Nobody asked a late-40s guy who mostly lives in rock, blues, and metal to weigh in on Taylor Swift’s latest release, but like most late 40s guys, I'm going to give you my opinion anyway!
The Life of a Showgirl dropped today (as of the time of publishing, October 3, 2025). I started my music-listening life as a pop fan before I formed a harder edge, so I like to keep up with what's going on in the pop music world. We're in a world where most music is niche. Mass media is over.
Even the biggest artists now have limited audiences. When a huge album from a mega pop star comes out that transcends the niche, I feel like it's important.
The verdict? The songs are good. Swift knows how to write a hook, and this album delivers from that standpoint. I focused my listening more on the music and the sound vs. lyrical analysis. I don't know everything about what the words mean, nor am I going to spend any time investigating that.
Better yet, buy it at your local record store!
The highlights
"The Fate of Ophelia" has a great chorus, and verses that feel almost New Wave. I really like this song and think it's a strong opener.
“Elizabeth Taylor” stands out with piano flourishes that deserve more prominence than they get. It's got a great pop feel and a catchy chorus.
“Actually Romantic” plays with a chord progression that immediately reminded me of Weezer’s “Say It Ain’t So,” sans the heavy power chords, which provide some build-up and direction for the Weezer tune. I kept waiting for them to drop in on this one. They didn’t. I still liked it though. It was rather moody.
"Wood" is probably my favorite track on the record. It's got a Motown, Jackson 5 feel to it and it's fun. I'm now told that there are likely references to Travis Kelce's "Under Armour" throughout, but I'm undeterred. It's a fun listen.
“Wi$h list” and “Cancelled!” Are edgy and should go over great live. Again, these are musical observations – I don't have any insight or opinion on what the songs are about.
"The Life of a Showgirl", the title track and album-closing collaboration with Sabrina Carpenter provides a nice end to the record. Carpenter's voice plays off of Swift's very nicely. I love a collaboration. There is contrast between them when they're singing solo, but their harmonies are quite nice. You get a little of Sabrina's 70s country sound in the verse she features on, which is my favorite version of Sabrina Carpenter.
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Now for the critiques.
Production on Benadryl
Do you know when you take an antihistamine and it makes you feel a little like you're under water? That's what I get from listening to this record. There are so many parts that I think could be so much better if they were just brought out in the mix, but it feels like it was recorded in an aquarium.
Everything feels distant, muddy, and compressed to me in a way that even Swift’s recent work isn’t. I listened on a good system with nice speakers in my listening room, and I tried it in both Dolby Atmos and in stereo (on Apple Music). I got a similar result off of each.
The acoustic instruments like guitar, piano, and strings (whether they're actual instruments or not), are buried. Guitar parts, piano hooks, little flourishes that should punch through the mix are pushed so far back they’re practically background noise. “Elizabeth Taylor” suffers the most from this. There are genuinely cool moments happening that you have to strain to hear.
The only exception for me is on “Ruin the Friendship”, where I feel like it somehow fits.
I get that thin, atmospheric production is the current style. Fine. But there’s a difference between intentional space and just sounding muffled. I even thought that I'd better go listen to other recent pop albums to make sure I wasn't wrong here, so I dipped into several other current pop records as well as a couple of Taylor's recent albums. The Life of a Showgirl crosses that line too often. Songs like “Opalite” and “Actually Romantic” would benefit from some clarity and punch.
I am not saying that Max Martin and Shellback are bad at their jobs. They're accomplished producers who have extraordinary resumes. It's just not the sound I prefer.
The bones are strong. Swift’s songwriting remains sharp. The performances are there. These are well-crafted pop songs with potential for real impact. They probably will have plenty of impact.
It's not for me. It's for her millions of fans, and most of them will find plenty to love about this record. I just wish it had a more vibrant, present sound.
