On October 21, exactly 12,000 days after Taylor Swift was born (strangely accurate, but would you expect anything less from the woman known for her Easter eggs?), “Midnights,” the 10th studio album from Swift came out at the usual time. Before fans had even had a chance to properly process the initial collection of work, at 3 a.m. Swift hit fans with an extra drop of “Midnights (3am Edition),” featuring seven additional songs, before to end its Oct. 21 release with a music video for “Anti-Hero,” one of the album’s most vulnerable tracks.

There’s lots and lots to like about “Midnights.” For starters, it marks Swift’s return to pop, the genre that dominated the more popular eras of her career. Although Swift has described “Midnights” as comprising songs written throughout the dark and contemplative phases of her life, the album’s sound is unmistakably Top 40, with the constant support of close friend and longtime collaborator Swift’s date, Jack Antonoff, and in the later 3 a.m. tracks, Aaron Dressner. Antonoff has had an indelible impact on the music industry over the past decade, with a distinct production style that has shaped the sound of modern pop.

In Midnights, Antonoff brings his synths, horns and percussion, combining Swift’s lyrics with a heavy and upbeat production style. Antonoff and Swift are a killer collaboration and their partnership is a major add-on to Midnights, a concept album. Antonoff’s style creates a sonically cohesive work reminiscent of Swift’s past pop albums ‘Reputation’ and ‘1989’ but distinctive enough to stand on its own. However, with Antonoff’s easily recognizable production style, “Midnights” feels a little repetitive at times, losing the varied sound that typically characterizes Swift albums. While Antonoff helped Swift craft a tour-ready album, the work’s overbearing production can be overwhelming and indicates Swift’s need to collaborate with a wider variety of producers on future projects.

While “Midnights” marks Swift’s departure from the independent albums that dominated the later years of her career, Swift’s heartbreaking lyrics and bridges remain. It’s obvious that Swift has filled “Midnights” with some of her most vulnerable work to date, discussing her own career and past relationships and analyzing the accusations thrown at her throughout her fame.

One of the best examples of this is found in “Anti-Hero”. “Anti-Hero” is an excruciatingly catchy song, which debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard charts. The song is about Swift’s self-loathing and relationship struggles, with a chorus that echoes one of the most common claims tabloids have made about her in the past, that she’s the ‘problem’. ” in her failed friendships and relationships and the only one to blame. his stormy public persona. She addresses another common attack in “Mastermind”, the album’s closing song. Throughout her career, she was often accused of being “in cold blood and calculated,” using others as pawns as she strives to advance in her career. In this, she admits that despite the “hopeless romantic” personality with which she fills her music, she is “enigmatic and Machivelian” in her personal relationships, desperate for others’ approval and willing to do anything to make it happen. In a deeply vulnerable bridge, Swift sings that she’s been “plotting like a criminal ever since/to make them love [her] and make it look so easy,” a rare break from his carefully crafted public image. The vulnerability continues in “You’re on Your Own, Kid,” a story of his emotional journey to self-discovery as an adult. The song moves from a straightforward production style in the first verse to an exuberant alt-pop bridge, mimicking Swift’s own growth throughout her career. “You’re On Your Own, Kid” features Swift at her best, deftly crafting an immersive story of her past and lessons learned, as the song’s tone shifts from lonely to hopeful, leading the listener to his side throughout the journey.

Beyond Swift’s musings on her own relationship with audiences and the people around her, songs like “Lavender Haze,” “Midnight Rain” and “Maroon” show Swift’s mastery of songwriting on romantic relationships that are just vulnerable enough to bring real emotion to a track, but vague enough to allow any listener to relate to their music. In “Midnight Rain,” Swift sings about young love, describing an early relationship she sacrificed for the sake of her own career. It’s the kind of thoughtful “what if” song that reminds listeners of lost opportunities and missed opportunities, a song that resonates with anyone who has made the decision to leave someone behind. On the same reflective theme, “Maroon” is a story of lost love, reminiscent of Swift’s “1989” album and the emotionally intense relationships that inspired it. On an album filled with contemplative reflections, “Maroon” showcases Swift’s range, representing the anger and bitterness that can come from the end of a relationship. However, while “Midnight Rain” and “Maroon” may represent lost love, “Lavender Haze” is a blossoming celebration of Swift’s current relationship with actor Joe Alwyn. The album’s opening track, “Lavender Haze,” arrives with a crushing bass that permeates the song, heralding Swift’s true return to pop music. It focuses on the struggles of love and the protective bubble that a supportive relationship provides, despite the ever-present pressure of the public eye.

Another point of pop perfection is “Bejeweled,” which is pure self-confidence, offsetting some of the more depressing work on the album. Swift also showcases her hit abilities in “Question…?”, a distinctly catchy breakup song summarizing the questions one might think of asking a former ex while reflecting on the relationship. “Karma” follows a similar pattern, with a chorus that will get stuck in your head and plenty of metaphors happily depicting themes of success and achievement. However, where there are ups, there are downs, like “Vigilante Shit,” a song that sounds like a “reputation” rejection that should have stayed in the vault. With lyrics that painfully remind you that Swift is, in fact, a millennial, “Vigilante Shit” is a girlboss song that feels out of place on an album with so many songs that balance the most heavily produced sound with emotionally complex lyrics in a way that “Vigilante Shit” fails to do. Despite this misstep, “Midnights” shows just how strong Swift’s pop albums can be, even after her brief flirtation with indie acoustics.