Did you stay up until 12AM for Midnights? The album Midnights was a rollercoaster of emotions, and the critics seem to think the same thing!

The subtle melodies of Midnights take time to sink their claws in. But Swift’s feline vocal stealth and assured lyrical control ensure she keeps your attention. Turn the lights off and let these songs prowl around you. Just don’t expect their meanings to settle too biddably into your lap. Swift’s always as elusive as she is allusive.

The Independent

As Swift has re-recorded her previous albums, it’s clear slipping back into her past self has unlocked something brilliant and fresh in her songwriting. Midnights may come as a surprise to the most newly turned fans of her music, those who only learned to like her songwriting when it came in the traditionally respectable Folklore/Evermore package. But like many of her purely “pop” releases in the past, Midnights leaves more and more to be uncovered beneath the purple-blue synth fog on the surface. And maybe that’s part of her scheme to begin with.

Rolling Stone

As a diary entry, defined by dark nights of the soul and cast in the same bluish-purple hues, ‘Midnights’ offers little of revelatory purpose to those who have yet to succumb to Swift’s charms. For those already swayed by her craft, however, it may reasonably go on to be recognised as her best album to date, a reminder that magic prevails beyond the frustrations, fantasies and damnations she casts across her latest near-perfect body of work.

Clash Music

It’s an album that’s cool, collected and mature. It’s also packed with fantastic songs and at a slight remove from everything else currently happening in pop’s upper echelons. As ever, you wouldn’t like to predict what Taylor Swift will do next, but what she’s doing at the moment is very good indeed.

The Guardian

Swift fans will love this album, which offers an array of insights into their heroine crafted as clever pop songs. Yet it also suggests an artist betwixt and between, uncertain whether to press deeper into intimate songcraft or restart a commercial juggernaut. 

The Telegraph

And while she’s known for narrative-driven songwriting, ‘Midnights’ could possibly see Swift at her most candid, taking us through the sorts of revelations that only come to light – or can be vocalised – in the wee hours.

NME

It’s her take on glassy and splashy poptronica. But as ever, Swift’s lyrics can still cut like glass or cast a spell. No matter what era she’s in, it’s the stories—more than anything else—that will always work the hardest. That’s why Taylor Swift is pop royalty. When she tells you she’s a mastermind, believe her.

Paste Magazine

Swift’s place in popular music continues to be larger than life, and that status will likely be reflected with the commercial performance of the most anticipated album release of the fall. But on Midnights, Swift shrinks the scale, and pinpoints the humanity that has made her such a beloved storyteller. She didn’t need to capture those long nights, but that insomnia has made her discography, and legacy, all the richer.

Billboard