It’s Like a Roller Coaster Kind of Rush

Love Song by Taylor Swift may just end up being the best pop song this decade that was not written by Gnarls Barkley. Even with its fiddles and twang, the song was instantly accessibly to anyone with ears that would make anyone want to write their own song. Usually whenever artists try to recreate that one big hit on their next album they fail miserably but somehow the eighteen year old was able to catch lightning twice with the equally likeable, if not slightly more mature sounding Love Story off her sophomore outing Fearless.

Given her age it is forgivable for her Disney version of the Baird’s Romeo and Juliet where the guy gets the girl with the family’s approval. And who knew Shakespeare and banjo would go so well together? While the build up of the bridge makes you want to hunt down one of the Jonas Brothers (who gets addressed as a “scared little boy” on the sarcastic Forever & Always) and smack them up side the head. But it seems that very same fairytale all but comes crashing down a couple songs later on the acoustic guitar plucking White Horse of which is “too late to come around.”

More similar themes pop up on Fearless including the sediment of Teardrops on My Guitar of why do you want her when you know you could have me based You Belong to Me. What is not around this time is any vengeful songs; no burning pictures, no cheaters who forgot to say no. The closest comes on Tell Me Why but it is not as spiteful as anything her debut. Swift is more ambivalent about failed relationships on Fearless like on the slow piano based You’re Not Sorry but Swift sounds more morose than angry that they fell apart.

It is easy to write off Taylor Swift writing as just a school girl diary put to fiddles (remember the line, “wishing on a wishing star”), and she unabashedly admits she likes to write songs about boys, but no teenage has been able to craft songs this catchy since Debbie Gibson. Fifteen, a song about freshmen memorized by upper classmen can be relatable to girls going through it now, graduates looking back on high school, middle schoolers looking forward to high school, and even us lecherous dudes who took advantages of those innocent girls (I miss high school).

And that musical growth is the heart of Fearless as Swift turns down the fiddles and banjos and turns up the guitars and orchestras (see The Way I Loved You). Then for something completely different is breezy, hum along Hey Steven where Swift’s singing is so carefree she even starts laughing after the line, “All those other girls, well, they're beautiful, but would they write a song for you?” That same vibe, right down to the humming is also featured on Breathe which finds Colbie Caillet helping out with the writing and backing vocals. And Taylor’s down home drawl fits right in to Colbie’s campfire beach song writing.

If Fearless is an album this teenager can produce, one can high hopes when Swift gets some miles under her and evolves past all the songs about boys and grown even more musically and invites in more influences. The album closes with what could be a precursor, Change (written for the Olympics compilation album) where she sings Halleluiah and about revolutions that could have come off cheesy from others of her age but cannot sing along when it was Swift that is asking. It may have just been a high school anthem rising up against the rival team now, but wait until she gets out in the real world for awhile and create real change. If only in musical term.

Song to Download - Hey Stephen

Fearless gets a on my Terror Alert Scale.