Taylor Swift’s This Love (Taylor’s Version): Prepare Yourself, 1989 (Taylor’s Version) is Coming.

Last year we got Wildest Dreams (Taylor’s Version) as a public announcement that Taylor was embarking on her next Taylor’s Version project. Now with This Love (Taylor’s Version) out in the wild, we can definitely look towards an upcoming 1989 (Taylor’s Version) release. I am extremely excited for this to come together and this single’s release is amazing! This release compounded with her announcement at the VMAs that she will release the new record Midnights on Oct. 21 cements that 2022 is one of the biggest music years in a long time.

Now, I have stated on the podcast that I believe 1989 is a perfect pop record. Swift and Antonoff caught lightening in a bottle when putting this record together. The rest of this review will be pointing out the subtle differences between Taylor’s Version and the original track, so here is the original This Love for comparison. In my opinion, I think this track is the biggest evolution from the original in all of the Taylor’s Version projects. Most of the other projects had some interesting differences that really only revealed themselves with multiple close listens. However, This Love (Taylor’s Version) has some big vocal differences you can pick up on an initial listen.

Musically, this track is fairly similar to the original, so there is not much to discuss there. On the other hand, I found the vocal intriguing and worth a lot of discussion. If you compare the two, there are less post production effects on Taylor’s Version and a more drawn out folk vibe on the vocal. Swift seems to have brought her indie folk style from folklore and Evermore to this track, which I really enjoy. Much like most of 1989, the original This Love had a sharp pop scheen to the vocal. This Love (Taylor’s Version) has a lower meandering vocal that is further up in the mix and has more weight to it. This makes the track more grounded, which turns it into a far more emotional journey than a straight pop track. Swift’s decision to slow the vocal down in a slightly lower range works really well and gives the track a fresh life.

I enjoy Taylor’s Version far more than the original. As Swift has gotten older, her re-recordings of old tracks have become less pop based and more grounded. You get the sense that she is using these tracks to look back on her life / career with fresh eyes. I am really excited to see how the rest of the record turns out.

Listen to This Love (Taylor’s Version)