Have you ever broken up with someone and became so angry that you wrote a song about how horrible they are?
Well, don’t. Taylor Swift’s already done it and it’s better than anything you’ll ever come up with.
“Speak Now” is Swift’s third studio album and takes off where “Fearless” left off. It contains a mixture of up-tempo songs that make you want to move, as well as plenty of emotional ballads. True to her style, each and every single one is written from her own experiences with real people and real situations.
“Mine,” the first single off of “Speak Now,” draws from numerous relationships that Swift has been in and how she “runs from love.” In the song, however, she talks about how she would ideally like to settle down, to have a family and to experience love in a mature manner.
“Better Than Revenge” is an up-tempo song reportedly about actress Camilla Belle and how she allegedly stole Swift’s then-boyfriend, Joe Jonas. In the song, Swift doesn’t hold back her dislike and refers to the girl as “an actress… she’s better known for the things that she does on the mattress.” She also says Belle “should keep in mind / there is nothing I do better than revenge”—which Swift has indeed proven by writing such a song.
In addition to this one used as revenge, “Dear John” is a hauntingly emotional ballad about a breakup between her and an older man (who is allegedly singer John Mayer). In the song, Swift pours her heart out about trying hard to make a relationship work with a man who only played games with her heart. The almost seven minute song is wonderfully written, spaced and sung, and is perhaps the biggest standout on the album.
“Speak Now” is very much similar to Swift’s previous albums, albeit better. While some won’t see her masterfully crafted songs as anything but the diary entries of a scorned girl, many will understand and relate to the honesty of the album.
Commercially, it is bound to be one of the best selling of the year and could help Swift nab a second Grammy for Best Album. “Speak Now” is one of the best albums of the year and proves that Swift is an ever-growing singer-songwriter at the top of her game.