The Life of a Showgirl: An Album Reaction
Running themes: true love, "settling down," celebrity culture, performance, showgirl-ship, glitz, glam, and the end of the infamous break-up era
You all know I had to do it, right?
As a seasoned Swifty with Reservations (coined by the incredibly talented Jensen McRae in this genius article about the similarities between Taylor Swift and Joan Didion), I did my fan due diligence and listened to the album in full this morning.
For the last few releases, I’ve chosen to go to bed at 10pm, avoid all spoilers, and listen to the album for the first time on my morning commute. I like having a clean slate, so as not to get wrapped up in the positive or negative hype from stans and haters alike.
The same question inevitably enters my mind—Who else is listening to the new Taylor Swift album on the train right now?
I bet the answer isn’t zero. That’s how much attention Swift commands of us as people. I wouldn’t be surprised if world leaders from all sides took a break from their mutual fuckery to comment on it today.
So—I surely won’t be the first nor the last person to give my unwanted opinion on The Life of a Showgirl. But I’m feeling just inspired enough to try.
Full Disclosure: Sometimes, I need an album to marinate for a bit before fully enjoying it, so, I reserve the right to potentially disagree with what I’m about to say four months from now. It’s called a reaction and not a review for a reason 😉
I’ll be honest—I wasn’t sure if I would like this album. The Tortured Poets Department left a little to be desired for me. Those Jack Antonoff-produced tracks were overbearing. By contrast, those produced by Aaron Dessner slid down my throat like expensive brown liquor. I thought, “Wait, go back! I want more of THAT.”
It was the most mixed I’d ever felt about a Swift album.
Hearing that Swedish producers and former 1989 and Reputation collaborators Max Martin and Shellback were back on board, and Jack was nowhere to be found? I took that as a good omen. Rightfully so in some respects! The production on The Life of a Showgirl is pretty solid. There are several tracks with basslines laid on so thick you can’t help but purse your lips and grooooooove.
I’ll start with what I liked.
I enjoyed “Opalite” and “Ruin The Friendship” quite a bit. Immediately, I loved the way these two songs sounded. The mixes and melodies hit just right. These felt the most old school Taylor, which I find I prefer.
“Opalite” is a call-back to songs and colors of past lovers. Taylor has always used colors to symbolize her views on love and relationships. Red symbolized the first—a rich, but passionate punch to the gut. Where pain-filled Red burned out, gentle Gold held steadfast and comforted before ultimately fading over the years to a dull Grey. Then, came the familiar darkness. Black onyx seized her with only brief lightning flashes to light the night.
Opal appears to symbolize a rebirth—the rainbow after the storm. Opal—a multicolored gem and October’s birth stone—is warm, bejeweled, and speaks to lovers uniting after all the wrong ones have come and gone. It reads like the end of a story. Everything brought us here, to each other. *cue the car driving into the sunset*
“Ruin The Friendship” is also a full circle moment. There were several not-so-subtle references to her previous hit “Fifteen,” indicating some kind of epiphany about searching for love in all the wrong places and finding it right back where you started.
The title track is cute. I like the Sabrina Carpenter feature a lot. I am not-so-secretly hoping for a music video where these two put on a Vaudeville act, a la Gypsy Rose Lee and Roxie/Velma in Chicago. Imagine the meltdown amongst Christian Conservatives…
These tracks are highlights in an otherwise disappointing album.
Onto the lack-lust portions…
I’ll give Taylor this—this album is honestly fucking funny. It’s bold to release an entire song about your professional football player fiancé’s massive cock. I laughed out loud hearing it for the first time and genuinely thought:
“Actually Romantic” and “CANCELLED!” were also funny in a tongue-in-cheek way, but otherwise, fell flat. I’ve never been the biggest fan of the “DRAG THEM, TAYLOR” songs she writes, but to each their own.
My least favorite songs are probably “Elizabeth Taylor” and “Father Figure.”
I have no concrete reason for disliking “Elizabeth Taylor” so much as it was just boring and didn’t offer much to chew on. Sure, I can definitely see the parallels between Swift and Elizabeth Taylor—celebrity, endless scrutiny, etc. That’s not the issue. My main concern is just that it sounded a little too much like songs from previous albums (e.g. “Vigilante Shit,” “The Albatross,” etc.) There is something to be said about the significance of running themes, both musically and lyrically, but I’m not sure what that is in this particular case.
On that note, listening to “Father Figure” felt a bit like eating the store brand Oreos when the name brand is sitting right there in front of you. All I wanted the do was go back and listen to George Michael! Taylor the Mob Boss just wasn’t on my 2025 Bingo Card.
The remaining parts of the album are fine. “Wi$h Li$t” and “Honey” are…fine, albeit a bit too heteronormative for my bisexual taste. But you know, it’s alright. It’s Taylor Swift’s world. We’re all just living in it.
I really wanted to like “Eldest Daughter.” Believe me, I did. Nothing hits square in the feels like a heart-wrenching, Taylor Swift-penned Track 5. It just…didn’t land for me. Maybe it’s because it feels tailor written for anyone who buys fully into the “eldest daughter” memes. I couldn’t say. I am the youngest of three and the only girl.
The instrumental was close enough to good for me to like but not absolutely love. Lyrically, it’s an endless string of obvious references to online culture and internet slang. For me, this cheapened the otherwise honest and vulnerable piano ballad we all know Swift to be capable of writing.
Generally, I think that’s what I was missing most in this album—where was the brutal honesty?
Even TTPD had some seriously relatable depressive episode tracks to contrast with the overly produced mania. While it’s easy (and borders on a cop-out) to compare a Taylor Swift album against another one of her “Eras,” I cannot help but feel The Life of a Showgirl pales in comparison to most of its predecessors. At the very least, it’s a run-on sentence. At its best, it’s a film we’ve seen before.
Recently, I watched Marc Maron’s latest HBO special. No spoilers, but he does reference a favorite song of mine from Midnights. It made me want to go back and revisit it, so I listened to Midnights last night as a pregame ritual. A lot of it holds up for me. Even the songs I once felt lukewarm about or outright disliked have snuck their way into my heart.
I think this is Taylor’s Swift’s ultimate superpower. Some might call it “pop music crack.” Others might say it’s her undeniable “girl-next-door” charm. Most would agree it can be pretty annoying when even the most random companies celebrate an album release.
Having watched it happen more than a few times now, I know it to be brand staying power. How this woman has remained in the industry for almost twenty years is a testament to her uncanny ability to write songs that slither into your unsuspecting brain like a snake. This isn’t necessarily a indicator of quality—some of her stuff is really great, some of it is just okay.
Personally, I think it has more to do with our silly parasocial obsessions. We love to see people succeed, then fail, then succeed again, then fail again. It’s the typical American Come-Back Story. All we want is someone to praise when they win big and boo when they lose hard.
Strangely, Swift is happy to swing back and forth on this pendulum, dressed to the nines in her bejeweled Versace bodysuits and covered head-to-toe in glitter and feathers. She wields this power with an iron fist, whilst gleaming with the Midas touch. Everything she touches seems to turn to gold.
Will The Life of a Showgirl make the cut?
The first actually solid review of the album I've seen yet. Not a scathing critique, not an excessive outpouring of admiration- fair and honest. I don't agree with all of these takes but can appreciate the opinions presented!
The way you balance being a discerning listener while celebrating Taylor’s superpowers is everything a Swiftie review should be. Honestly, this could be a mini masterclass in album reaction writing.