Is ‘Midnights’ Taylor Swift’s Best Album?
There are signs from both critics and fans suggesting that Taylor Swift's 'Midnights' may be her best album yet.
Taylor Swift’s new album Midnights has both fans and critics alike saying some truly incredible things about the title. In fact, there are already signs suggesting that it may be her best recording yet.
At the time this article was written, Midnights claims a score of 92 on Metacritic, which aggregates reviews by respected critics and well-known publications in an attempt to paint a picture of how a piece of media was perceived
That number places it just barely ahead of her 2021 release Red (Taylor’s Version), which sits comfortably at 91, making it her best-reviewed album ever.
Compared to much of Swift’s earlier work, Midnights is performing spectacularly well when it comes to reviews. On Metacritic, her next-highest album of all-original material – Folklore – sits a few spaces down with a score of 88. The lowest score in her discography is attached to her self-titled debut, which only earned a 67.
Looking on the same website at all albums released in 2022, Midnights still stands out as one of the best releases of the year, even when the competition is ramped up. Currently, the top title is Rosalía’s Motomami, which is ahead of every other effort with a score of 94.
Midnights is, at the moment, tied for the second-highest ranking of this calendar year, sitting alongside Nova Twins’ Supernova and Black Country, New Road’s Ants From Up There. Amazingly, it’s one rung above Beyoncé’s Renaissance.
Major media outlets like Rolling Stone, The Independent, and The Guardian all gave Midnights a perfect score of 100, which is incredibly rare to see.
In fact, just a short time after Swift made her tenth full-length available to the public, Rolling Stone deemed it an “instant classic,” which is quite the honor to receive from what is often considered the most important music magazine in the world.
And it’s not just critics who love Midnights, either. Swifties the world over are announcing their love of their fave’s new CD.
On Metacritic, which also tracks fan reviews, the set has a 9.0 rating out of a possible 10. According to the site itself, that number means the collection has received “universal acclaim,” which is not easy to secure from the masses.
Once again, when looking at everything released in 2022, Midnights comes in a very close second place, at least according to Metacritic. Swift’s new LP sits just one spot behind Demi Lovato’s Holy Fvck, the top-rated album of the year by listeners. In the coming weeks, Swift could tie Lovato, as the latter’s CD is only in the lead score-wise by a tenth of a point.
With critical acclaim behind it and fans all over professing their love, Midnights is an immediate success story. The album is sure to debut at No. 1 on charts all around the world in the coming days and weeks, and it could very well end up as the biggest and perhaps top-rated release of the year.
Swift is also surely headed toward more Grammy love, though Midnights won’t be eligible until the 2024 ceremony.
Leave a Comment:
Support Metro Weekly’s Journalism
These are challenging times for news organizations. And yet it’s crucial we stay active and provide vital resources and information to both our local readers and the world. So won’t you please take a moment and consider supporting Metro Weekly with a membership? For as little as $5 a month, you can help ensure Metro Weekly magazine and MetroWeekly.com remain free, viable resources as we provide the best, most diverse, culturally-resonant LGBTQ coverage in both the D.C. region and around the world. Memberships come with exclusive perks and discounts, your own personal digital delivery of each week’s magazine (and an archive), access to our Member's Lounge when it launches this fall, and exclusive members-only items like Metro Weekly Membership Mugs and Tote Bags! Check out all our membership levels here and please join us today!
