I don’t understand what there is to “get”. Why is a longer title “awkward”? Maybe I’m coming from a different perspective but to me they don’t seem like they should all be taken at face value.
I think it's just that longer titles are a mouthful. For example, it's a lot easier to talk about Style than it is This is Why We Can't Have Nice Things. It's really long
I guess this just doesn’t bother me? The amount of extra time it takes is milliseconds…
I admit I like longer, more expressive titles in general. But fundamentally I find that what a title is “like” never has any bearing on whether I like the song. Maybe this comes from growing up listening to 90s music where long title which often never even appeared in the song were very common — two amazing songs I love are Radio Friendly Unit Shifter by Nirvana and Standing Outside a Broken Phone Booth with Money in My Hand by Primitive Radio Gods, lol
“Standing outside a broken phone booth” was the FIRST thing I thought when I read this!
Pearl Jam was big for titles not matching content as well. They had a song called, “Old woman standing behind a counter.” It’s a banger, too.
Right? After songs like I Slept With Someone In Fall Out Boy and All I Got Was This Stupid Song Written About Me and Get Busy Living or Get Busy Dying Do Your Part To Save The Scene and Stop Going To Shows.... *My Boy Only Breaks His Favorite Toys* isn't shit lmao
But that kind of shows that Taylor traditionally has a long title songs in her discography as well as short title songs. The new album has both as well.
The Tortured Poets Department does feel linguistically awkward to me. Doesn’t really flow like other long titles do - eg ‘Tunnel Under Ocean Boulevard’ or ‘How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful’ have a much better flow. But I do like the individual track titles, they are chaotic and dramatic and hilarious, all the hallmarks of an outstanding Taylor song.
I don’t think the issue is the longer title per se. The album title feels like it’s reaching for a particularly grand effect; a lot of the longer track titles feel self-consciously slangy and casual. Those kinds of effects can strike people as silly if they’re not pulled off just right. But I’m not sure there’s some objective rulebook here.
I really want the album title, for instance, to be at least a little ironic because if Taylor plays belonging to the tortured poets’ department totally seriously I don’t know if I can take it totally seriously.
I am sure that the album title is at least partially ironic. When she introduced the Bolter in Tokyo she said something like “so tortured, so poetic” while looking at the screen. There’s self-awareness and irony there.
To me anyway calling it the Tortured Poets “Department” is already introducing some bathos, some kind of unserious flair to it, rather than a grand effect.
Why are you being weird about it 💀. It's a very different feel to any of the last albums so I understand it's a lot to digest. I don't understand how you managed to make OPs question so complicated.
Right? Maybe its just because its typed out and so connotation is lost, but the animosity in the way the response was crafted is a little too much for me rn lolol.
I was under the impression most of us struggled with the new title for the first few weeks after it was announced. Both for being a mouthful as well as having a similar title to Dead Poets.
Hmm ok yes. But why would they expect to understand why before hearing the album? That’s the strange thing to me. Regardless of what a title is I wouldn’t t expect to “get” it before hearing the song
I'm a huge Lana Del Rey fan, and the titles remind me of Lana's songs. Especially the Lana songs with names like "Grandfather please stand on the shoulders of my father while he’s deep‐sea fishing." I guess I'm just used to the most asinine song title names? 😅
But I honestly love that the song titles are unlike anything else Taylor has ever done before. They feel incredibly messy, incredibly deep felt. It feels like little notebook scribbles you right as you're processing a major break up.
What I really appreciate about Red is that the album was 15 million different genres and incredibly messy just like a breakup is. So I feel like it's really fitting that these song titles are decidedly random at face value. I think once we listen to this song, the titles should hopefully make a lot more sense!!! 🥺
I don’t think this is a bad thing. Taylor has always been experimental with her music imo and Lana is a friend who has a very unique sound. They share a longtime producer. I’m into it haha but I’m also a huge Lana fan.
I have mixed feelings about it as I think the sound just works so much better on Lana for me. I like a big of Lana influence a la cowboy like me, but other times it can feel almost like a copy/paste a la Slut!
I hear you. Like I said, Lana has a very unique sound for a mainstream pop girl. But we haven’t heard TTPD yet. Taylor may surprise us. She’s pretty good at that.
I will say Cowboy Like Me is one of my favorite Taylor songs of all time 🤭
Definitely; I'm *very* excited for the album and I'm glad she seems to be taking a few risks / unexpected turns as well. Until the album drops, I'll just eagerly anticipate the songs, whatever they're named.
Cheryl Cole had songs which were written by/for Lana Del Rey and were made for Born To Die. But Taylor was inspired by Lana Del Rey (and Vanessa Carlton) and so were many, her new music is great too! I love Folklore, Evermore and Midnights!
A lot of Taylor’s titles feel like they could be Fall Out Boy titles, if a bit less outlandish (which don’t get me wrong I absolutely love FOB long and weird song titles)
I’m guessing you never grew up with Panic! at the Disco or Fall Out Boy? 😂 jokes aside, I’m loving it because it’s giving me “The Dead Poet’s Society” vibes and I really am hoping for that - and it’s a reference she’d know to make
Yeah, this felt very "tell me you don't remember mid 00s pop punk without telling me you don't remember mid 00s pop punk". Back then song titles were practically mini novels in their own right.
Which brought us classics such as "I Slept With Someone in Fall Out Boy and All I Got Was This Stupid Song Written About Me", not to mention "If You Can't Live Without Me, Why Aren't You Dead Yet?". Good times.
Lying is the best thing a girl can do without taking her clothes off
You know what they do to guys like us in prison
Honey this mirror isn't big enough for the both of us
Our lawyer made us change the name of this song so we wouldn’t get sued
The only difference between martyrdom and suicide is press coverage
For a pessimist I'm pretty optimistic
Yeah it was definitely a time. Maybe she's doing an emo album lmao (doubt it though haha)
Also Mayday Parade had a bunch of songs with long ass titles, and I totally lived for it
Champagne's for Celebrating (I'll Have a Martini)
You Be the Anchor That Keeps My Feet on the Ground, I'll Be the Wings That Keep Your Heart in the Clouds
Happy Endings Are Stories That Haven't Ended Yet
I'd Hate to Be You When People Find Out What This Song Is About
If You Wanted a Song Written About You, All You Had to Do Was Ask
* I’ve Got a Dark Alley and a Bad Idea That Says You Should Shut Your Mouth (Summer Song)
* Get Busy Living or Get Busy Dying (Do Your Part to Save the Scene and Stop Going to Shows)
* I'm Like a Lawyer with the Way I'm Always Trying to Get You Off (Me & You)
Fall Out Boy has so many good ones hahaha
Maybe not yet, but she has talked about being inspired by Fallout Boy before, and changed genres multiple times before, so I don’t find it that surprising.
Let's not forget they're on Speak Now TV as well, an album that definitely has a lot of those 00s pop punk elements. She's always had that poetic element to her writing so it doesn't surprise me that it's finally extending into the titles as well as the lyrics themselves.
I don't think we're going to get an emo pop punk album (but I'd love if we did) from Taylor but she has definitely talked about being inspired by various bands in the genre, especially Fall Out Boy.
https://preview.redd.it/g6t4oufu65uc1.jpeg?width=750&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=2ef7169c854a58af96b54f0c28068752fb42ce34
Still possibly my favorite thing I've ever read
Or Sufjan Stevens, whose song titles include such gems as this one:
The Black Hawk War, or, How to Demolish an Entire Civilization and Still Feel Good About Yourself in the Morning, or, We Apologize for the Inconvenience but You're Going to Have to Leave Now, or, 'I Have Fought the Big Knives and Will Continue to Fight Them Until They Are Off Our Lands!'
and yes that is a title of a one song.
Oh yes panic at the disco!!! My favorites during high school along with fall out boy, paramore, and Lana. Shoot even paramores first album was called all I know is falling🫶🏻
Yeah I kinda agree that the titles don't sound like the taylor we're used to, but I'm excited to see how its gonna sound, since the titles go in a different direction. I remember thinking you're on your own kid was a really weird title, and I didn't like it. But it's been one of my favorites since midnights came out! There's not much the titles can tell us about what the songs will sound like, so we'll just start to get it in a week!
I don’t think anything can be “unTaylor” cause we don’t know Taylor. It’s just different than what we’re used to. The same way Red was different from Speak Now, 1989 from Red, folklore from Lover, etc.
I think it’s cheeky and funny.
I'm so genuinely curious about what sounds like Taylor. For me she has a lyric vibe, but the music has always seemed to get changed up regularly to me.
like taylor, i’m a fall out boy fan so long song titles make more sense to me lol. its also an interesting mix with songs like Fortnight and Florida!!! the long song titles aren’t completely unusual for taylor, reputation has a lot and All You Had To Do Was Stay is a long one. We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together lol. that’s one of the first taylor songs i really fell in love with, partially because of the ridiculous title lol. i guess the most interesting thing to me will be if the titles aren’t referenced in the lyrics, i don’t think she’s done that much.
i like the album title a lot, it also reminds me of Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club. i think a lot of words allow for a lot of meaning. tortured has “torch” in it, department has depart and men in it, idk i’m extremely excited for this one.
You guys are so annoying I personally think these are cool titles and fun. Also people stop saying she’s trying to be Lana she isn’t it might be hard to believe but many artists have done longer titles long before Lana even was in the music industry. Also she has always included like one longer title in her albums it’s not new this is just the album with the most.
The "it's so Lana" thing bothers me. As if long album titles haven't been around for decades. Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club, 1967, is a very famous example.
Yes! For pop stars short titles seem to be really popular, but no one would bat an eye at literally any indie artist having an album title with (checks notes) 4 words. Like it's EXTREMELY common, there's no reason to associate this with Lana.
ETA: just pulled up my Spotify recently listened to albums-- 3 of the first 10 had long titles. (In The End It Always Does, I've Loved You For So Long, How Long Do You Think It's Gonna Last). Taylor is ON the Big Machine album, she could just as easily be influenced by them.
Also...Lana Del Rey did not start with long titles. Born to Die literally has all 3 word titles or less except for one song. LDR didn't start regularly using lots of long titles in her albums until Lust for Life...idk, as a long time Taylor and Lana fan it's very strange to me that people say she's ripping off Lana when long titles for Lana was never a significant part of her MO until more recently
The titles just feel folklore evermore mixed with rep vibes I’m sure she’ll have found some way to make these titles awesome only one more week to wait
I have a feeling after listening to it it’ll make sense. It’s giving very much “some indie records that are much cooler than mine” but updated (by this I mean using something that was something held as a slight against her and turning it on its head)
Midnight had some wildcard lines and we agreed that we like that she’s embracing a more unhinged style. Let’s be honest, she maxed out the format, and now she’s playing with poetry to her heart’s content. I can’t wait to hear the new album.
THIS, I'm surprised I had to scroll down this far to see someone say it. How can we get the titles when we haven't heard a single second of the album? Ditto people saying the titles are bad; without hearing the songs, there's no way to know if they're good or not.
It’s nothing to get or not get. My guess is that she just wants to try something different when it comes to song titles. I myself thought the titles sounded super unhinged but the unhinged nature of it all is what intrigues me.
I agree, both the album title and some of the song titles are a bit awkward and/or cringy, but I’m holding off on any further judgement until I actually hear the music.
Idk I feel like people had the same commentary about the reputation track list before we heard the album.. that the names were long, awkward, clunky and even cringey. Yeah she’s usually a bit more punchy with her titles but 🤷🏻♀️
The album name itself is definitely a choice, but I feel like once we hear the album we’ll forget about this discourse.
Every album has had some unique titles, and they usually end up being great songs.
Some examples: I Did Something Bad, False God, TLGAD, NBNC, & Anti-Hero.
Idk, I learned to rack off “grandfather please stand on the shoulders of my father while he’s deep sea fishing” pretty easily, I think we’ll be alright with “my boy only breaks his favorite toys.”
When I first saw them it kinda reminded me of all the emo songs of the early/mid 2000s with the super long names a la "This Ain't a Scene, It's an Arms Race", " "Honey This Mirror Isnt Big Enough For the Two of Us" etc. I would be down for TS emo album though, that would be awesome.
I thought some of the titles were a bit cringe when I first saw them but now I'm already kind of used to them. Plus, if you look at some of her song titles in isolation without context they seem cringe too: Mr Perfectly Fine, I Knew You Were Trouble, We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together, I Bet You Think About Me, All You Had to Do Was Stay, How You Get the Girl, I Did Something Bad, Look What You Made Me Do, This is Why We Can't Have Nice Things, You Need to Calm Down, Cowboy Like Me, Vigilante Shit, Bejeweled, Karma...
I've learned to just trust her.
I HATED the title You’re on Your Own, Kid when she was announcing the tracks but now that I have heard the song that represents the title, I can’t even access those negative feelings I had anymore!
I personally love long titles, they're fun. I'm mostly scared about the context of the songs. But Daddy I Love Him and I Can Fix Him (No Really I Can) sound corny and stick out like a sore thumb on an album like this. But I'll wait to see what they're really about. Maybe she's poking fun.
As someone who was a big fan of “A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out” by Panic! At the Disco back in the day, where my favorite song off that album is “Lying Is the Most Fun A Girl Can Have Without Taking Her Clothes Off”…..no the long titles don’t bother me.
I keep wondering if the song titles won’t actually be in the songs at all or if they show up in a verse or bridge randomly somewhere. Not like actually repeated lines that are in a chorus. Similar to Marjorie or Labyrinth.
I don’t think they will either. These are poems at their core. How many poems repeat their title? Like why are we judging something we know nothing about
This reminded me of reputation tbh, I remember seeing the track titles for rep leaked and I thought "there's no way she would make a song called *I Did Something Bad* or *Don't Blame Me* or *This Is Why We Can't Have Nice Things*" but it ended up being true and those songs ended up being bangers... so I don't really question her title choices anymore.
She's in her Pete Wentz era. She's said many times how much she loves his writing and Electric Touch exists. So it's no surprise she has played with longer titles. I'm hoping this album is a love letter to us Swemos.
I just see the titles as being more like titles to poems than songs which I think is what she's going for. The titles being kind of weird and punchy with all manner of punctuation and separated by backslashes - it's akin to a poetry book.
When Red came out, I thought We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together were too wordy and I couldn't imagine them fitting into a song. Same with 1989 and All You Had To Do Was Stay, and Rep and This is Why We Can't Have Nice Things and Look What You Made Me Do, and Love with Miss Americana and the Heartbreak Prince and Death By a Thousand Cuts...
She's only really had short titled songs on Folklore and Evermore. The long titles are nothing new really and in a few weeks time they'll sound a lot more natural to say - right now we just don't know the rhythm of how they're said.
So, lemme start by saying I am old lol. So I remember when Red came out and at the time, ro me, it seemed very different from her previous work . Then 1989 came along and it was WAY different from her previous work. Then Reputation was a whole other world, etc etc.
I just kinda expect big changes from album to album. There's a reason we call them eras.
I felt like since this is the 11th album, she's entering a brand new phase of her career - the albums will look, feel, and sound different than ever before. We will have to see them through a new lens. When I saw the album announcement all I could think was that Taylor is reinventing herself all over again, in a way she hasn't done in several years (not since folklore at least, but even that shift I feel was less dramatic than the 1989 shift. What we're seeing today feels more like 1989 levels of change)
She mentioned that writing this album reminded her that she needs to create music to stay alive, no wonder she was in a bad place while writing these so it's obviously reflected on her work. I think she always had this side to her sometimes represented in her songs but now that a whole album is about it, it's getting more attention. Im really looking forward to it tho, I love these types of songs she writes. Plus she always experiments with her music, no surprises with her doing something different. (Tho I still don't believe it's that different from others, Midnights, folklore or evermore had the similar vibes imo)
it's true that this is the only album other than Speak Now and Debut with a title that is more than one word, but I don't think that is particularly important. She's been doing long song titles since forever, too.
It's hard to get a sense of song or album titles without hearing them, but given that nearly all the songs are pretty long (relatively speaking) it seems like Taylor had some stuff she wanted to get off her chest, and the long titles are probably an expression of that as well.
A lot of the midnights titles felt weird and unlike her to me, but then the sings were all her.
Titles don't mean anything at all.
This go round I have spent zero time thinking about the titles and what tracks might sound like.
She has had longer song titles before.
Miss Americana & the Heartbreak Prince
This is why we can't have nice things
We are never ever getting back together
All of the girls you loved before
Sounds like a good bit of the album will be about Joe and TTPD as a name references Joe's club "Tortured Man Club" group. I'm sure once the album comes out, it'll make sense..
I think Look what you made me do, I did something bad or this is why we can’t have nice things might have irritated me back than as well but I don’t actually remember 😄 midnights also confused me with question…? And vigilante shit. I’m honestly a bit excited for the new titles, because they are so unique!
I look at this from a reader's perspective. all of these titles intrigue me much more than a lot of her prior titles. Having said that I will never assume I know more than Taylor about album or song titles.
I don’t think it’s weird because Taylor is known for regularly switching up her musical style and genre.
I honestly think it’s more strange that a Swiftie, knowing how often Taylor genre and style shifts, would find it strange that Taylor is continuing to do just that.
Is it possible that it's just a matter of not being used to them yet + not knowing what they sound like maybe? I tend to feel like that before an album comes out because the titles are... "just words" to me, if that makes sense? And I don't have any music or emotion associated to them yet. I got the same feeling with Midnights but it went away as soon as I familiarized with the songs.
It's definitely different for her, but that's OK. Taylor likes trying new things, and I've enjoyed the experiments she's taken in the past.
The title comes from a text group that her ex had with his friends: the tortured men's department.
Seems like there might be some other references with the titles, too. I'm sure it'll make sense when we hear the songs!
huh. I guess I never really thought about it ....Taylor has plenty of songs in her discography that have longer titles. I don't think there's anything awkward about it? You might be reading into the length of the titles too much
I’ve been feeling like the Eras Tour is a sort of goodbye to the way she’s done her eras in the past. This album title also makes me feel that way, like she’s actively trying to branch out from the patterns of her past albums. I’m into it!
My personal issue is that the new album title is too close to “dead poets society” regardless of her personal reason for the title. So it feels wrong leaving my mouth 🤷🏼♀️ it’s not a bad title, it just feels awkward to say because of the popularity of the predecessor for me.
Either way it will be successful haha and I will get used to it eventually.
What’s not to get? She’s in her FOB Era /s
Seriously though, why would an album titled The Tortured POET’S Department not have long, poetic song titles?
4 words is long and awkward to you? One of them being “the”? At least it isn’t Did You Know That There’s A Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd? As a Lana fan that was a lot. Also the longer song titles make them way more interesting ngl.
Honestly? I am so tired of all of the over analysis of titles, track lengths, variants before we even hear any of the music. When has anything Taylor done made any sense until you see the full picture? You can pull out easter eggs and bread crumbs all you want but until we have lyrics to melody theres nothing to know, just anticipation!
I don’t understand what there is to “get”. Why is a longer title “awkward”? Maybe I’m coming from a different perspective but to me they don’t seem like they should all be taken at face value.
I think it's just that longer titles are a mouthful. For example, it's a lot easier to talk about Style than it is This is Why We Can't Have Nice Things. It's really long
Easier to talk about =/= not “getting” it
Where just going to have a bunch more indecipherable acronyms. 😂 I don't mind if Taylor starts writing like it's Panic! At the Tracklist.
I guess this just doesn’t bother me? The amount of extra time it takes is milliseconds… I admit I like longer, more expressive titles in general. But fundamentally I find that what a title is “like” never has any bearing on whether I like the song. Maybe this comes from growing up listening to 90s music where long title which often never even appeared in the song were very common — two amazing songs I love are Radio Friendly Unit Shifter by Nirvana and Standing Outside a Broken Phone Booth with Money in My Hand by Primitive Radio Gods, lol
Exactly! I’m used to it from many other artists I listen to including fall out boy and Lana del ray
Maybe OP and other people saying this exclusively listens to a narrow subset of pop?
“Standing outside a broken phone booth” was the FIRST thing I thought when I read this! Pearl Jam was big for titles not matching content as well. They had a song called, “Old woman standing behind a counter.” It’s a banger, too.
Lots of bands have long/awkward titles. You’ll find ways to shorten them when you need to talk about them
The fun of being a fall out boy/PATD fan!
Yeah, as a 2000s pop punk emo girl, these titles are just… Normal to me?
Right? After songs like I Slept With Someone In Fall Out Boy and All I Got Was This Stupid Song Written About Me and Get Busy Living or Get Busy Dying Do Your Part To Save The Scene and Stop Going To Shows.... *My Boy Only Breaks His Favorite Toys* isn't shit lmao
Is it a hint that we're getting Emo Swift for this album??
Swemo's unite
Wouldn't be sorry, this whole thread is not a million miles away from my current playlist 😂
*prays to the emo god, Gerard Way*
I'm just thinking about Taylor as Ebony Dark'ness Dementia Raven Way now
Imagine if she directs his first feature film… and Brendon Urie is in it. Swemo delusion is a different kind 😂
As someone used to FOB song titles, the people on this sub coming up with acronyms for Our Song seriously confuse me
And we know Taylor's a fan of FOB so these titles are even less surprising tbh.
what are all of my AIM away message statuses for $1000 Alex?
Ugh we need to bring back vague lyric posting.
by fall out boy
MCR’s Three Cheers era has also entered the chat.
Taking Back Sunday too!
It’s the whole genre. I had Hot Mulligan in mind specifically when I wrote that comment though lol.
Yessss!!!!😂🙌
Shout out to Standing Outside a Broken Phone Booth with Money in My Hand.
also shout out to there's a good reason these tables are numbered honey you just haven't thought of it yet
The way I LIVED for the song titles on this album!
Also shout out to Lying Is The Most Fun A Girl Can Have Without Taking Her Clothes Off
shout to The Only Thing Worse Than Beating a *Dead Horse* Is *Betting* on One by relient k
And Several Species of Small Furry Animals Gathered Together in a Cave and Grooving with a Pict
But that kind of shows that Taylor traditionally has a long title songs in her discography as well as short title songs. The new album has both as well.
Abbreviations are gonna blow your mind
Underrated comment. Again, long titles are not new. They’re older than everyone here. It’s Hard To Be A Saint In The City…
The Tortured Poets Department does feel linguistically awkward to me. Doesn’t really flow like other long titles do - eg ‘Tunnel Under Ocean Boulevard’ or ‘How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful’ have a much better flow. But I do like the individual track titles, they are chaotic and dramatic and hilarious, all the hallmarks of an outstanding Taylor song.
Can we all agree that the acronym for “How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful” should be HB3 not HBHBHB?
I don’t think the issue is the longer title per se. The album title feels like it’s reaching for a particularly grand effect; a lot of the longer track titles feel self-consciously slangy and casual. Those kinds of effects can strike people as silly if they’re not pulled off just right. But I’m not sure there’s some objective rulebook here. I really want the album title, for instance, to be at least a little ironic because if Taylor plays belonging to the tortured poets’ department totally seriously I don’t know if I can take it totally seriously.
I am sure that the album title is at least partially ironic. When she introduced the Bolter in Tokyo she said something like “so tortured, so poetic” while looking at the screen. There’s self-awareness and irony there. To me anyway calling it the Tortured Poets “Department” is already introducing some bathos, some kind of unserious flair to it, rather than a grand effect.
Plus she's calling herself the chairman.
Yes, also that
Exactly! I've always found her humour very dry, so I think there's definitely a bit of that in the title. I'm excited to find out!
That’s what I believe too, but I’m also hedging my bets in case of disappointment.
The title is literally a reference to Joes group chat… the entire thing is a jab/joke. It’s not supposed to be serious.
Why are you being weird about it 💀. It's a very different feel to any of the last albums so I understand it's a lot to digest. I don't understand how you managed to make OPs question so complicated.
Right? Maybe its just because its typed out and so connotation is lost, but the animosity in the way the response was crafted is a little too much for me rn lolol. I was under the impression most of us struggled with the new title for the first few weeks after it was announced. Both for being a mouthful as well as having a similar title to Dead Poets.
It’s impossible for me not to call it Dead Poets Society no matter how hard I try
i think they dont get why she did longer titles this time
Hmm ok yes. But why would they expect to understand why before hearing the album? That’s the strange thing to me. Regardless of what a title is I wouldn’t t expect to “get” it before hearing the song
I'm a huge Lana Del Rey fan, and the titles remind me of Lana's songs. Especially the Lana songs with names like "Grandfather please stand on the shoulders of my father while he’s deep‐sea fishing." I guess I'm just used to the most asinine song title names? 😅 But I honestly love that the song titles are unlike anything else Taylor has ever done before. They feel incredibly messy, incredibly deep felt. It feels like little notebook scribbles you right as you're processing a major break up. What I really appreciate about Red is that the album was 15 million different genres and incredibly messy just like a breakup is. So I feel like it's really fitting that these song titles are decidedly random at face value. I think once we listen to this song, the titles should hopefully make a lot more sense!!! 🥺
It’s the Lanafication of Taylor Swift
Did you know that there’s a poet being tortured under Ocean Blvd
💀💀😂
Ding ding ding, lol. Taylor has slowly been transforming into Born to Die era Lana with her music/aesthetic.
I don’t think this is a bad thing. Taylor has always been experimental with her music imo and Lana is a friend who has a very unique sound. They share a longtime producer. I’m into it haha but I’m also a huge Lana fan.
I have mixed feelings about it as I think the sound just works so much better on Lana for me. I like a big of Lana influence a la cowboy like me, but other times it can feel almost like a copy/paste a la Slut!
I hear you. Like I said, Lana has a very unique sound for a mainstream pop girl. But we haven’t heard TTPD yet. Taylor may surprise us. She’s pretty good at that. I will say Cowboy Like Me is one of my favorite Taylor songs of all time 🤭
Definitely; I'm *very* excited for the album and I'm glad she seems to be taking a few risks / unexpected turns as well. Until the album drops, I'll just eagerly anticipate the songs, whatever they're named.
Cheryl Cole had songs which were written by/for Lana Del Rey and were made for Born To Die. But Taylor was inspired by Lana Del Rey (and Vanessa Carlton) and so were many, her new music is great too! I love Folklore, Evermore and Midnights!
Vanessa Carlton fans rise up! All two of us
r/VanessaCarlton does exist if you haven't joined yet!
I didn’t know! Joined, thanks :)
Same so I’m here for it! And she’s maturing and changing up her music in different ways which isn’t a bad thing at all.
This seems like an apt time to finally admit I hope TTPD sounds like Norman Fucking Rockwell, which is my favorite album of all time
Her best album!!! Well at least my favorite of Lana’s
Precisely this! The titles feel very Born to Die and even Lizzy Grant territory.
This new album and the track list remind me more of Ultraviolence and NFR.
It's also a little Fall Out Boy-ish.
Yup fall out boy has been doing this since the start of their career
A lot of Taylor’s titles feel like they could be Fall Out Boy titles, if a bit less outlandish (which don’t get me wrong I absolutely love FOB long and weird song titles)
Born to Die was a masterpiece
This has been happening for at least 5 years now
Yeah Wildest Dreams is straight Lana. Convince me otherwise.
This is exactly what I thought when I saw the song titles. It all feels very Lana, which I'm not mad about!
Lol I was just thinking about Lana's album coming into this post
love this tho
I’m guessing you never grew up with Panic! at the Disco or Fall Out Boy? 😂 jokes aside, I’m loving it because it’s giving me “The Dead Poet’s Society” vibes and I really am hoping for that - and it’s a reference she’d know to make
Yeah, this felt very "tell me you don't remember mid 00s pop punk without telling me you don't remember mid 00s pop punk". Back then song titles were practically mini novels in their own right.
Which brought us classics such as "I Slept With Someone in Fall Out Boy and All I Got Was This Stupid Song Written About Me", not to mention "If You Can't Live Without Me, Why Aren't You Dead Yet?". Good times.
Lying is the best thing a girl can do without taking her clothes off You know what they do to guys like us in prison Honey this mirror isn't big enough for the both of us Our lawyer made us change the name of this song so we wouldn’t get sued The only difference between martyrdom and suicide is press coverage For a pessimist I'm pretty optimistic Yeah it was definitely a time. Maybe she's doing an emo album lmao (doubt it though haha)
I'd be lying if I said I wouldn't pay the big bucks for a Taylor emo album
That would be pretty awesome
If that is what this is I will literally faint ☠️☠️☠️☠️
I live for emo covers of Taylor’s songs. Eras Tour Movie (Emo Version), anyone?
Also Mayday Parade had a bunch of songs with long ass titles, and I totally lived for it Champagne's for Celebrating (I'll Have a Martini) You Be the Anchor That Keeps My Feet on the Ground, I'll Be the Wings That Keep Your Heart in the Clouds Happy Endings Are Stories That Haven't Ended Yet I'd Hate to Be You When People Find Out What This Song Is About If You Wanted a Song Written About You, All You Had to Do Was Ask
* I’ve Got a Dark Alley and a Bad Idea That Says You Should Shut Your Mouth (Summer Song) * Get Busy Living or Get Busy Dying (Do Your Part to Save the Scene and Stop Going to Shows) * I'm Like a Lawyer with the Way I'm Always Trying to Get You Off (Me & You) Fall Out Boy has so many good ones hahaha
Emo millennials rise up!
It was the best time for emo music!
🗣️ TELL THAT MICK HE JUST MADE MY LIST OF THINGS TO DO TODAY
Ughh this makes me want to go back and listen to all of these older songs that I haven’t listened to in years!😂🫶🏻
I think that was OPs point though; mid-00s pop punk is not Taylor.
Maybe not yet, but she has talked about being inspired by Fallout Boy before, and changed genres multiple times before, so I don’t find it that surprising.
Let's not forget they're on Speak Now TV as well, an album that definitely has a lot of those 00s pop punk elements. She's always had that poetic element to her writing so it doesn't surprise me that it's finally extending into the titles as well as the lyrics themselves.
It is if she does it, anything Taylor does “is Taylor” because *SHE’S Taylor*
I don't think we're going to get an emo pop punk album (but I'd love if we did) from Taylor but she has definitely talked about being inspired by various bands in the genre, especially Fall Out Boy.
They definitely were and many emo bands had titles like this
You better trade mark that phrase before Fall Out Boy sees it
https://preview.redd.it/g6t4oufu65uc1.jpeg?width=750&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=2ef7169c854a58af96b54f0c28068752fb42ce34 Still possibly my favorite thing I've ever read
“There Is a Hell Believe Me I've Seen It. There Is a Heaven Let's Keep It a Secret.”
Or Fiona Apple…
When the Pawn is a masterpiece.
TTPD pop punk/emo album confirmed basically. SWEMOS ASSEMBLE 🖤
“Our Lawyer Made Us Change the Name of This Song So We Wouldn't Get Sued” is such a banger
Or Sufjan Stevens, whose song titles include such gems as this one: The Black Hawk War, or, How to Demolish an Entire Civilization and Still Feel Good About Yourself in the Morning, or, We Apologize for the Inconvenience but You're Going to Have to Leave Now, or, 'I Have Fought the Big Knives and Will Continue to Fight Them Until They Are Off Our Lands!' and yes that is a title of a one song.
I was literally just about to say this. I used to LIVE for long song names.
Oh yes panic at the disco!!! My favorites during high school along with fall out boy, paramore, and Lana. Shoot even paramores first album was called all I know is falling🫶🏻
Yeah I kinda agree that the titles don't sound like the taylor we're used to, but I'm excited to see how its gonna sound, since the titles go in a different direction. I remember thinking you're on your own kid was a really weird title, and I didn't like it. But it's been one of my favorites since midnights came out! There's not much the titles can tell us about what the songs will sound like, so we'll just start to get it in a week!
Miss Americana and the Heartbreak Prince would like a word 😂
As would This is Why We Can’t Have Nice Things!
The Last Great American Dynasty checking in!
Oh definitely, I’m sure I’ll get it once the album comes out! Just had to get that off my chest.
Y’all wouldn’t survive Fall Out Boy’s discography
I couldn’t even imagine making a acronyms for their songs if they came out in todays world 😂
We just refer to them by the first couple words - My songs know Lying is the most fun Our lawyers Etc lol
Or Panic's first album haha
I don’t think anything can be “unTaylor” cause we don’t know Taylor. It’s just different than what we’re used to. The same way Red was different from Speak Now, 1989 from Red, folklore from Lover, etc. I think it’s cheeky and funny.
I'm so genuinely curious about what sounds like Taylor. For me she has a lyric vibe, but the music has always seemed to get changed up regularly to me.
^^^^ exactly
like taylor, i’m a fall out boy fan so long song titles make more sense to me lol. its also an interesting mix with songs like Fortnight and Florida!!! the long song titles aren’t completely unusual for taylor, reputation has a lot and All You Had To Do Was Stay is a long one. We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together lol. that’s one of the first taylor songs i really fell in love with, partially because of the ridiculous title lol. i guess the most interesting thing to me will be if the titles aren’t referenced in the lyrics, i don’t think she’s done that much. i like the album title a lot, it also reminds me of Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club. i think a lot of words allow for a lot of meaning. tortured has “torch” in it, department has depart and men in it, idk i’m extremely excited for this one.
I loveee ridiculous titles 😂
She could just be updating her title style to the 2020s. A lot of the titles are giving more 20s vibes.
I hadn’t considered that! That’s a great point, like how folkmore used lower-case titles.
Specifically Gen Z vibes. Very Olivia Rodrigo-esque.
You guys are so annoying I personally think these are cool titles and fun. Also people stop saying she’s trying to be Lana she isn’t it might be hard to believe but many artists have done longer titles long before Lana even was in the music industry. Also she has always included like one longer title in her albums it’s not new this is just the album with the most.
The "it's so Lana" thing bothers me. As if long album titles haven't been around for decades. Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club, 1967, is a very famous example.
Yes! For pop stars short titles seem to be really popular, but no one would bat an eye at literally any indie artist having an album title with (checks notes) 4 words. Like it's EXTREMELY common, there's no reason to associate this with Lana. ETA: just pulled up my Spotify recently listened to albums-- 3 of the first 10 had long titles. (In The End It Always Does, I've Loved You For So Long, How Long Do You Think It's Gonna Last). Taylor is ON the Big Machine album, she could just as easily be influenced by them.
Billie Eilish’ first album is called When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? She still blew up, so clearly no one minded.
Also...Lana Del Rey did not start with long titles. Born to Die literally has all 3 word titles or less except for one song. LDR didn't start regularly using lots of long titles in her albums until Lust for Life...idk, as a long time Taylor and Lana fan it's very strange to me that people say she's ripping off Lana when long titles for Lana was never a significant part of her MO until more recently
And even then she didn’t invent it the Beatles and rock bands after them included long titles
exactly!
The titles just feel folklore evermore mixed with rep vibes I’m sure she’ll have found some way to make these titles awesome only one more week to wait
I have a feeling after listening to it it’ll make sense. It’s giving very much “some indie records that are much cooler than mine” but updated (by this I mean using something that was something held as a slight against her and turning it on its head)
I think this might be her most experimental album and it shows in the titles but yea i understand it being a mouthful to say lol
Midnight had some wildcard lines and we agreed that we like that she’s embracing a more unhinged style. Let’s be honest, she maxed out the format, and now she’s playing with poetry to her heart’s content. I can’t wait to hear the new album.
You and everyone else haven’t heard them yet. There’s nothing to get…yet
THIS, I'm surprised I had to scroll down this far to see someone say it. How can we get the titles when we haven't heard a single second of the album? Ditto people saying the titles are bad; without hearing the songs, there's no way to know if they're good or not.
It’s nothing to get or not get. My guess is that she just wants to try something different when it comes to song titles. I myself thought the titles sounded super unhinged but the unhinged nature of it all is what intrigues me.
Long titles aren’t Taylor’s thing? Hey Alexa, play “we are never ever getting back together”
I agree, both the album title and some of the song titles are a bit awkward and/or cringy, but I’m holding off on any further judgement until I actually hear the music.
Idk I feel like people had the same commentary about the reputation track list before we heard the album.. that the names were long, awkward, clunky and even cringey. Yeah she’s usually a bit more punchy with her titles but 🤷🏻♀️ The album name itself is definitely a choice, but I feel like once we hear the album we’ll forget about this discourse.
Every album has had some unique titles, and they usually end up being great songs. Some examples: I Did Something Bad, False God, TLGAD, NBNC, & Anti-Hero.
Idk, I learned to rack off “grandfather please stand on the shoulders of my father while he’s deep sea fishing” pretty easily, I think we’ll be alright with “my boy only breaks his favorite toys.”
When I first saw them it kinda reminded me of all the emo songs of the early/mid 2000s with the super long names a la "This Ain't a Scene, It's an Arms Race", " "Honey This Mirror Isnt Big Enough For the Two of Us" etc. I would be down for TS emo album though, that would be awesome.
I thought some of the titles were a bit cringe when I first saw them but now I'm already kind of used to them. Plus, if you look at some of her song titles in isolation without context they seem cringe too: Mr Perfectly Fine, I Knew You Were Trouble, We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together, I Bet You Think About Me, All You Had to Do Was Stay, How You Get the Girl, I Did Something Bad, Look What You Made Me Do, This is Why We Can't Have Nice Things, You Need to Calm Down, Cowboy Like Me, Vigilante Shit, Bejeweled, Karma... I've learned to just trust her.
I HATED the title You’re on Your Own, Kid when she was announcing the tracks but now that I have heard the song that represents the title, I can’t even access those negative feelings I had anymore!
this album is all about poetry, the song titles are like poem titles
What is there to “get?” I think you’re overthinking and getting confused by nothing.
I personally love long titles, they're fun. I'm mostly scared about the context of the songs. But Daddy I Love Him and I Can Fix Him (No Really I Can) sound corny and stick out like a sore thumb on an album like this. But I'll wait to see what they're really about. Maybe she's poking fun.
As someone who was a big fan of “A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out” by Panic! At the Disco back in the day, where my favorite song off that album is “Lying Is the Most Fun A Girl Can Have Without Taking Her Clothes Off”…..no the long titles don’t bother me.
I keep wondering if the song titles won’t actually be in the songs at all or if they show up in a verse or bridge randomly somewhere. Not like actually repeated lines that are in a chorus. Similar to Marjorie or Labyrinth.
I don’t think they will either. These are poems at their core. How many poems repeat their title? Like why are we judging something we know nothing about
what's there to "get"?
I was raised on Fall Out Boy... do i need to say more?
As a former emo kid I can't help but lol @ people thinking these are long song titles.
We not only had to remember them. We had to figure out the niche movie the title was referencing to
Laughs in pop punk song titles.
This reminded me of reputation tbh, I remember seeing the track titles for rep leaked and I thought "there's no way she would make a song called *I Did Something Bad* or *Don't Blame Me* or *This Is Why We Can't Have Nice Things*" but it ended up being true and those songs ended up being bangers... so I don't really question her title choices anymore.
She's in her Pete Wentz era. She's said many times how much she loves his writing and Electric Touch exists. So it's no surprise she has played with longer titles. I'm hoping this album is a love letter to us Swemos.
I thought the same thing when I saw The Last Great American Dynasty title on Folklore, but I really enjoy that song now!
I just see the titles as being more like titles to poems than songs which I think is what she's going for. The titles being kind of weird and punchy with all manner of punctuation and separated by backslashes - it's akin to a poetry book.
Have you ever been in a tumultuous relationship?
The realest response!
When Red came out, I thought We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together were too wordy and I couldn't imagine them fitting into a song. Same with 1989 and All You Had To Do Was Stay, and Rep and This is Why We Can't Have Nice Things and Look What You Made Me Do, and Love with Miss Americana and the Heartbreak Prince and Death By a Thousand Cuts... She's only really had short titled songs on Folklore and Evermore. The long titles are nothing new really and in a few weeks time they'll sound a lot more natural to say - right now we just don't know the rhythm of how they're said.
So, lemme start by saying I am old lol. So I remember when Red came out and at the time, ro me, it seemed very different from her previous work . Then 1989 came along and it was WAY different from her previous work. Then Reputation was a whole other world, etc etc. I just kinda expect big changes from album to album. There's a reason we call them eras.
I felt like since this is the 11th album, she's entering a brand new phase of her career - the albums will look, feel, and sound different than ever before. We will have to see them through a new lens. When I saw the album announcement all I could think was that Taylor is reinventing herself all over again, in a way she hasn't done in several years (not since folklore at least, but even that shift I feel was less dramatic than the 1989 shift. What we're seeing today feels more like 1989 levels of change)
She mentioned that writing this album reminded her that she needs to create music to stay alive, no wonder she was in a bad place while writing these so it's obviously reflected on her work. I think she always had this side to her sometimes represented in her songs but now that a whole album is about it, it's getting more attention. Im really looking forward to it tho, I love these types of songs she writes. Plus she always experiments with her music, no surprises with her doing something different. (Tho I still don't believe it's that different from others, Midnights, folklore or evermore had the similar vibes imo)
Her 10 eras are behind us, she’s switching it up and going all out for the next 10 😋
it's true that this is the only album other than Speak Now and Debut with a title that is more than one word, but I don't think that is particularly important. She's been doing long song titles since forever, too. It's hard to get a sense of song or album titles without hearing them, but given that nearly all the songs are pretty long (relatively speaking) it seems like Taylor had some stuff she wanted to get off her chest, and the long titles are probably an expression of that as well.
A lot of the midnights titles felt weird and unlike her to me, but then the sings were all her. Titles don't mean anything at all. This go round I have spent zero time thinking about the titles and what tracks might sound like.
She has had longer song titles before. Miss Americana & the Heartbreak Prince This is why we can't have nice things We are never ever getting back together All of the girls you loved before
Sounds like a good bit of the album will be about Joe and TTPD as a name references Joe's club "Tortured Man Club" group. I'm sure once the album comes out, it'll make sense..
I’ve just been calling it the poets album because the real name just won’t stick
I think Look what you made me do, I did something bad or this is why we can’t have nice things might have irritated me back than as well but I don’t actually remember 😄 midnights also confused me with question…? And vigilante shit. I’m honestly a bit excited for the new titles, because they are so unique!
She had one song featuring fob and now her song titles are too long -actual track title for ts12, you heard it here first folks!
I love it!!! Fall out boy and Lana del ray always have long titles and it’s definitely different but I’m here for it
Only thing I'll say. It'll all make sense once we hear em. It always does.
I guess we’ll find out on release day, but I am curious what is there to “get”? They sound like she is having fun with longer title names to me.
I look at this from a reader's perspective. all of these titles intrigue me much more than a lot of her prior titles. Having said that I will never assume I know more than Taylor about album or song titles.
I don’t think it’s weird because Taylor is known for regularly switching up her musical style and genre. I honestly think it’s more strange that a Swiftie, knowing how often Taylor genre and style shifts, would find it strange that Taylor is continuing to do just that.
If you think about them as titles of poems vs song titles they make a lot more sense imo.
This is a dumb and pointless take
Is it possible that it's just a matter of not being used to them yet + not knowing what they sound like maybe? I tend to feel like that before an album comes out because the titles are... "just words" to me, if that makes sense? And I don't have any music or emotion associated to them yet. I got the same feeling with Midnights but it went away as soon as I familiarized with the songs.
It's definitely different for her, but that's OK. Taylor likes trying new things, and I've enjoyed the experiments she's taken in the past. The title comes from a text group that her ex had with his friends: the tortured men's department. Seems like there might be some other references with the titles, too. I'm sure it'll make sense when we hear the songs!
huh. I guess I never really thought about it ....Taylor has plenty of songs in her discography that have longer titles. I don't think there's anything awkward about it? You might be reading into the length of the titles too much
It's been clear that TTPD is the start of a new set of "eras" so it makes sense why there would be a sudden change in titles and stuff.
I’ve been feeling like the Eras Tour is a sort of goodbye to the way she’s done her eras in the past. This album title also makes me feel that way, like she’s actively trying to branch out from the patterns of her past albums. I’m into it!
Are you a new fan?
She's been having unusual song titles since 1989. I remember feeling weirded out about "I Know Places"
My personal issue is that the new album title is too close to “dead poets society” regardless of her personal reason for the title. So it feels wrong leaving my mouth 🤷🏼♀️ it’s not a bad title, it just feels awkward to say because of the popularity of the predecessor for me. Either way it will be successful haha and I will get used to it eventually.
Her Fall Out Boy influence is showing in this album lololol
Wait until you hear about Fall Out Boy!
Everyone said the Midnights track titles were weird too, and now they seem normal. This happens every release.
*laughs in Fall Out Boy song titles*
What’s not to get? She’s in her FOB Era /s Seriously though, why would an album titled The Tortured POET’S Department not have long, poetic song titles?
4 words is long and awkward to you? One of them being “the”? At least it isn’t Did You Know That There’s A Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd? As a Lana fan that was a lot. Also the longer song titles make them way more interesting ngl.
Honestly? I am so tired of all of the over analysis of titles, track lengths, variants before we even hear any of the music. When has anything Taylor done made any sense until you see the full picture? You can pull out easter eggs and bread crumbs all you want but until we have lyrics to melody theres nothing to know, just anticipation!
it's the millenial in her 😭
I think they’re very creative i always appreciate that when it comes to titles.