Taylor Swift’s “Red”: Hear The Jangly Country Track

Sam Lansky | October 2, 2012 5:46 am

Taylor Swift‘s countdown to Red is in full swing, and the third new song to be released from her upcoming album (following single “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together” and last week’s promo single, “Begin Again”) is the title track, “Red.” Swift previewed the track on Good Morning America yesterday and the snippet didn’t do much for us — it sounded a little cluttered, and the chorus lyrics felt clumsy.

But Swift turned this one around, too, as the full version places the chorus in the context of some wordy lyrics that work surprisingly well together. In fact, in its likably goofy verbosity, “Red” might just turn out to be her very own “Ironic.” Listen to the song after the jump.

Twangy guitars and an aerobic beat provide a firm foundation to Swift’s wistful vocals, with production that evokes her earlier hit “Love Story.” But the lyrics are more aching and frustrated than any of those fairytale cliches: “Loving him is like driving a new Maserati down a dead end street,” she sings in the opening verse. “Faster than the wind, passionate as sin, ending so suddenly.”

Smartly, the country production is tempered by a modern stutter effect on her vocals in the chorus. It might not be dubstep, per se, but it gives a pop radio twist on a song that needed it.

“Red” is another exceptional showing from Swift’s new LP, which is shaping up to be one of the most deftly written albums of the year.

What do you think of Taylor’s new song? Let us know on Facebook and Twitter, then head over to Directlyrics.com to read the song’s full lyrics.

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