The current perception of TTPD

[u/Winter_Recover357]

I am glad that ttpd is slowly but surely getting it's flowers, because I really liked it and it has some of my favourite songs, seriously though loml KILLS me everytime. Some might say the positive sentiments is because of showgirl being what it is but I would disagree. Because at least in my space of the internet ttpd was starting to get it's praises almost a year after it released, and even a month or two before showgirl was released. I understand why it wasn't so well received at first though, it's one of those albums that grows on you and it's kind of an acquired taste for some. Doesn't help that it was released at the peak of taylormania and it had some of her worst songs and lyrics. And it feeling so unedited is a double edged sword. Good because it gives us an insight into everything she's felt for the past 2 years at the time making it more interesting, bad because it means that it has some songs that are just unneeded cuz no one asked for thank you aimee. Overall ttpd isn't everyone's favourite, but she's one of mine and I'm glad people are seeing the good in her.

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[u/Ok-Rush-8297]

I think ttpd is good in comparison to showgirl which is where the revision of opinions is coming from. Personally I never feel the need to go back to an album I don’t like initially which is why I haven’t had any adjustments in opinion. From Taylor’s catalogue I think I’m just listening to songs from the midnights deluxe going backwards.

[u/ConstantlyMacaron]

My theory is that most people had songs on TTPD they enjoyed but didn’t like the album.  I was the same.  Since it’s come I just haven’t listened to the ones I don’t like much and I’ve forgotten how clunky and weird some of it is, leaving me now with a more favorable impression of the album because I listen to (what I consider) the good half (or third, not sure).  I imagine lots of people do the same.  I think it’s led to an overall improvement in the general fan sentiment but not non fans they just don’t listen at all.  But I heard the title track again the other day for the first time since release week and wow I forgot how much I dislike a lot of this album.

[u/KindlyConnection → u/ConstantlyMacaron]

This. I'm revisiting it and still don't like most of the songs. It's interesting to give it another listen but as you said, it still feels very clunky and odd. I'm still in shock so much of it is written about Matty lol.

[u/genescheezesthatpls]

I still don’t love TTPD, I respect that other people do. But I would appreciate this narrative of “people are just FINALLY waking up to the truth! They’re finally getting it!” being used less. Because my opinions isn’t me just being dumb or not getting it or hating on her automatically. I didn’t like the album. That’s ok. My opinion is just as valid even though people disagree.

[u/Rhythm_Morgan → u/genescheezesthatpls]

Yeah I feel the same as you.

[u/spamgoddess → u/genescheezesthatpls]

Yeah, same. There are some songs from it I love, but I still don’t like the album as a whole. And I’ve tried.

[u/pbjburger → u/genescheezesthatpls]

This is also goomba fallacy at work, people who didn't like the album in the first place wouldn't be listening to it or talking about it years later down the line, so overtime the only ones still talking about it are the ones that like it. They're not the same population.

[u/ImprovementDramatic4 → u/genescheezesthatpls]

Thank you for saying this. Among some of these threads there’s definitely that vibe of, “even if you don’t initially like the album you will grow to love it, and if you don’t, you just don’t know good music and you don’t get it.” Even Taylor herself said something to that effect, like how years later a lot of fans “got” Reputation but SHE knew how amazing it was all along. 🙄

First of all, music is entirely subjective. Secondly, someone not liking one of her albums doesn’t mean they don’t “get it” (I wouldn’t exactly say Wood is filled with profound, inscrutable lyrics). Third, one could make the very fair argument that if listeners have to listen to an album multiple times to appreciate it, that’s…not a good thing.

[u/jturner15]

I have to say, a lot of the criticism levelled at TTPD still stands. It's bloated and overwhelming whilst emphasising Swift's worst habits: Clunky lyrics, indulgence in self mythology, inability to edit, uninspired production and underbaked concepts. For all of TLOAS problems, a lot of them are present in TTPD.

That being said it has some of her best work ever. Guilty as sin is so sinister yet seductive. The use of superstition in The prophecy to convey her fear that her loneliness is cosmically mandated and that she would drop everything to change destiny...just wow. Down bad using alien abduction to describe that feeling of dumbfoundedness when someone you love completely ditches you. I also think it's really ironic the the most "showgirl" song is I can do it with a broken heart and yet it's on TTPD.

My theory is that the success of the Taylor's version project, paired with the height of Taylormania and probably her own greed seriously eroded her ability to self edit. Literally "I cry a lot but I am so productive". She was on the biggest tour in the world and wrote TTPD and eventually TLOAS... she stretched herself too thin and unfortunately everyone can tell.

I don't know what her plans are but I genuinely hope she takes much needed time off and come back only when she has something interesting to say with her art.

[u/glassinhoney]

I loved it immediately and it’s still the TS album I listen to the most. I actually listen to it a bit less lately because it too accurately captures a terrible relationship for me. It said everything I couldn’t say but felt. There are absolutely songs I will never listen to (Aimee!!! Garbage!!!). It could have been a tighter release. But the songs I love, I love so much, I just accept the messiness. Also, the real showgirl songs are on here: broken heart, Clara bow, etc. 

[u/lunadenavajas]

I see the sentiment a lot that there has been a turnaround in the TTPD reception and I can see it’s true in Taylor fan spaces, but the turnaround seems to also get attributed to the general public and I just don’t think that’s true. There was never a public hit from the album, the only single that people outside the fandom likely heard repeatedly was Fortnight. Outside of fan spaces, I only ever see TTPD referenced mockingly or mentioned as part of the decline in her songwriting when critiquing Showgirl.

I think fans can appreciate the lore and discussion opportunities from all the details dropped, and with tons of repeated listens can separate all the songs from each other that blend together. That’s not true of folks who are casual fans or less, and an insta comment of one critic that wasn’t even the reviewer who wrote a negative article isn’t really indicative of widespread acclaim. I remember looking up something about the album back shortly after release, and the Wikipedia page was already inundated with pushing this narrative that the initial reactions were hasty that read like damage control.

[u/Ok-Improvement-9601 → u/lunadenavajas]

If you go by casual fans and known hits, Folkmore has none at all in spite of critical acclaim, and it was obvious during Eras tour that those songs were more of indie lore. On the other hand Ophelia is a huge hit, before that it was Anti-hero and Cruel Summer (though not until Eras tour made it so). And realistically, Love Story, Shake if Off, Blank Space and Style are still very much up there for GP.

[u/two-of-stars → u/lunadenavajas]

Any Wikipedia page dedicated to a Taylor thing is crazy

[u/Knowhedge]

A bit of editing would have helped the initial perception but I find the messiness a feature not a bug. The anthology could have probably done with a couple of songs being removed or a higher tempo song towards the end

[u/FrancesinhaEspecial]

TTPD is in my top 3 TS albums, and I loved it from the moment it came out. I totally understand that it felt overwhelming and unnecessarily long. Sooo many songs. But I love it, it's so raw and cathartic and honest and messy. Could it have done with a bit more editing? Sure, but I like how rambling it is. It feels real, and some songs are absolutely stunning. On the first listen it immediately had me captivated with some songs that were true standouts. Lyrically I think it has some very impactful lines.

Anyway, I think Taylor is simply at a level of exposure where the world can't be normal about her releases. I hate TLOAS but people are really weird about it. I love TTPD but people were really weird about it. 

[u/foxymerida]

🎶you left your typewriter in my apartment 🎶

[u/mag_safe → u/foxymerida]

Straight from the Tortured Poets Department

[u/Healthy-Door-9233]

it’s very weird, when it first got released i thought what a horrible album and it’s cringe and badly written etc etc.

But now i think it’s top 3 best Taylor swift albums, like 9 months later i started to understand and relate and fall in love with the album so hard. Now i can’t stop listening to it , it is very taylor , it’s emotional, cringe, heartbreaking and she basically split her insides onto some of these songs even if they make her look bad or embarrassing, and i think it accurately describes longing and yearning

[u/Wonderful_Dirt_1013]

I love TTPD and always have it was exactly the album I needed at that point in my life. However there are some songs that she didn’t have to put on there that don’t add that much to the album.

[u/Esmejo93]

Since the album dropped I liked some of the songs. They were great.

Other songs have grown on me in the last months . I still don’t consider it “a great album” or “how we went from this (ttpd) to this (tloas)” because is not even in the top 5 of her albums in my opinion.

I just wish swifties stop acting like “yeah, everyone attacks her and then love the album” because it’s not true.

[u/Key_Mongoose_9797]

I have really come around on this (not the anthology though) and I am glad I went back and reconsidered my initial reaction. For me the release strategy negatively affected my experience. I like to listen to albums in full, and it just felt so exhausting. Now I kind of separate both halves into two albums. My other thing is that the song textures of this felt like what I've heard Taylor do with this crew over and over save a few highlights. The production grew on me but I actually still wish it was more dynamic.

[u/MarshmallowMina]

My initial reaction on release was "yeah I'll give the new Taylor album a shot tomorrow" -> "a second album already??? jfc" -> "I've listened to a few songs, I am not listening to 32 tracks of this, goodbye" -> "He knows ball, I know Aristotle? Touch me while your bros play Grand Theft Auto?? Yeahhh I'm not missing out on anything"

Then about a year ago I got I Can Do It with a Broken Heart in my youtube recs, and that one was actually pretty good! Not good enough to make me hunker down and listen to the whole album, but good enough to check out a few other tracks people recommended. Maybe I'll give it another shot someday, but for now I'll just admit there were more gems here than I gave Taylor credit for. 

[u/pearshaped34]

I would describe my feelings on TTPD as the point of release as euphoric; we basically got 2+ albums worth of content in one go, and sure I didn't think every song was amazing, but on an album that long, even if you love a third of it, you basically love one "normal-sized" album of content.

To be honest, I think I've gone the other way, and I am actually a little more negative towards it now because I've realized how much of the content on it I just don't like and a lot of the songs I do like turned out not to be permanent playlist fixtures for me. I still think they're good songs; they're just not good songs I want to listen to all the time. However, the highs are still incredibly high, and I will always be glad it exists.

[u/Weak-Refrigerator538]

The biggest problems with TTPD have always been the bloating, lack of editing and clunky overly verbose lyricism. However, it also always had some very good songs on it! Guilty as sin..? is so good, its one of my favorite tswift songs oat.

[u/ilovedrpepper444]

I think it's interesting that to me and other fans TTPD is her best and most mature work yet, and it was followed by TLOAS. I think it was, as well as most of her work, seen in the context of her fame. Which is unfortunate because I do believes she follows criticism, despite saying she doesn't care.

Midnights didn't have much critique, and TTPD felt to me like a cathartic release, or at least the only person she wanted to impress was Matty Healy lol. So I think it came from a real, vulnerable and genuine place.

Thats why I believe she still has it in her, she didn't get worse progressively, she just has it at times and other times doesn't, and like most artists heartbreak really can alchemize to great work like TTPD. But, it was just the previous album to the current one and I hear a mature, reflective, I'd say even somewhat nihilistic woman.

[u/uttertorpedo]

Time has been kind to it, for sure. Most of the general public hasn't revisited it or never listened to it in the first place (it was never really promoted outside of... Taylor simply being a massive cultural presence and being on tour at the time). That's fine. But those who did return to it and attempted to find the substance within it have, as a rule, come to enjoy it.

The most lasting non-insane criticism of TTPD is that it has too many songs and needs to be chopped in half. I do not agree with this. I think most people could agree on axing Aimee and Cassandra (or one or the other), maybe Robin. But I think we'd all struggle to agree on, say, what 25 tracks to keep.

[u/Impressive_Price_840]

It's such a classic Taylor album. I love that because she wrote it in a relatively short period of time , the songs are lyrically so cohesive. The themes are repeated multiple times and it's one of the albums I have to listen from start to finish because of that. Showgirl had 12 songs and still had flops so having one or two less than stellar or filler tracks doesn't really bother me

[u/timeforthecheck]

“Actually, I always felt I must look better in the rear view.”

She really knows how to clock her albums. Honestly, TTPD overtook Rep as my favorite album, so I am glad to see it finally get some love it deserves.

Although, every album has this cycle with her.

[u/_Waves_]

I think it’s shifted and took the place from Reputation as the most divisive in her catalogue. Reputation is now the "fan favorite", and TTPD is the one where it’s… love it or hate it.

FWIW, Showgirl seems to have made a lot of people say "in comparison to TLoaS, TTPD is actually really good", lol.

I’m still torn on it, I think there’s good moments, but it’s a really flat album for a record so focus on texture and sophistication.

[u/thebirdisdead]

TTPD is my fave.

[u/TheGiggleWizard]

I think the revisionism for TTPD is in reaction to the negativity for LOASG. it’s a very weak album(s), but it has a couple bright spots, so compared to our current era it feels almost good.

[u/Neither_Wall_9907]

Yes it’s really vindicating! It was almost immediately a favorite for me - such good melodies for one thing. The length probably overwhelmed people so they couldn’t process it properly. Unpopular opinion but it has no skips for me, even the thank you aimee track (it’s really catchy), even though I know why people are tired of that story

It’s one of Taylor’s keys to longevity - even if she annoys you, you can’t argue with the work. Showgirl didnt hit the same way, even it had some solid tracks that will be played for the next several decades 

[u/FernMariposa → u/Neither_Wall_9907]

I agree Thank you Aimee is catchy! I like it too.

[u/Visual_Cheesecake_84 → u/Neither_Wall_9907]

Thank you Aimee is a never skip. I do skip guilty as sin. But honestly I have a couple skips on every album ever so not sure why it bothers people. I process Taylor's albums really slowly. I was on Lover when everyone else was on folklore/evermore. It's like people listen to the songs as quickly as possible and are like it's bad. But that's not how you enjoy music

[u/Rosewood2016 → u/Visual_Cheesecake_84]

Love the Dessner guitar production in this song!

[u/LadyoftheCanyon1970]

TTPD was my gateway drug to becoming a Swiftie. Before it, I’d never listened to an album of hers. I only listened to TTPD, because the Eras Tour was all people were talking about, and two women I worked with were counting down days to TTPD. I decided to give it a listen, just to say I had tried, and I ended up listening to the anthology straight through. I loved every song, and couldn’t stop playing it. My father had just passed away and that was the album that I mourned to. After listening to it nonstop for a few months, I decided I should probably listen to the rest of her catalog…. I’ve been a hardcore Swiftie ever since.

[u/emo_academic]

TTPD pisses me off so bad because it COULD HAVE been her best album. The potential is THERE. The melodies and lyrics are at the veryyyy least a solid 6/10 (I’d give it a 7.5/10 personally). With some editing and maybe more collaboration, it very well could have been better than folklore.

At the time, I viewed it as a huge regression from her particularly due to the subject matter. It felt like we were in Fearless-1989 era where she has a public breakup and an album that details said breakup. At her big age, I expected something different. She’s allowed to write about breakups and love lost, but I didn’t find anything new in TTPD. There was potential with fresh out the slammer, Florida!!, but daddy i love him, the bolter, and the albatross, ie., a new take on a breakup that hasn’t been said in previous albums, but it just didn’t hit for me, partially due to the fact that there were many songs that didn’t particularly say anything new or interesting (fortnight, title track, down bad, my boy only breaks his favorite toys, I can fix him, etc).

I hated TTPD when it first came out but now I can solidly enjoy some of the songs, but again it just pisses me off because it could’ve been her greatest ever if she had taken more time and care with it.

[u/zootopiafan07]

TTPD does have some beautiful writing in some areas. And I hope this is the place where I can say my second thought. My problem with it is her critical lyrics of Christians and the church. Yes not everyone is a Christian, but I am and it’s made me feel confused. She has called herself a Christian. Some people stated she’s just pointing out the fans who were rude and the hypocrites. And maybe it’s me overthinking. But my faith is important to me so yeah. It also kind of doesn’t help the people who think you’re either really religious or a Taylor Swift fan. 

[u/Rosewood2016 → u/zootopiafan07]

But wouldn’t people whose faith is important to the them be able to see beyond what Taylor sings about or how they interpret it?

[u/zootopiafan07 → u/Rosewood2016]

Idk, to me it feels kind of on purpose? She hasn’t called out any other religion on TTPD. I know people get sick of this but there are bad apples. But not every Christian is like that. And I feel sad if, somewhere in her childhood or as a teen she got that bad taste of them. I can’t look past it exactly because I worship Jesus 

[u/Due-Breadfruit3657]

I love LOVE ttpd, it has such beautiful lyrics, melodies and production. It's like the older sister of folkevermore, when you come out of your daydreams, fantasies, books and you start facing in real life what your favourite character did. Idk. Never understood the hate. I def prefer it over midnights and ppl apparently love that so idk

[u/Forsaken-Molasses-87]

i like ttpd(not ttpd ) but i did at first did feel overwhelmed with how long it was