joy.inthe.bridge

joy.inthe.bridge reviewed The Life of a Showgirl: The Encore by Taylor Swift 5h

10

BUT WAIT - THERE’S MORE?! — I already loved The Life of a Showgirl, but these four new songs??? Taylor, what the fuck. Patient Zero hooked me immediately. It’s catchy as hell, the lyrics hit, and the violins remind me SO much of “Wait for Me” from Hadestown that I was basically doomed from the start. Cleveland! is Taylor basically saying, “You can find me insufferable. That’s fine. I found someone who loves me.” And I LOVE that energy. I want that confidence. 😂 Pink Clouding is where I started going HOW DOES HER BRAIN WORK??? The way she uses pink clouding and grey rocking as metaphors is SO GOOD. Taylor Swift, please let me observe your songwriting process. And Babylon feels like early Taylor country vibes with current Taylor songwriting. Nostalgic, introspective, beautiful, and absolutely going on my future travel posts. 😂 BUT HERE’S THE THING THAT BROKE MY BRAIN: I listened to “The Life of a Showgirl” and let it transition directly into “Patient Zero” because I wanted to see whether these songs actually felt like an encore. THEY DO. The end of “The Life of a Showgirl” already feels like the end of the show. Goodnight, everyone! Curtain closed! It’s over! And then the violins of Patient Zero start. Oh. IT ISN’T OVER. THAT’S THE ENCORE. It doesn’t feel like four bonus tracks randomly added onto an album. It genuinely feels like the show ended and then the music started again. I’m obsessed. I called Grace immediately because I needed another person to experience this with me, and now we’re both in awe. Taylor Alison Swift, I need to inspect your brain.

joy.inthe.bridge reviewed Bass Persuades by Miley Cyrus 19h

6.0

Not Every Miley Album Can Be Bangerz — There are definitely things I liked about this album, but overall it just wasn’t really my vibe. Orbit and Let’s Get Married were easily my favorites, and most of the other songs were good but didn’t really stick with me. Neon Signs was the exception because I actively did not like that one. 😂 Favorite Tracks: Orbit & Let’s Get Married Meh Tracks: Bass Persuades & Different Religion Track I absolutely hated: Neon Signs.

joy.inthe.bridge reviewed WILDCHILD by Alex Warren 3w

10

Hi. I Have a Love-Hate Relationship With Alex Warren. — Apparently Alex Warren decided I needed to experience every human emotion over the course of one album. First of all, his VOICE. The only way my brain knows how to describe it is hot chocolate made with milk instead of water. It’s smooth and thick and warm and cozy, and yes, that is a weird fucking analogy, but listen to him and tell me I’m wrong. “Cry Wolf” was the immediate standout and probably my favorite on the album. “Why would I try to ruin your life when you’re doing it by yourself?” SIR??? Basically that entire song could go under favorite lyrics. Then “Are You Having Fun, Alex?” had me actually crying, and finding out the story behind it made it approximately 700 times worse. “Only Thing Left” came along immediately ready to cause a completely different category of emotional damage. Then somehow we’re dancing to “Fever Dream.” Then “Won’t Go Back Again” has me wanting to punch a pillow and scream into the void. So apparently the listening experience is: crying on the floor → dancing → screaming into the void. Even “A Fine Place to Die,” which I’d already heard quite a bit before the album came out, doesn’t feel stale or overplayed. It still fits beautifully here. This album is warm, angry, heartbreaking, cathartic, and ridiculously easy to listen to. Alex Warren can make me cry, make me dance, and make me want to fight someone within the span of a few tracks. Also, someone on here gave this two stars and I just need to know: did we listen to the same album??? Favorites: Cry Wolf, Won’t Go Back Again, Only Thing Left, A Fine Place to Die Favorite lyric: “Why would I try to ruin your life when you’re doing it by yourself?”

joy.inthe.bridge reviewed Forever Now by Switchfoot 3mo

10

Jon Foreman, You Menace — I don’t even know what to say. I listen to a lot of music, and it’s rare that an album leaves me genuinely speechless, but Forever Now did exactly that. Jon Foreman has always been one of my favorite lyricists, and somehow he continues to outdo himself. Every song wrestles with a different question about faith, humanity, doubt, hope, and what Christianity is called to be while honestly acknowledging what it so often is. Every lyric feels purposeful, every metaphor lands, and every song has something meaningful to say. I have no notes. Seriously. Even the one song that feels like a musical outlier still fits perfectly because of what it contributes to the album’s message. I can’t pick a favorite because every track stands on its own for a different reason. This is the kind of album that reminds me why I love music in the first place. Jon Foreman has ruined me once again. Favorite Tracks: The Entire Album Favorite Lines: “Open my eyes to see // I don’t have what I want // but I have what I need.” - Beautiful Life (Track 3) “Fade Away // Nothing that I hold is mine // From Dust to Dust // Love and only love survives // These natural causes.” - Natural Causes (Track 5) “Faces of politicians // Blamed for all our decisions // Try to point the finger // But the rest of the digits linger on me // The same blood.” - Same Blood (Track 7)