"This year's The Life of a Showgirl marks the first time I might also say "distance helps" about a Taylor Swift album. It's not that Swift at 35 has by any means aged out of her own role of World's Biggest Pop Star-if anything she's still acting too young. No, I mean that this record, her first reunion with Swedish mega-producers Max Martin and Shellback since 2017's Reputation, feels much more enjoyable if you just let it wash over you in a sunny haze."
"One issue is simple overexposure. It's been only a year and a half since Swift's previous album, The Tortured Poets Department, unfurled its 31-song parchment. That was in the middle of the box-office-record-breaking "Eras" tour that kept Swift in stadiums and the whole world's news and social feeds pretty much daily from March 2023 to December 2024. This album was apparently recorded piecemeal between dates on that tour's final European leg last year."
Taylor Swift, 35, reunites with producers Max Martin and Shellback for The Life of a Showgirl, her first collaboration with them since 2017's Reputation. The record rewards a relaxed, surface-level listening experience, emphasizing shiny, accessible production rather than the intricate lyricism of some past records. Close scrutiny reveals moments of hackneyed or off-putting lyricism, reducing impact. Rapid output and constant visibility—only eighteen months after The Tortured Poets Department and during the global Eras tour—contribute to a sense of overexposure. Recording occurred in fragments during the tour's final European leg, and the release coincides with publicity around an engagement announcement.
Read at Slate Magazine
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