Style Music Video: A Review

There's so much going on in this video that it's actually really hard to give a cohesive review, but I'll give it my best shot.  When Taylor released sneak peek gifs on Twitter I was afraid I had been spoiled, but Director Kyle Newman (fanboys) has brought in so many different visual elements in this video that it merely tapped the surface.  Besides, unlike previous Taylor Swift videos, Style's [hehe] does not have a linear story to speak of and instead plays with symbolism and visual effects to convey the story of the song.  I must admit that the first time I watched it, I felt the pace lacking.  It didn't seem to keep up with the beat of the song. I felt that there should me more edits and lighting effects than there were, at least in the first half of the video.  However, upon subsequent viewing, everything seems to match perfectly.

Dominic Sherwood, who co-starred in the video, doesn't have a great deal to do in it other than look pretty and stare broodingly into the camera, both of which he excels at.  Sherwood's real-life heterochromia (he has one blue eye and one brown) add to the strong visuals of the video.

This is probably Taylor's most suggestive video to date (though extremely tame compared to most other music videos nowadays) and I want to be the first to say: Nipple.  Tay Tay touched a nipple.

I'm glad that she doesn't feel restricted by her squeaky clean image.  I've seen something like this coming for a while.  Over the last couple of years, Taylor has shown a lot more strength and security within herself, and seems to be a lot more comfortable with both her femininity and her body, but not in a "look at me, I'm sexy" kind of way so much as an empowered, independent sort of way.  She's still conscious and aware of her role model status, but she's also twenty-five years old now and it's ok for her to be doing things like this.  That should go without saying but it seems some people need reminding.  The video is much more sensual than sexual.  The song itself contains mildly suggestive lyrics, though it's by no means the first Taylor Swift song to do so.  It"s still extremely tasteful, and I'm hoping the media doesn't make a bigger deal out of it than it necessary but they probably will, because that's their job.

I would be remiss if I didn't mention the wicked cool Taylor's-body-is-a-looking-glass effect.  With all the work that obviously went into this video, it's no wonder it took so long to come out. I hope there's a making-of video.

No it 's Beckys

If Taylor Swift took a picture of herself wearing her "no it's beccy" t-shirt with Lecy Goarnson and Sarah chalke on either side of her, it would probably break the Internet.

Taylor Uploads video of her gift-giving

I should start this off by saying that I have been a proud Swifty for five years now, since I heard Fearless: Platinum Edition for the first time and fell truly, madly, deeply, hopelessly in love with her music.  I don't know anyone better at defending Tay Tay than me.  She writes too many songs about her exes?  What about Bruno and Ed?

Homophobia in Picture to Burn?  She was sixteen, and she changed the lyric.  Racism in Shake it Off?  The video features a variety of different dance styles and dancers from many different backgrounds.  Is it really appropriation to feature accomplished dancers in a genre of dance with you sprawls alongside them attempting the same moves?

How dare she take her music off Spotify?  It's her music.  She can do whatever she wants with it.

So I hope you understand where I'm coming from is not a place of hate or ignorance.  This is coming from somebody who knows a lot about Taylor - perhaps an unhealthy amount - and can still somehow look at some aspects of her career objectively.

As I'm writing this I have just viewed this charming video in which Taylor sent a bunch of her fans Christmas presents.  Of course, most of us were aware that this happened, but what I wasn't aware of was that it was more or less a publicity stunt.

I have no doubt that Taylor personally chose each present and probably put a lot of thought and effort into each gift, but the fact that so many of the recipients had conveniently recorded their reactions and that there was footage of the gift wrapping and everything seems suspiciously strategic to me.  I don't know.  Maybe this is just the skeptic in me.  Maybe age has made me cynical.

Maybe nineteen year old Daniella would bitch-slap me for even suggesting something bad about Taylor.  But here's the thing.  It's not really bad to suggest that a musical artist is trying to promote herself and her music.  That's part of her job, and in case you haven't noticed, she's very, very good at it.

In this era, people are wont to record and share their reactions to things, and Taylor used to be very vloggy, so perhaps that's all it is.  Either way it doesn't really matter, but I guess I want to see less "No, it's Beccy" t-shirts and more spontaneous hand-puppets trying to devour Luke Jacobz's head after a tv performance.  Both are brilliant and display a wonderful sense of humour, but one is planned, and one is something that Taylor did in the moment, just because she felt like it.

Oh, Tay Tay

"If a dude is threatened by the fact that I need security, if they make me feel like I am some sort of princessy diva—that’s a bad sign. I don’t have security to make myself look cool, or like I have an entourage. I have security because there’s a file of stalkers who want to take me home and chain me to a pipe in their basement."
- Vogue Interview

Live Performance of Safe and Sound now Available on Youtube!

http://taylorswift13.org/ ps, they also have a Podcast, Taylor Talk. Totes listen to it (if you want).
Best quality! Thanks awesome fansite!

Looking In: Safe And Sound (Part 1)

Ok, I'm still freaking out a little bit here, so, forgive me if that comes across.

The Song

I have heard of The Hunger Games, which is a book, but I haven't read it. It's being made into a movie and this song will be on the Soundtrack. Some anti-Swifties might be thinking, "Shameless cross-promotion!" and maybe they're right but as a fan, I can't tell you how thrilled I am to be getting this brand new song I've never heard before when I thought we had to wait a whole year for the next album before we had that chance. That alone is exciting but the actual song is freakin' awesome.
Granted, I've only heard it eleven times so far but it is so beautiful.
I hope the next album sounds like this because as awesome as Speak Now is - and it's really awesome - I really love this side of Taylor as a musician and composer. Songs like Jump Then Fall and Come in with the Rain are what made me fall in love with her music in the first place and songs like Tied Together With a Smile, The Outside, A Place in this World and Fifteen made me think, Holy crap, this girl is deep (songs like Never Grow Up and Dear John reaffirmed this). People talk alot about what genre Taylor Swift fits into - "She's Country!" "No, She's pop! "She's Country-pop!" "She's invented her own genre - Kiddy-Pop-Country!" She's sung everything from pure country to epic melodic rock, she's even rapped - it's clear shes not a one-trick pony that fits into anyone's box, but to me, at her core, Taylor always has been and always will be a Folk-Singer with a soft-spot for country. The two genres have so many similarities, it's hard to pick, and we know how much Tay Tay loves her banjos and fiddles, but trust me, she's a contemporary folk song-writer. She can write any genre brilliantly but these kind of songs are her forte' - which is why this one is magical in its sincere simplicity. The general reception seems to be positive if Twitter is anything to go by.
Again, it's early days. The song is so fresh in my mind and I'm just starting to learn it but at this point, I think my favourite lyrics are, Hold onto this lullaby/Even when the music's gone. I hope Tay Tay wrote that part.
As for the melody, to qoute a bogan Aussie expression, I'm loving it sick. "Oh-oh-oh-ooh-oh" - dude, killed me.
As I said, I've never read this book, so that might make it tricky to analyse the song, but if we forget it's written about a movie for a second, it seems to be from the point of view of a mother/sister figure trying to calm someone younger in a war-like situation. They've been through a traumatic ordeal in which Taylor's character protected this personand promised to stay with him/her. She tells this person that whatever has happened is over now. She urges him/her to sleep, assuring this vulnerable child that even though The war outside our door keeps raging on, as long as she's with him/her - and she intends to stay with him/her - You and I'll be safe and sound. I plan to give further analysis once I've read the book/watched the film.

The Collaberators

You didn't think I'd forget The Civil Wars, did you? Of course not. That would be rude. I didn't think I knew who these guys were, but I now recall seeing one of their videos on cmc, Poison and Wine - a beautiful song.
According to their website, Tay Tay totally endorsed them on Twtiter and her iTunes playlist and whatnot. So that explains that. This low-key, folk/country duo seem like the perfect fit for that part of Tay Tay.
They are Joy Williams and John Paul White. Whenever I hear a collaberation between Tay Tay and another artist, I always want to know which parts she wrote, but anyone who had a hand in writing this song is a musical genius because every word, every note, is perfect and simple and beautiful. If this song was a person, I would totally ask it out on a date.

People who have iTunes: http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/safe-sound-from-the-hunger/id490735511?ign-mpt=uo%3D4
People who don't: Youtube has removed most of the copies but there are already some spectacular covers up. Do what I'm gonna do; I'm just get the soundtrack in stores.