Taylor Swift - Folklore

Out of nowhere Taylor Swift returns with her 8th album "folklore". It was the 23rd July 2020 when she announced this album was coming out the very next day.  It was quite a refreshing in a way rather than drip feeding tracks for months prior to an album coming out.  To be honest her last few albums haven't been her best in my opinion especially when you compare them to her first 5. But one thing I have always respected and liked about Taylor, is that at least she tries different things even though sometimes she doesn't pull it off. Even on those albums though there were some gems; for example "Delicate" off "Reputation" and the self titled track off "Lover".

But what about "folklore".  Just from the title of the album it gives you the impression that this will be a story telling album and musically stripped back.  And that is exactly what we have here.  No stadium sized pop songs that would get the crowd dancing and singing along at the top of their lungs.  It's just not that kind of album at all.  All credit to Taylor, she could have went down that route so easily. She probably has albums upon albums of that kind of song lined up and ready to go.  But she has chosen to go down her own path and create something which may be seen as slightly riskier.

The album very much reminded me of when Coldplay released "Ghost Stories" but with one difference.  That album was also mainly a stripped back album and something Coldplay hadn't done before.   But the difference is they put in a track "Sky full of stars" on it which is your big sing along anthem.  Its almost as if they were scared of releasing an album without a big hit attached. The irony is "Magic" was stripped back and did go on to be a hit anyway.  But all 16 songs on "folklore" although of course go through there ups and downs, none of them stand out as your big sing at the top of your lungs hit.  These 16 songs work in unison to create something even more special. An album which flows and the songs fit together like a jigsaw.

In terms of how this album will be played live it will be interesting.  There is so much demand for Taylor to play all over the world. Yet these songs are really built for intimate, seated venues.  Maybe lockdown happened at the right time and we'll get a live stream of a gig but its not quite the same as being there.

In terms of my favourite songs off the album so far I would say "the 1", "the last great american dynasty" and "betty".  I think "betty" in particular is a high point of the album.   But as I say it all flows so well and fits together so well.  Although I feel the last 2 Taylor albums were weaker, I do think this is a return to form and something very refreshing and imaginative on her part.  This has to be a contender for my top 10 albums of the year.

Alter Bridge - One Day Remains

"One Day Remains" is the debut album by American rock group Alter bridge.  Not many bands start off on a footing where band members have already achieved worldwide recognition in previous bands.  But this was where Alter Bridge were starting from.  Guitarist Mark Tremonti, bassist Brian Marshall and drummer Scott Phillips were members of Creed. While lead singer Myles Kennedy was frontman for a band called Mayfield four.  The album came out in 2004 and I really am surprised they did not come to my attention at the time.  I wasn't a big Creed fan but I did like some of their songs.  But Alter Bridge did not come on to my radar till much, much later. Probably 2017.  How it took so long I'll never know.  

One thing is for certain; even though 3 Creed members are in Alter Bridge; You can put them in the rock genre along with Creed but that's really where the comparisons end.  The feeling this album gives you is a fresh and exciting start for a band that have built up knowledge of their instruments which they have developed with their other bands.  And now they want to drill further down in order to create something new as they combine forces.

I do think its really telling that they have all had such success in the past with this album.   Many new bands which are not in this position can take a while to establish themselves and maybe take a few albums to establish their sound and/or get that hit single.  Alter Bridge did this on the first album.   And there are songs on here which are still a mainstay in their live set.  From the live set it is often a balance between most of the albums showing the consistency they have managed to maintain over the years.

Their most played song from Spotify to this day is on this album, with that being "Metalingus" with over 53 million plays at time of writing.  This song was given a helping hand by Edge from the World Wrestling Federation as he used this song as his entrance music and still does.  But there is a reason for this and that is because the song is so good.  It's a total rocker and really does show off Myles's vocals.  It's not the only rocker on the album though with the album very much front loaded with songs which are just as heavy as Metalingus.  From the opener "Find the Real", diving into "One day Remains" and then the fantastic "Open Your eyes".

One of the differences I see from Mark Tremonti between what he did with Creed and what he did with Alter Bridge was the introduction of guitar solos. Now I never went too in depth with Creed's music to say this is a total fact. But from the songs I did listen to Creed were more about anthemic rock songs.  But with Alter Bridge you listen to songs like "Burn it down" and "Down to My last".  You get the feeling Mark has a little more creative freedom here.  Whether that was self inflicted or not in Creed I do not know.  Both of the songs mentioned are brilliant and the guitar solos take them to that next level.

I personally think the best rock albums have a balance in them between heavy and soft, rockers and ballads.  This album has that.  I have mentioned before the heavier rock songs now on to the ballads.  The two stand out songs in this category come side by side in the form of "Broken Wings" and "In Loving Memory".  Both absolute classics in their own right.

Overall this is a fantastic album which we know now was only the start of the journey of a band which have become accustomed to playing arenas and festivals around the world.  But in terms of this review the end is here.  Well until we talk about the final track "The end is here".  You obviously can't end every album with an appropriately named title but Alter Bridge did it with their debut.  And what a track to finish off the album. And now I've got that out the way the end is really here.