Folklore Album Songs Review (During Running)
How I felt while listening to this album while exercising (>100 times played)
So not so long ago, I posted about the Lover album review while running, mostly in late 2019 and some of 2020. But today, since Evermore was released today by Taylor Swift, that will likely be my go-to album when exercising and all that. So I guess this concludes listening to Folklore every morning while running and stuff. Though it will not be the last time listening to it while running nor in life in general, Folklore will not be my main go-to anymore.
Folklore has given me a lot of great experiences and memories during the mornings of Fall 2020, especially since I have gotten back to a decent routine of waking up before sunrise and running and finishing after the sun rises. It will definitely be a good memory of this phase of my life, like Lover was exactly one year ago.
The route during most of these morning runs were almost always the same, so it was really fun, especially starting off with the 1 and cardigan, and sprinkled in with exile trying to reach Warden/McNicoll intersection before the light changes (memorized so many light patterns and timings). Most runs were around the 1 hour range, so listening to the entire album from top to bottom was a blast.
As a disclaimer, I listened to this album many many times in August, before I started running in the morning during the Fall 2020 school term and such routine. So I will be basing my review based off of overall experiences. I will do my best to not make direct comparisons to Lover, since this is a complete different experience and album as its own.
The 1
This song was the very first song, and it was the song that would start every run basically in the morning. The piano sounds are very memorable, the lyrics are nice, and it is a very soothing rhythm. It is not super topsy turvy or energetic, but it is still a very solid song to get me started off the run. 8.5/10.
Cardigan
Cardigan is one of the hit singles from this album, and it is a really awesome song for me. I love the lyrics, the epic production (piano) sounds, and overall it is such an amazing second song. Although putting one of the best songs on the second position might not be the best thing in my opinion, this song is still really good, and gives me more energy. Not the most hype or energetic, but a very good rhythm, and the vocals are very nice as well. 10+/10.
The Last Great American Dynasty
This song is slightly upbeat as well, with nice vocals. Very enjoyable to listen to, and it is a pretty good song all around. Not sure what else to say though. 8/10.
Exile
This song featuring Bon Iver is super super good as well. I love listening to it and the feature is exceptionally well done. Overall the production and the vocals are excellent, and gives me a bit of upbeatness and energy. The rhythm flows very well, and it never gets old. 10/10.
My Tears Ricochet
My Tear Ricochet is a pretty nice song. It comes after Exile though (as mentioned above), so it is a more ‘slow down’ type of song. Though I quite enjoy the vocals and calmness of this song. It is quite soothing. There is nothing super special about it though. Just a nice song overall. 8/10.
Mirrorball
Mirrorball is another alright song. The vocals and production is fine overall. Though it just does not have anything super special about it, and is just a song that just keeps me moving along during my run, nothing super nice or special I guess. Not sure, but I am not the biggest fan of this song relative to the other songs in this album. 7/10.
Seven
Seven is one of my favorite songs in this album. It is arguably better than Cardigan for me, because I absolutely love every part of it. No, it is not super upbeat like the main Lover songs. But this album isn’t mean to be super pop-like. The production on this song is awesome, as well as the lyrics. The piano is super duper good and the rhythm is something that I love love love.
The chorus-ish verse of
Sweet tea in the summer
Cross your heart, won’t tell no other
And though I can’t recall your face
I still got love for you
Pack your dolls and a sweater
We’ll move to India forever
Passed down like folk songs
The love lasts so long
is just soooooo gooooooood. I love this song a lot, and it’s something that I love listening to on its own. 10+/10.
August
To follow up Seven, August is still a super duper nice song. To me, it is a bit more upbeat with more noise, and I love it a lot as well. A great follow up to
Seven, given its minor contrast, and the lyrics and rhythm is super nice as well. There is not really much to complain about this song. 9.5/10.
This Is Me Trying
This song is nice. I enjoy listening to it as well, but it obviously is not as good as the previous two songs. The vocals are nice and production is nice too. Though not that good relatively speaking. Still enjoyable though. 8/10.
Illicit Affairs
A pretty nice and catchy song for me. It is nice to listen to overall, and I do enjoy the rhythm since it is catchy. The vocals are nice. But overall, it is not as nice as some other songs. Though I guess it is a bit more memorable thanks to its catchiness. 8.5/10.
Invisible String
The strings on this song is really nice overall, and I do enjoy this song as well. Overall a small changeup compared to some of the past songs, and this song is nice to listen to as well (all songs in this album is). Not much to say aside from that I really do enjoy this song, but it is not as nice as some other songs in this album in my opinion. 8/10.
Mad Woman
Mad Woman is a really good song for me. I really enjoy the vocals, productions, lyrics and all. It is slightly more upbeat, and I enjoy the entire song flow a lot! Lyrics are catchy, and I loved every part of it! 10/10.
Epiphany
Every time I hear this song during a run, it seems to signal to me that the album is going to end soon. This song is a bit different, a bit slower, and not as nice as some other songs in this album. Overall the vocals are still very nice, and I enjoy listening to this, but there is nothing super nice about it. 7.5/10.
Betty
I like Betty a lot, it is a bit different compared to the last few songs. It’s not really my cup of tea relative to being a super duper good song, but it is still quite nice to listen to. The strings are nice I guess. 7.5/10.
Peace
A very peaceful sounding melody, with great vocals as well, just like the other songs. It is nice and calming to listen to. A bit slow, it overall is a decent song. But relatively speaking, I am not a super big fan of it. 7.5/10.
Hoax
The final song of the album that I listen to (I’ll talk about the bonus track below) during a run. It is a nice song, but it reminds me a bit like Peace. A bit slow, but still nice vocals and production. A lot of piano I think. Overall it is a nice song to listen to, but for the purposes of running and this review, it’s only nice. 7.5/10.
The Lakes (Bonus Track)
No, I have not listened to this on the run, because I only downloaded the regular (not deluxe) album onto my Apple Watch while running. But I am still putting this in the review, since this is technically part of the album. And it is also arguably one of the best tracks on it as well. I listened to this song so many times on its own! It is done so well, and I love love love the chorus part as well! The production and vocals are exceptional. I love listening to this song. A bit upbeat in some areas too I guess. 10+/10.
So overall, I would say this is another great and memorable album by Taylor Swift. Although this is quite a changeup compared to her usual pop tone, this alternative-like sounding album is still super solid and I really have enjoyed listening to it. The main highlights is indeed the production with the piano and strings, since a lot of melodies are super soothing and nice to listen to. I would give this album a 9/10. Some songs in there could be better, but overall the flow is very nice, and some songs are really really well done. I love this album still!