Taylor Swift releases Midnights: Fans and critics praise the dark and cryptic album - as it happened

Many are now poring over Swift’s lyrics for her usual easter eggs and any references to her personal life

Taylor Swift says ‘midnight’ in 13 songs

Taylor Swift has released her 10th album, Midnights, along with a new video and a surprise seven additional songs.

Critics have so far shared positive review, includingThe Independent which gave Midnights five stars. Critic Helen Brown called it her “darkest and most cryptic album yet”.

Fans are also praising the record, and claiming that Swift temporarily crashed Spotify upon the release of the seven bonus tracks.

Many are now poring over Swift’s lyrics for her usual easter eggs and any references to her personal life.

A few particuarly pointed lyrics in “Would’ve, Could’ve, Should’ve” – taken from the album’s 3am Edition – seem to allude to her previous relationship with John Mayor.

The release of the music video for “Anti-Hero” – directed by Swift, herself – has certainly provided Swift fans with plenty of material to pour over.

Some fans believe “Lavender Haze” references Swift’s current partner, the actor Joe Alwyn, and calls out speculation over their relationship status.

Follow live updates below:

[21 October 2022 14:35 · Roisin O'Connor]

Taylor Swift releases Midnights, her 10th studio album

Hi and welcome to our liveblog of all things Taylor.

Let’s start with the obvious, what did The Independent say about her 10th studio album, Midnights?

Well, take a look at Helen Brown’s five-star review, if the rating alone didn’t make it clear!

[21 October 2022 14:48 · Annabel Nugent]

Full tracklist and runtimes for ‘Midnights'

‘Midnights’ has, of course, 13 tracks. Fans of Swift will know that number 13 is the singer’s lucky number – you can find the full tracklist and runtimes below:

1. “Lavender Haze” / 3:22

2. “Maroon” / 3:38

3. “Anti-Hero” / 3:20

4. “Snow on the Beach” (featuring Lana Del Rey) / 4:16

5. “You’re on Your Own, Kid” / 3:14

6. “Midnight Rain” / 2:54

7. “Question...?” / 3:30

8. “Vigilante Shit” / 2:44

9. “Bejeweled” / 3:14

10. “Labyrinth” / 4:07

11. “Karma” / 3:24

12. “Sweet Nothing” / 3:08

13. “Mastermind” / 3:11

[21 October 2022 15:01 · Annabel Nugent]

What the critics are saying about ‘Midnights'

The reception to ‘Midnights’ has been rapturous from fans and critics alike. In addition to The Independent’s own five-star review, other publications have heaped praise on Swift’s latest album.

The Guardian’s five-star review commends Midnights on its “confident songwriting and understated synth-pop”.

Meanwhile, Rollingstone gave the record a four-star review, noting that musically, Midnights appears to return to the contemporary pop landscape after Folklore and Evermore.

NME likewise gave the album a four-star review, writing that it offers up “brighter, future-facing sounds”.

The Telegraph’s four-star write-up singles out the moody “Midnight Rain” as the most interesting track.

[21 October 2022 15:26 · Annabel Nugent]

Fans say Jake Gyllenhaal may have avoided mention – but John Mayer didn’t

There are no shortage of lyrical references for fans to dig into.

Many Swifties have already identified what they believe to be subtle nods to Swift’s previous relationship with John Mayer, with the singer’s name now trending on Twitter.

One such moment arrives on “Would’ve, Could’ve, Should’ve”. Swift sings: “If you tasted poison you could’ve spit me out at the first chance/ And if I was some paint, did it splatter on a promising grown man? / And if I was a child did it matter if you got to wash your hands?”

Elsewhere, she sings: “I’m damn sure would’ve never danced with the devil at 19/ Give me back my girlhood, it was mine first.”

Swift and Mayer dated between 2009 and 2010 when she was 19 and he was 32.

[21 October 2022 15:27 · Annabel Nugent]

Lucky number 13

The number 13 has appearead again and again across Taylor Swift’s music, so it makes sense that ‘Midnights’ has 13 tracks.

Here are a few other times that Swift has used the number 13:

1. One of the first times that Swift fans noticed the number was on her early track “Call It What You Want”, which had a 13-second introduction.

2. Likewise, her first No 1 hit “Our Song” featured an introduction of that exact same length

3. In the music video for “... Ready For It”, the two digits can be seen in big numbers on the left-hand side of the frame at 0:20

4. On “Lucky One” – which is the 13th track on her album Red – Swift repeats the word “lucky” 13 times

5. Eagle-eyed fans have also spotted the number written on her hand before many live performances

[21 October 2022 15:50 · Annabel Nugent]

Taylor Swift shares trailer teasing all the music videos to come...

Fans are poring over every tiny detail in the Swift-directed “Anti-Hero” music video – and if the teaser trailer Swift shared for the rest of her videos is anything to go by, the fans are in for a treat!

[21 October 2022 16:00 · Annabel Nugent]

All the times Taylor Swift swears on ‘Midnights’, ranked from least to most sweary

There’s no shortage of emotion on Midnights, and Swift doesn’t hestitate to speak her mind – sometimes using colourful language to do so.

Credit to Vulture who has ranked her swear words on Midnights from least to most adult.

At the tamer end of the list is “Lavender Haze”, in which the words “damn” and “s***” appear. On some tracks, though, Swift brings out the F-word, as on “Snow on the Beach” and “Maroon”.

At the top end of the list is “Question...”, featuring a pop verse that packs a punch. “One thing/ After/ Another/ F***in’/ Situation,” Swift repeats.

[21 October 2022 16:20 · Annabel Nugent]

All the celebrities confirmed to appear in ‘Midnights’ music videos

The Midnights music videos will see Swift joined by a star-studded.

Confirmed to appear in the videos are the Haim sisters, Laura Dern, Laith Ashley, Mike Birbiglia, Dita Von Teese, John Early, Mary Elizabeth Ellis, makeup artist Pat McGrath, and Swift’s long-time collaborator Jack Antonoff.

(Twitter)

[21 October 2022 16:40 · Annabel Nugent]

Taylor Swift joins forces with Dylan O’Brien again on ‘Snow on the Beach’

Attentive fans have noticed that actor Dylan O’Brien plays the drums on “Snow on the Beach”, which features Lana Del Rey.

O’Brien previously starred opposite Taylor Swift and Stranger Things’s Sadie Sink in the short film for “All Too Well”.

Dylan O’Brien and Sadie Sink in the music video for ‘All Too Well’ (YouTube)

[21 October 2022 17:00 · Annabel Nugent]

What does the ‘sexy baby’ lyric mean in ‘Anti-Hero’?

One lyric in particular on Midnights, has created more consternation than others.

On “Anti-Hero”, Swift sings: “Sometimes, I feel like everybody is a sexy baby / And I’m a monster on the hill.”

Some fans have suggested that the phrase “sexy baby” is ripped from a season five episode of 30 Rock. Find out more about the theory below...