On Oct. 27, 2014, Taylor Swift released her fifth studio album. Shedding her country roots, Swift emerged into the pure pop world with “1989.” Sending her straight to the top of the charts, the album won Swift her second Album of the Year at the 58th Grammy Awards, as well as Best Pop Vocal Album.

Exactly nine years later, Taylor Swift dropped “1989 (Taylor’s Version)” as the fourth edition in her rerecording project. This venture aims to devalue the original versions of her albums owned by her previous record label, Big Machine Records, and give her control over her masters. 

The 16 remastered songs on “1989 (Taylor’s Version)” achieve her objective of faithfully reproducing the original songs. They are, however, enhanced. They possess a larger, fuller sound and production quality, and are given an upgrade with Swift’s improved vocal ability. 

Also included in the rerecordings are “vault songs.” These are tracks written at the time of the original album but ultimately not released. The five on “1989 (TV)” are a mix of hits and songs slightly missing the mark.

The first song, “Slut!,” is a track that fell short. The song focuses on Swift’s reputation in the media around 2014 — someone who constantly jumps from man to man, never settling. The star declares that she doesn’t care about how the media portrays her, as long as she’s with the right person. “And if they call me a slut/You know it might be worth it for once,” she sings. For such a provocative title, the song doesn’t stand out. The production is too mellow, too restrained. It lacks momentum, especially in the pre-chorus where the melody is extremely repetitive. The one line that does shine, however, is, “In a world of boys, he’s a gentleman.” The stacked vocals and pause in instrumentals results in a stunningly soft moment that makes the release when production resumes all the more worth it.

The next two songs, “Say Don’t Go” and “Now That We Don’t Talk,” have much better drive. Though the production is still slightly subdued in “Say Don’t Go” (at least in the first half of the song), the track builds, pulling the listener in. This song explores Swift’s desire for her partner to tell her to stay in their relationship as she is walking out on it. “Halfway out the door, but it won’t close/I’m holdin’ out hope for you to/Say, ‘Don’t go,’” Swift laments.

“Now That We Don’t Talk” is a danceable yet introspective peek into the complicated emotions that result from distancing oneself from a former partner after a necessary breakup. Swift chants, “I call my mom, she said that it was for the best/Remind myself, the morе I gave, you’d want me less/I cannot bе your friend, so I pay the price of what I lost.” Though Swift recognizes that this separation was crucial, she still misses the daily updates, the conversations, the intimacy she once had with this person. 

Illustration By Sophie Leong

“Suburban Legends,” the fourth song from the vault, sounds eerily similar to “Mastermind,” which appears on Taylor Swift’s tenth album, “Midnights.” The heartbeat rhythm thumping behind the lyrics, the production, and the melody all sound like a (slightly downgraded) version of the “Midnights” track. Additionally, the song holds a strange Ke$ha parallel (or reference), with the line “Tick-tock on the clock, I pace down your block.” This lyric is a bit hard to move past, but the rest of the song is lyrically strong, detailing, much like the previous song, an incompatible relationship that ultimately met its end. Swift wails, “You were so magnetic, it was almost obnoxious/Flush with the currency of cool/I was always turnin’ out my empty pockets/…when it came to you.”

The final vault song, “Is It Over Now?” is the standout of the five. The song touches on Swift’s continual thoughts about her past partner after their relationship has ended. It emphasizes the ways we are inevitably changed by the people we love, causing their presence to stay, even when the relationship comes to an end. “Was it over when she laid down on your couch?/Was it over when he unbuttoned my blouse?,” Swift croons. Despite both people in the singer’s story having moved on physically, they still feel the emotional weight of one another.

The song’s bridge is explicitly impactful, with Swift repeating its lyrics twice. She belts, “And did you think I didn’t see you?/There were flashin’ lights/At least I had the decency/To keep my nights out of sight,” and later, “Oh, Lord, I think about jumpin’/Off of very tall somethings/Just to see you come runnin’.” All Swift wants is for the relationship to be truly over. But her partner’s constant presence in the media and her need for attention from this person prevent the full closure of this chapter.

The song also features the already iconic line, “If she’s got blue eyes, I will surmise that you’ll probably date her.” The production is sparkly and upbeat, providing a welcome contrast with the subject of the track. The builds and drops in the song are also extremely satisfying, particularly within the repeated bridge.

Overall, these songs are an appreciated addition to “1989.” Though they may not live up to the beasts of “Out Of The Woods” and “Wildest Dreams,” they are still able to hold their own on this pop bible of an album.