Synth-pop beats and lyrically crowded songs mark Swift as a musical innovator — for better or for worse

By ELIZABETH WOODHALL — arts@theaggie.org 

Taylor Swift released “The Tortured Poets Department” on April 19 at 12 a.m. EST, following soon after with an anthology of 15 songs at 2 a.m. EST. The anticipation had been amping up for fans worldwide as she announced this album on Feb. 5 — barely two months before she was set to release the album. 

Swift hasn’t been a stranger from the spotlight these past few years, between releasing one of the all-time top-grossing albums ever with “Midnights” and her whirlwind romance with Travis Kelce, an NFL football player for the Kansas City Chiefs. On top of that, just a few shows into her worldwide stadium tour the news broke that she had separated from long-time boyfriend Joe Alwyn, and quickly found herself in the tabloids as she struck up a new relationship with Matty Healy, the frontman of English band The 1975. She’s far gone from her “reputation” days of exile and confinement, a time when, despite fans speculating that Swift would directly address her disappearance, she instead crafted an album that talked about love, deception and forbidden relationships. 

Surprisingly enough, “The Tortured Poets Department” does a great deal in addressing the public’s opinion of who she is and who she should date. Swift is known for continuously transitioning between genres in the name of remaining innovative and groundbreaking. Jumping from indie albums like “folklore” and “evermore” to the synth-pop “Midnights” is a leap that not all artists would survive and land on their feet — but that’s the enchanting nature of this pop star. 

“Fortnight (feat. Post Malone)” is the first track and leading single of the album. It’s slow, and retains the lyrical ambiguities and intricate self-referential lyrics of “folklore” and “evermore,’ but the beat is now synth-pop — a sound reminiscent of “Midnights.” 

Combining aspects of two eras that brought her back onto the scene is not an unusual technique for Swift to employ — but it falls short of her greatest works. The track “The Tortured Poets Department” confirms its muse: Healy, with reference to him being a “tattooed golden retriever.” This track starts with referencing marriage, a topic which was allegedly part of the rift between Swift and Alwyn. In the song, someone grabs Swift’s ring and “put[s] it on the one people put wedding rings on.” 

Fans can suspect that Alwyn is also mentioned in “My Boy Only Breaks His Favorite Toys,” where she elaborates on the breakdown of their relationship and the dissembling of Swift — attributing herself doll parts that he takes apart and keeps the “tortured hearts.” This track is more upbeat than the past two as well. 

The track “Down Bad” talks about feeling physically and emotionally abandoned. The concept of being “down bad” insinuates that the passionate feelings she holds for this person are unrequited. 

The next track, “So Long, London,” is speculated to be about Alwyn — someone whom she frequently resided in London with. This track speaks to the relationship that had once been seen as a perfect match. Who could think otherwise when “reputation” and “Lover” shadowed the narrative — and the truth? 

“So Long, London” is reminiscent of “Down Bad’s themes of abandonment and holding on past the finish point. She is trying her hardest to keep them close together — “Pulled him in tighter each time he was driftin’ away / My spine split from carrying us up the hill” — but he is already gone. Despite this ending, she still exists in everything he does: “I founded the club she’s heard great things about,” referencing Alwyn’s interview where he shared that he, Paul Mescal and Andrew Scott were all in a group chat called “Tortured Man Club.” It wouldn’t be a stretch to think that Swift mentions that club through her album title. We’ve had similar instances of these seemingly obvious references to past love, such as in “Dear John” and “Style.” 

“But Daddy I Love Him” is a commentary on the public’s outrage where she claims that, “These people only raise you to cage you.” There is visual imagery of a wedding happening, something that she’s always wanted: “They slammed the door on my whole world / the one thing I wanted.” She goes on to call this uproar “bitchin’ and moanin’” and seems to poke fun at this criticism by making a joke about “having his baby” — she’s not, but she’d love to see their faces as they reacted to that line. “Fresh Out the Slammer” hints that Healy served as a rebound for her relationship with Alwyn. “Florida!!! (feat. Florence + The Machine)” has beautiful vocals from Florence and Swift, referencing crime and drugs, escaping responsibilities by leaving to Florida. Despite the ambiguities, the track stands strong because of its vocals and beat build-up. 

“Who’s Afraid of Little Old Me?” fights against this assumption that Swift is powerless against rumors and controversies. Perhaps her silence about most scandals and breakups has laced this narrative — but she’s saying that she has more power than people think. To say that she is “little” but that they “should be” afraid of her shows the cultural impact she has —- even when her reputation is tainted. 

“I Can Do It With a Broken Heart” talks about Swift’s triumphant tour as she’s experiencing various heartbreaks. A time that is filled with success in her career is also shadowed by her personal life and the collapse of the relationships she thought were going to last. “The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived” allegedly is about Healy, as she says that he tried to buy pills “from a friend of a friend.” Healy has been accused of dealing with drug abuse, as well. Listeners gain insight into what led to the end of their relationship: ghosting, inflated public image and disappearance when things got hard.

 “The Alchemy” is filled with football metaphors —- “touchdown,” “winning streak” —- seemingly referencing Kelce throughout the track. It’s one of her most slow-beat romance songs, and it does not really stand out beyond this relationship plastered across all gossip magazines.

The final track before entering the extended version of the album, “Clara Bow,” talks about making it in the industry. It’s something that she’s mastered, but it’s not easy to be competing against other artists fighting to take her throne. In the end, she views what sometimes feels like fading stardom and urges other artists to be careful of what the media wants. They’ll be glad that people are saying they have an “edge” against other artists, and enjoy the reviews saying their future looks “dazzling” because of it —- but this won’t last forever. 

“The Tortured Poets Department” is an album that’s filled with everything fans love about Swift, coupled with genuine and beautifully crafted songwriting. Despite this, there are times when these songs went on longer than they should’ve. Some lyrics go in the book of memorable lyrics by Swift — others induce confusion and perhaps a shake of the head. This album gives Swift an edge by responding to the public and taking over her narrative, calling out past relationships and setting the record straight.

 Fans are already raving about it online while others are expressing their concern that this record is too similar — or different — from her past work. Swift’s lyricism is what makes her such a good artist, and with songs that seem to be crowded with metaphors and allusions, it’s an album that places the artist dangerously close to a new genre of music that her fans might struggle to get into. Nonetheless, it’s an album that will get you through heartbreak or make you feel on top of the world. As always, Swift makes music for anyone going through the various stages of life. 

Written by: Elizabeth Woodhall  — arts@theaggie.org 

This A24 film will make you question the unimaginable boundaries of love and violence 

By INDRANIL BASU — arts@theaggie.org

“Love Lies Bleeding” is a 2024 romantic thriller film directed by English filmmaker and screenwriter Rose Glass, co-written by her and Weronika Tofilska. Glass’ second feature film after “Saint Maud” (2019) is a co-production between the United Kingdom and the United States, developed by A24 and Film4. It had its world premiere in the Midnight section at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival on Jan. 20 and was released in the U.S. last month on March 8 to mostly positive reviews. 

The ASUCD Entertainment Council held a free screening of the film on campus on April 11 at Cruess Hall. They advertised the film on Instagram as “a shocking Stranger Things turned vecna-gymbro-monster” flick, which is pretty accurate. The theater of room 1002 was quite filled, with a lot of queer and/or sapphic students showing up for the film with great anticipation, making the experience even more exciting and communal.

Set in a small town in New Mexico in 1989, the film tells the story of Lou, an introverted gym manager, played by queer icon Kristen Stewart, who falls in love with Jackie, an itinerant, buff bodybuilder, played by Katy O’Brian in her first lead role. 

Lou is a butch lesbian with the aesthetic of a contemporary teenage boy, whereas Jackie is a more androgynous bisexual, both depicted aptly through their costumes designed by Olga Mill. 

Their sapphic love story starts with a series of steamy sex scenes which elicited great cheer from the audience. The filmmakers and actors are clearly authentic to the sapphism of the film, the camera framing them with empathy and capturing the affectionate intimacy in their lust. The script gives them vulnerability and space to talk about each other’s bodies, which, coupled with the sex scenes, makes them more cherished, beautiful and organic. 

The film follows several canon events of sapphic relationships with its own twists, making the queer audience identify and respond to them yet shocking them at each turn of the story. It appears to be a small-town love story — especially with the setting of Lou’s small apartment, the constricted men-dominated gym and the contrast of Jackie’s immediate aspirations with Lou’s reclusiveness. It’s not until Lou’s sister’s hospitalization due to extreme domestic violence that Jackie is sucked into Lou’s family’s harrowing criminal affairs.

The film has brilliant cinematography by Ben Fordesman, editing by Mark Towns and a palpable score by Clint Mansell, which together intensify the story considerably beyond its plot.

Ed Harris as Lou Sr., Lou’s estranged father and weaponry crime lord, looks more formidable than Voldemort, even without any special effects makeup. Jena Malone as Beth, Lou’s sister as the tragic victim of domestic violence, Anna Baryshnikov as Daisy, a femme sapphic who pursues an irritatingly one-sided love interest in Lou and Dave Franco as J.J., Beth’s husband and the insidious-looking perpetrator, deliver equally brilliant performances. 

The writers do a genius job of characterizing each and every role as people we might know in real life but capable of unimaginable harm, making them all the more monstrous and surprising to the audience. Their complexity makes the film narratively rich and deeply thrilling.

Although it does place love at its core, the film turns violently from its genre of romance into that of thriller, jolting the audiences and subverting their expectations of what this thriller would deliver. In their signature style, A24 brings the flavor of independent cinema with its niche story (or rather niche twist on a popular plot), strong aesthetics and convention-defying narratives. 

As the film went on, its “lying” twists and “bleeding” turns made the audiences cry out versions of “what the hell is happening?” The film’s many close-up shots of bloody and violent gore or surreal body horror contrast with the sequences of starry night skies of the New Mexican landscape, shots of cuddling and making breakfast for one’s lover. The film ultimately triumphs in its surreal euphoric return to sapphic love despite violence.

This is the question the film seems to explore: what is love? What are its boundaries? And what happens when those are tested by such violence? Along with dilemmas of family, romantic relationships and their transgressive violations, the film is as entertaining, weirdly cathartic and mythological as it is complicated and murky. It definitely left everyone at the screening wondering what to make of it or even where to start processing what they saw.

For watchers, leaning into the movie’s sapphism and not personally questioning its narrative until later is probably the best way to approach this genre-defying film. “Love Lies Bleeding” is playing in theaters now.

Written by: Indranil Basu — arts@theaggie.org 

Art workshops, festivals and other events to work into your spring quarter

By LORENA ALVAREZ — arts@theaggie.org 

Davis artists and UC Davis organizations are bringing art to life through free community events, bringing people together for a greater appreciation of artwork and representation.

 The Artery, an art co-op located at 207 G St., is celebrating its 50th anniversary by holding free monthly art events sponsored by the city. According to Brigitte Chertok, an artist and one of three of The Artery’s co-managers, these art events will take place on the last Sunday of each month.

Chertok noted the co-op and the Arts and Cultural Affairs program’s attempts to transform G Street into an artistic and community-based environment.

“G Street is mostly bars and restaurants,” Chertok said. “So you really have to attract people to The Artery [an art store and gallery], especially now that G Street is closed to vehicles. Since the city is trying to bring people to G Street for more than just drinking, they encouraged me to apply for a grant so I could host monthly events outside The Artery.” 

Chertok went on to describe what attendees can expect from The Artery’s first event, “Clay Fun,” on April 28 from 12 to 4 p.m.

“If [attendees] build something and they want to go home with it, they’re welcome to take their art,” Chertok said. “They are welcome and encouraged to participate in making the big sculpture, but the group sculpture will stay in the store so we can fire it. The goal for the monthly events is to make something simple that everybody can enjoy and go home with.”

Chertok emphasizes the community’s involvement by noting the organization’s interest in hiring volunteers. 

“I may be looking for student helpers who are art-oriented for future events, helpers will be paid minimum wage,” Chertok said. “People hoping to volunteer can contact us and give us their names, and we will call them if we are hiring for that month’s event.”

Less than a week after The Artery’s community building and publicity event, La Familia will be hosting their first Queer Quinceañera on May 4 at 7 p.m. at the Student Cross-Cultural Center (SCC), multi-purpose room. 

Bianca Alvarado, La Familia’s co-president and a fourth-year English and Chicana/o (CHI) studies double-major, shared the event’s theme.

“Our theme is ‘Flores de Mayo’,” Alvarado said. “We’re trying to make [the event] inclusive of different identities. We want whoever attends to feel comfortable with their identity and safe enough to express it.”

Alvarado continued to note the immense support La Familia has received from organizations that play a big role in Queer Latine’s intersecting identities. 

“We’ve reached out to different organizations,” Alvarado said. “El Centro and the LGBTQIA+ center have funded [the event]. We are now in the works of asking the CHI department, who got back to us trying to gauge how much money we need.”

Expanding on the flier’s advertisement of “una noche de música, flores, baile, y drag performances,” Alvarado shared the value of hosting such an artistic and inclusive event. 

“The work that we’ve been doing this year is to create an archive of our existence on campus,” Alvarado said. “We go through so many difficulties pursuing higher education [as Queer Latines] which kind of limits us from fully enjoying this academic experience. [Through events like our Queer Quince, we are trying to] contribute in creating more paths for future generations to look back and see, ‘Oh, this is what they were doing and how they were celebrating it.’ We are making sure that we are taking up the space that we rightfully deserve.”

Another event that has been generating excitement for students and community members alike is the Whole Earth Festival (WEF). Emma Mele, a fourth-year environmental policy analysis and planning major and the co-director of WEF, noted the upcoming festival happening over Mother’s Day weekend and its roots. 

“It started out as an art class project, called ‘art happening,’” Mele said. “And then they put it on the quad and it expanded slowly. It stemmed from art and activism, and that came hand in hand with sustainability.”

Mele furthered on how WEF plans to transform the Quad this May 10 to 12. 

“The whole quad will be lined with craft vendors, food vendors, student vendors and two domes,” Mele said. “We have a bunch of activities for kids and service booths where they can braid your hair and do henna. The list goes on and on. We also have an education space. We’re trying to make sure that that space is really highlighted with everything going on in the world and climate change.”

These events embody the shift from gloomy weather to a time of growth and new beginnings that the spring weather embraces. Each event provides a space for joy and relaxation away from academics, emphasizing the importance of the communities’ identities as artists and people in Davis.

Written by: Lorena Alvarez  — arts@theaggie.org 

The Bay Area artist discusses the methods and meaning behind her sustainable practice 

By SAVANNAH ANNO — arts@theaggie.org

In between the top and bottom floors of the Pence Gallery, visitors can find the Stairway Display. Engaging patrons with art even on their journey from one story to another, the transitional exhibit features a different local or regional artist each month. 

On March 1, the gallery debuted the work of San Francisco-based artist Bussie Parker Kehoe. Her solo exhibit, “Lucky Seven,” highlights the range of possibilities that a sustainable art practice can inspire. 

Kehoe, a mixed-media artist, utilizes discarded house paint to create her pieces. Intricate and kaleidoscopic, Kehoe dries and then layers paint to create a range of shapes, patterns and textures. Arranged and glued onto wood panels, Kehoe’s work jumps off the stairway wall directly into the eyeline of visitors. 

In her “Lucky Seven” series, Kehoe tested the limits of her creativity by setting up parameters. She had to create seven pieces, each manipulating the dried paint in a different way while only using seven colors, hence the exhibit’s name. 

“I like to be a little surprised with the final product,” Kehoe said. “This series allowed me to consider and enjoy my unusual process.” 

The unusual process she refers to came to exist in a moment of serendipity. Kehoe became inspired while creating her earlier pieces, pouring acrylic paint onto paper. 

“The short story is that I discovered my process by accident,” Kehoe said. “I had errant paint drops that landed on the plastic sheeting covering the floor. Once dried, I could peel them off the plastic and play with them. That’s when I started to work entirely with poured paint skins.”

In “Lucky Seven,” Kehoe showcases the variety of ways in which she can shape and layer her paint skins. Some pieces — square-shaped and layered in geometric patterns — resemble Bojagi, a type of Korean textile technique that reminds Kehoe of her childhood. Other paint skins take on more of a rounded, flower petal shape, layered almost like CD discs or fish scales. 

Mainly made up of warm pinks, oranges and yellows, the pieces within “Lucky Seven” remain consistent through color despite their varying textures. 

Similar to the origin story of her process, Kehoe stumbles upon her colors by chance. Each can of house paint she receives is through donation. Within less than three years, Kehoe has acquired at least 50 gallons of old paint, all from the San Francisco area.

Known for being difficult to get rid of, Kehoe provides a solution to San Francisco residents who don’t have the time or don’t know where to take their house paint for proper disposal. When disposed of improperly — thrown in the trash or put down the drain — exposure to paint chemicals can cause both environmental contamination and health issues. 

“I switched to upcycled house paint in an effort to have a more sustainable practice,” Kehoe said. “I saw an unlimited supply that I could use and keep out of landfills. I also have a soft spot for things that are unwanted. Strangely, I felt sorry for those dusty old cans.” 

Not only does the use of recycled materials make for a more sustainable way of creation, but for additional meaning. Each small piece of paint Kehoe uses was once purchased for a completely different use, possibly intended to cover a bedroom wall, a garden fence or the outside of someone’s home. 

In her work, these short histories collide, layered on top of each other to reflect Kehoe’s own life and feelings. Climbing the stairs of the Pence Gallery, each work within “Lucky Seven” builds on the last, coming together to support each other; the shared meaning is a purposeful decision on Kehoe’s part.

“[I] intentionally place each dried paint peel so that it connects to the others surrounding it, which is directly related to my own life experience of moving and searching for those connections and support,” Kehoe wrote in her artist statement. 

Living on both sides of the country and transitioning from a career in North Carolina to one in San Francisco, the diversity of her designs plays into the way Kehoe views not only her own experience but a larger idea of adaptation. Similar to the way her house paint changes forms to create something new, so does Kehoe. 

“Chaos and order are inherent in this process,” Kehoe wrote. “It reflects life, where you take what life throws at you and try to make sense of it.” 

Written by: Savannah Anno — arts@theaggie.org