Taylor Swift – The Life of a Showgirl (The Encore) | 1989: A lot of artists I’ve loved released albums that disappointed me, but none made me as angry as Showgirl. A friend compared my reaction to how Metallica fans reacted to Load. He’s right. This feels like a betrayal, a conscious choice to walk away from the things that defined her and connected her to her fans (or at least to me). The added Encore songs are insult on top of injury. Thankfully, revisiting 1989 reminded me why I fell in love with Taylor’s music in the first place, and why she was my gateway to pop.
Carly Rae Jepson – Day and Night: Carly Rae Jepson is not the lyricist that Taylor Swift is, but she captures an energy on Day and Night that highlights how badly The Life of a Showgirl missed its mark. Day and Night is a celebration of finding love and building a family after many, many missteps. She joyously channels Madonna and Everything but the Girl and Robyn. “Versailles” is a stellar pop song, but overall, the “night” songs are speaking to me more.
Turnstile – Never Enough: Versions: The band shows courage to let so many different artists reinterpret their songs in so many different ways. Dan Deacon’s version of “Dreaming” is probably my favorite, but then again, it might be Slayyyter’s version of “Birds” or Shabaka’s version of “Slowdive” or Oklou’s version of “Light Design.” Seriously, I can’t even pick my least favorite tracks. I mean, I don’t love Nourished by Time’s interpretation of “Sunshower” but I’m still excited to hear it again.
Chet Baker – Sings and Plays from the Film “Let’s Get Lost”: This is the first Chet Baker album I heard. It made me fall in love with his music 35 years ago, and it’s still my favorite record of his. This week, I heard “Blame It on My Youth” in a way I’ve never heard it before, an old man near death reflecting on a life of bad decisions. It’s sad in a way I never realized.
Grateful Dead – October 2, 1976 (Dave’s Picks 53): I love it when the band was feeling kinda slow and kinda melancholy, and this show was that. It’s like the whole set slowly builds to “Stella Blue.” This recording is filled with embers that warm but never burst into flame. It’s been a while since I heard a show that I’d say is magic, but this is one.