Not Now, I'm Busy

Taylor Swift’s third studio album ‘Speak Now’ was released in October 2010. In the few months since release, ‘Speak Now’ has been certified three times platinum in the USA and two times platinum in Australia, and peaked at number one on the Aria Charts in 2010, a monumental feat. This is an album that acts as an extension of Swift’s musical ability from Fearless (six times platinum in USA, five times platinum in Aus). An almost annoyingly infectious collection of tracks, Swift’s blend of country and pop genres will have you singing, dancing, crying and laughing in no time.

Breaking it down, this is essentially an album of love songs. We hear of current and past relationships, the good times and the bad, as well as just having a good time. The lyric content appeals to an adolescent audience.

This album is way too ‘poppy’ for it’s own good. The songs are incredibly infectious.

Sonically, the sound is clean and crisp. Each of the sounds has a punch. Each track has a lot of presence, boasting fat mids. These qualities make these songs perfect for radio and making kids dance.

All of the tracks boast a smooth melodic contour, making the songs easy to sing along with and generally aesthetically pleasing. Each line reads like a narrative; that is beginning with a complication and then resolving in a perfect cadence, ending in a tonic chord. Taylor’s voice is flawless with no auto tune correction. One has to admire a pop artist who needs no computerised editing to sing well. It’s like a breath of fresh air in today’s pop world. There is not a lot of dynamic range in the voice. The vocal has been compressed and mixed so that quiet passages are matched to louder, more passionate passages. Read the rest of this entry →