland” sold/tested better than “New Romantics” (see above chart).  Also, keep in mind that Swift has had promotional singles, like “Speak Now,” “State of Grace,” and “Out of the Woods,” chart significantly higher on the Billboard Hot 100 based solely on digital downloads (eight, thirteen, and eighteen, respectively).

Early chart performance probably doesn’t matter because Taylor Swift could take her worst song (as if that exists) and make it a top ten hit easy.  The other reason why I wouldn’t choose “New Romantics” is because, to me, it feels like a summer anthem, what with the drum beat and big chorus.  If they released it now as we head out of summer, it wouldn’t have a long shelf life.  Sure, it would get spins during the dog days of August and early September, but as the leaves start to change, we’re no longer dancing on the beach but settling down for autumn.
My suggestion: “Wildest Dreams.”  It’s the perfect fit for where she’s at with the promotion of the album.  Tempo-wise, it changes it up from her past upbeat singles and it slows it down for the summer-ending/autumn-coming season.  Plus, it’s radio friendly with a pretty darn catchy and beautiful chorus.  On top of all that, it was the only non-single/non-promotional-single to chart on the Billboard Hot 100 in the US, landing at number seventy-six during the release week of 1989.  In fact, I remember it was a worldwide trending topic during 1989‘s release week.  This all boils down to the fact that while it is a big fan favorite, it has spilled over into non-Swifties (for the purpose of this post, I’m defining a non-Swiftie as someone who would listen to her music, but are only really familiar with her hits from radio.  Like, they’re not hardcore fans for various reasons).  With another mind-blowing music video, “Wildest Dreams” could easily be her fourth number one single from 1989 (fifth overall).

There really isn’t anyway to know what will be the fifth single (if there is to be one) until Swift tells us.  I wouldn’t be surprised if we hear “Out of the Woods” on the radio pretty soon or “New Romantics.” My hope, though, is that in a couple weeks we’ll see “Wildest Dreams” sitting on top of the Billboard 100.  That would be pretty cool.

 

Music

Taylor Swift’s 1989 World Tour

They said it was supposed to be sunny and beautiful all day on Friday (the 24th), the day I had tickets to see Taylor Swift at Gillette Stadium.  All week, sunny, no rain.  Then, it’s finally Friday, and the weather report starts to change: rain starting 5 p.m.  Considering the show started at 7 p.m., Swift probably going around 9 or 10, I wasn’t happy.  Although, still excited to see Taylor Swift.

Arriving at Gillette Stadium.

Arriving at Gillette Stadium.

I was one of those lucky individuals who attended her Speak Now World Tour at Gillette Stadium and it down-poured, and I didn’t really want to relive that experience (although Swift did use footage from that show for her “Sparks Fly” music video, so it was kind of worth it).  As we got closer to the event, the rain started to increase in probability and they started to say there would be thunder.  Fabulous.  Just what I needed, to be sitting in the nose-bleed seats of Gillette Stadium and be struck by lightning before seeing the 1989 World Tour.

Upon our arrival, we had been given these wrist bands that kind of looked like a FitBit, and I started to wonder if Swift was tracking her fans’ physical activity.  When the woman handed me my wrist band, I looked at her confused and she replied with “Taylor wants you to wear it.”  No more objections.  If Taylor wants you to wear a bracelet, you wear the friggin’ bracelet.

HAIM performing at the 1989 World Tour

HAIM performing at the 1989 World Tour

There I was, sitting in my one-size-fits-all rain poncho (which was quite a lie because the darn thing didn’t fit over my head…I had to rip it a little bit to fit) watching the HAIM girls create magic, wondering what Swift had in store for us.  I’ve been a little familiar with HAIM’s debut album Days Are Gone, but it was incredible to watch these sisters shredding it on guitar, bass, and drums.

Finally the time came.  The lights went out, the curtain dropped, and out came Taylor Swift, singing “Welcome to New York.”  The questions about the wrist bands were quickly answered when they lit up and flashed different colors to the rhythm of the songs.  Swift later explained in the show that she wanted to make sure she could see “every last person.”  The ploy was ingenious because it saved us from having to drain our phone batteries to flash a light during songs, and it made us a part of the show.

60,000 wrist bands lit up

60,000 wrist bands lit up

It’s hard to say what the best performance or song was because the whole show was mind-blowingly amazing.  I’ve seen Swift four times now, and I have to say I think this concert was perhaps her best (although, her others were amazing as well).  With the lights synchronized perfectly to the music, Swift’s talks between songs inspiring and heartwarming, and each song being performed perfectly, the night was one to be remembered.  She ended up performing all the songs from 1989 in addition to her previous hits “Love Story,” “You Belong With Me,” “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together,” and “I Knew You Were Trouble.”  Naturally, the live performances did not perfectly match the album cuts as she did different versions.  For example, she said that she wanted to incorporate “Love Story” into the show, but knew it would not fit with the theme of 1989, so she create a whole new version with ’80s inspired synths and beats, and it was amazing to hear (she needs to release it…soon).  “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together” felt like an ode to Joan Jett or Pat Benatar with heavy guitars, grunts, and sharp yells (at the point in the second verse where she sings “indie records much cooler than mine,” she actually screamed that, which reminded me of a heavy metal/scream band.  It was epic).

There was also a point where I felt Swift was borrowing from her friend Ed Sheeran.  Sheeran, in concert, performs by himself without a band.  He’ll make different sounds either vocally or on his guitar and loop it, so he creates the whole arrangement by himself live.  During her performance of “Blank Space,” Swift said she wanted to try an “experiment,” and she shouted “Boston” and looped it.  Then she sang the bridge of “Blank Space,” looping that with “Boston!”  She then sang the bridge about two more times, each one a different pitch and looped it all together.  It was cool to see and experience.

Whether it had rained or not (and it didn’t), I probably would’ve had one of the best nights of my life.  And that says something from a guy who really hates weather that is not sunny and 70 degrees.  It’s not just seeing Taylor Swift in concert, it’s experiencing the excitement and watching these hit songs come to life.

Music

We Are Never Ever Getting Bad Blood

I’m a fan of mashups…when they work.  I’m amazed when people take two completely different songs by different artists and put them together to flow seamlessly as though they were meant to be together, regardless of tempo and key signature.  But then there are some where they speed up a song to fit with the other and it sounds like chipmunk…

Anyway, someone put together Taylor Swift’s number one hits “Bad Blood” and “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together,” and it’s awesome.  I would post the clip of the mash up, but any time I find it on YouTube it gets taken down…

Music

Bad Blood Music Video

Taylor Swift’s music video for “Bad Blood” is finally here!  All week long, she has been tweeting out posters of the video’s stars, and because there were so many people in the video, I couldn’t help but thinking “this is either going to be awesome or awful.”  And I think it’s beyond awesome.

What’s great about the video is that it perfectly chronicles the narrative Swift gave us about the inspiration about the song.   She said that it was about how a fellow female musician who she once thought of as a friend tried to sabotage her Red Tour by buying out her crew and performers.  In the video we see Selena Gomez as “Arsyn” fighting with Taylor Swift as “Catastrophe.”  They seem to be fighting together to save the world, and then Gomez goes in and sabotages the mission by defenestrating Swift.  Then Swift is rebuilt and trained by her strong female friends (another parallel to Swift’s life, as she has said in multiple interviews that she spent the year leading up to 1989 befriending and spending time with “inspiring” and “powerful” women).  And then they stand together to take down the enemy.  Even if you don’t care about the match up between the video and Swift’s narrative, I still think it’s empowering message of people coming together and supporting/training one another.

This video is perhaps one of Swift’s best (although, I thoroughly enjoyed the one for “Shake it Off”), and I like that it’s so epic and badass.  I also think it’s kind of funny/cool that Selena Gomez was the villain.  The other “cool” thing about this video is that it features Kendrick Lamar.  I’ve always kind of hoped that one day T. Swift would put out a song that featured a rapper, so now that kind of happened.

#PhillipsSongOfTheDay, Music

In “Wonderland”

Taylor Swift’s 1989 is by far one of the best and most successful albums of this year, and quite possibly the decade.  After six months on sale, the album still sits within the top ten of the Billboard 200 and iTunes Top Albums, and it has sold over four million copies just within the U.S. (I think it sold like eight million world wide so far).  In fact, Swift’s 1989 has outsold both her previous two albums, Red and Speak Now.  But what makes this album so great is that it takes listeners on a journey in one cohesive, fluid motion.  It’s relatable, timeless, and inspiring.  It has even gone on to grow Swift’s already huge fan empire.

I bring this up for two reasons. One, I saw this on Twitter a while ago and have always thought it was hysterical because of it’s great caption, and I wanted to share:

god

The other reason I bring up 1989 is because if you haven’t picked up the deluxe edition or the bonus tracks on iTunes, I highly recommend it, especially the song “Wonderland.”  This particular song has been stuck in my head, but it really captures the exciting feelings I have around this time of year, the time when Spring blooms and it’s almost summer.  It starts off simple and soft, and then explodes into a huge, upbeat chorus that has epic drums and fantastic dub step.  Then it draws back to the simple synths, and then explodes again. It’s such a great dance number.

Swift makes references to, obviously, Alice in Wonderland, especially with lines referring to falling “down a rabbit hole,” and her love interest calming her fears with a “Cheshire cat smile.”  Lyrically, I think the song is very tight and amazing; the lyric that’s most powerful to me has to be “I should have slept with one eye open at night.”  This line is the epitome of the song: she was swept up into a toxic relationship that felt magical, but was really rather damaging and not healthy, which she regrets letting herself get there.

While I usually post clips of songs I write about, I’m again not going to do so to honor Taylor Swift’s determination to revive the music industry and not allow music to be free.  Also, let’s be real, any Youtube clip I’d find would most certainly be deleted within an hour or so…but, if you’re looking for a new song to bop to in the sun, and you have a $1.29 to burn on iTunes, “Wonderland” really is a “wonder” to listen to…