On the edge of Folklorian woods, Swift drops second album this year

Taylor Swift just can’t stop writing songs. If there is somebody who has made use of the spare time that came as a surprise package with 2020, it would be the singer.  “I’m elated to tell you that my 9th studio album, and folklore’s sister record, will be out tonight at midnight eastern. It’s called evermore,” Taylor said in an Instagram post on Thursday.  

“To put it plainly, we just couldn’t stop writing songs. To try and put it more poetically, it feels like we were standing on the edge of the folklorian woods and had a choice: to turn and go back or to travel further into the forest of this music. We chose to wander deeper in.

Taylor Swift

After announcing Evermore, her ninth studio album on Thursday, the singer released it at midnight on December 11. She also unveiled the music video for the lead single, Willow that takes the Folklore‘s ‘Cardigan’ story forward.

“I have no idea what will come next. I have no idea about a lot of things these days and so I’ve clung to the one thing that keeps me connected to you all. That thing always has and always will be music. And may it continue, evermore. My new album evermore is out now (sic),” the singer wrote.

Swift produced the bestselling album Folklore in July, during the lockdown. Less than five months later, Swift has dropped the surprise 15-track album for her fans, just before her 31st birthday that falls on December 13.

“Ever since I was 13, I’ve been excited about turning 31 because it’s my lucky number backwards, which is why I wanted to surprise you with this now. You’ve all been so caring, supportive and thoughtful on my birthdays and so this time I thought I would give you something! I also know this holiday season will be a lonely one for most of us and if there are any of you out there who turn to music to cope with missing loved ones the way I do, this is for you. There are 15 tracks on the standard edition of evermore, but the deluxe physical edition will include two bonus tracks – “right where you left me” and “it’s time to go” ⌛️,” Swift wrote on Instagram.

No wonder, fans were gushing all over social media. Swift was compared to William Shakespeare, who wrote three of his classics in 1606, a year reeling in the aftermath of the Gunpowder Plot and also hit by the bubonic plague. Lovers of Swift’s music said that her music made the year 2020, marred by the pandemic, bearable.

Folklore has already earned five nominations at the 2021 Grammy Awards. Evermore includes tracks featuring HAIM, Bon Iver and The National. Swift also wrote that they ‘welcomed some new (and longtime) friends’ to work on the project as well.

She disclosed that the album also features two bonus tracks, Right Where You Left Me and It’s Time To Go that are available in the deluxe physical edition.

And you thought you’d baked enough breads this year?