Taylor Swift - Red

So the little old girl with the guitar grew up pretty fast. What can now only be described as the biggest American success since McDonalds, Taylor Swift's fourth studio album racked up a mightily impressive 1.2 million first week sales, and sits comfortably behind Adele as the biggest selling album of the year. You could take something out of it being the most successful 2012 release, I guess. Therefore I should probably get around to reviewing it - at least before she puts out a rerelease or whatever all the kids are doing these days.

I never really cared much for her beyond You Belong With Me and Love Story - like the rest of the UK - until recently, I must admit. But for album #4, she's drafted in British support in the forms of Ed Sheeran and Snow Patrol's Gary Lightbody - whether her final nabbing of a UK top spot is thanks to this or other exposure remains to be seen.

She inducts us to her Red phase with some U2-borrowed riffs on 'State of Grace', a thoroughly middle of the road offering that's quickly forgotten in favour of meatier ones - such as the title track. There's a chance she'll alienate her core fanbase with metaphors like "driving a new Maserati down a dead-end street", but the chorus' extenuating syllables ensures it's at least memorable. 'Treacherous' would do well to take some notes - it's quintessential early Swift in its utter nonchalance. Almost as if reading that criticism, she drafts in hit songwriter Max Martin for the single 'I Knew You Were Trouble', a kind of sugary pop-rock corker that suddenly hops aboard the dubstep bandwagon for a curious chorus. The lasting effect is much like that of recent Kelly Clarkson efforts: a rather desperate attempt to appear relevant, and it's a bit of a shame because the rest of the song is full of potential. Long time collaborator Liz Rose (You Belong With Me, Teardrops on my Guitar) then returns for 'All Too Well', one of Swift's finest vocal performances sadly matched with uninspiring and slightly humdrum backing (think Clarko's Breakaway without the amazingness).

Martin and Shellback return for '22', a procrastination anthem that embraces youth, dancing and optimism with a worryingly Ke$ha vibe (even with added dialogue from Swift herself commenting on the lyrical situations) - overall though it's undeniably catchy, and at least fairly innocent (no sleaze here). The pop-ballad pattern here though begins to take its toll and just as every party seems to get going it's thoroughly dampened by the sappy sprinklers like 'I Still Do', because when followed by 'We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together' it's difficult to see a pattern other than a dismissal of an ex. It goes without saying, of course, that this particular lead single is one of the year's finest pop singles and probably her greatest to date. Effortlessly brilliant. She's guilty, however, of crossing the line between kitsch and cheesy, and the whole happy-ukelele nature of 'Stay Stay Stay' is just nauseating for me. It tellingly fails to hold up to the pretty, entwined vocals in the duet with Gary Lightbody on 'The Last Time'. She manages to keep up the quality and pace with the Jeff Bhasker (Beyonce's Party; fun.'s We Are Young) on 'Holy Ground', a stomping drumbeat surrounded with even more pleasant surprises.

Bhasker resurfaces on the pointedly less exciting 'The Lucky One' after a thoroughly dull 'Sad Beautiful Tragic' with a slower, less remarkable pace and by this stage of the album there's the strong sense that it's time to call it a day. Drafting in Ed Sheeran is seldom going to change my mind on that viewpoint, but the acoustic offering 'Everything Has Changed' has enough repetition and nice harmonies within it to reinvigorate something - it's not excellent, but it's sweet. The final tracks are much of the same - not the album's highlight, but 'Starlight' is cute enough to warrant attention, and the closer 'Begin Again' is one of her more heartfelt, simple and enjoyable ballads.

Could do with being about 5 tracks shorter (let's say axe Stay Stay Stay, Treacherous, I Still Do, The Lucky One and State of Grace), and - much like the rest of her discography - never really plumbs the depths of humanity but instead revels in teenage relationship drama, but otherwise a pretty enjoyable listen.

Rating: 7/10
Highlights: We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together, Begin Again, 22, The Last Time, Red, Holy Ground
Avoid: Stay Stay Stay, Sad Beautiful Tragic, Treacherous

Artwork Watch: HER LIPS ARE RED, LIKE THE ALBUM TITLE!
Up next: Icona Pop