Nearly a week ago, when Taylor Swift launched ‘The Tortured Poets Department’, a surge of fans rushed to make it the most-streamed album in a single day. With every social media user embarking on the frenzy with the album’s tracks, it has become a fan-favorite for most. Despite the fame and massive reception, enthusiasts have also met some unexpected reviews. The recent one came from an esteemed music influencer, whose concerns were less regarding her art and more regarding her collaboration choices with Jack Antonoff.

Swift, who has primarily written and produced the album with Antonoff and Aaron Dessner, faced criticisms that openly called her to part ways with the former for this particular reason.

In a recent installment of The Needle Drop podcast, Anthony Fantano reviewed Taylor Swift’s album 'The Tortured Poets Department' with some rather pointed criticisms. Fantano specifically singled out Swift's collaboration with Jack Antonoff on production, bluntly suggesting that she “needs to stop working with him”. Drawing comparisons to their previous work on 'Midnights,' which he claimed had too many “synth bits” and "overcooked vocals," Fantano remarked that the multiple instrumentations on the new album felt like crumbs from 'Midnights,' but in a much worse state.

The influencer added that it could be because Antonoff’s reliance on 80’s style for her tracks makes them sound backdated, labeling the content and the style as a definite “mismatch”. According to Fantano, several tracks throughout the record could have vibed better as country music or even if the pair had chosen some lively instruments with packed drums and strutting guitars like ‘Fearless’. He suggested that perhaps they should consider taking a "break," as he found their collaborative efforts on this album lacking and not as refreshing as they used to be. 

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Fantano, however, did not stop there as he got to further roots of why this album was not up to scratch.

The music influencer, Anthony Fantano, did not only criticize but delved much deeper into the pits for his critical stance. He acknowledged how this review might not sit well with Swifties, just like the one by Pitchfork. Stating the same, he simultaneously explained that fans could defend the album, saying it is “unfiltered” but it is also a problem that the album is overtly “unedited and unchallenged”.

Fantano referenced the lead track by Swift and Post Malone, ‘Fortnight’ to emphasize how the latter’s trademark did not work out in the song and perhaps, if it were any other collaborator, the result would not have been much different. He also pointed out tracks like ‘My Boy Only Breaks The Toys He Loves’ and ‘So Long, London’ to express how they lacked a cathartic sense since they only had “escalations” without a release. While his review surely took an about-turn from most critics this time, it is difficult to say whether that will affect the creative alliance in the future.

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What do you think about Anthony Fatano's suggestion for Taylor Swift to stop collaboration with Jack Antonoff? Let us know in the comments below!