folklore

It’s important to remember that before becoming a gold-standard pop star, Taylor Swift grew up on Nashville country music. Today, it’s clear that the thirty-year-old singer has moved on far from the folklore of Music City. However, Taylor Swift never ceases to dip her pen into the same ink used by her cowgirl elders, masterfully perfecting romance, heartbreak, introspection, sociopolitical commentary and personal experiences such as when she sang of her mother’s cancer on Soon You’ll Get Better… Thanks to lockdown, it was through these restricted means and a limited casting that Folklore was conceived at the heart of summer 2020. And all the better for it. What strikes us first is the enrolment of Aaron Dessner for the record’s production. In choosing The National’s guitarist, who Swift considers as one of her idols, the singer has opted for a musician of assured tastes and will boost her credibility among indie music fans. She hammers this home on Exile the album’s unique duo with Justin ‘Bon Iver’ Vernon, an acquaintance of Dessner with whom he formed Big Red Machine. All is there on this surprising yet unusual album for Swift that is by no means a calculated attempt to appease hipsters. And it is indeed unusual! No pop bangers, nor the usual dig aimed at Kanye West, the album is free from supercharged beats and has a delicate instrumentation (piano, acoustic guitar, Mellotron, mandolin, slides…). Folklore toes a perfect line between silky neo-folk and dream rock. It’s as if the star had tucked herself away in a cabin in the forest to dream up new ideas like Bon Iver did at his debut… By laying her art bare and separating it from the elements that tailor her music for the charts, Taylor Swift’s work has gained more substance. Such is clear on the hit August which would never resonate as well if it were produced by a certain Max Martin… The American writes online: “Before this year I probably would’ve overthought when to release this music at the ‘perfect’ time, but the times we’re living in keep reminding me that nothing is guaranteed. My gut is telling me that if you make something you love, you should just put it out into the world.” A wise decision for a beautiful and mature pop record. © Marc Zisman/Qobuz