With the release of her fifth album, “1989,” Taylor Swift has finally left her country roots behind for good, introducing it as her ‘first official pop record.’ Inspired by late 80’s pop, it features a throwback to an older, more experimental style while simultaneously managing to have its own unique, fresh sound. It contains a total of 13 songs-16 in total if the deluxe edition is purchased at Target. The deluxe edition also includes three voice memos in which Swift goes through the steps of her song-writing process, describing the inspiration behind songs and how they went from nothing to works of art with beats and melodies.

The album starts off with the catchy, upbeat “Welcome to New York,” a song about her move to a new place where she finally felt like she could be herself and find a fresh start. It’s followed by what is probably the snarkiest song on the album, “Blank Space.”  It’s a mocking of the way she’s portrayed in the media and a kick in the face to anyone who’s ever claimed she’s a clingy, desperate, boy crazy girl set on chasing down guys simply so she can find inspiration for songs. “Saw you there and I thought omigod look at that face, you look like my next mistake,” Swift sings teasingly, “Loves a game, wanna plaaaay?”

The rest of the tracks span an array of sounds and emotions, from the candid “Bad Blood” in which she recalls being betrayed by a friend she thought she could trust, to dark and mysterious “I Know Places,” which recalls her inability to escape the prying eyes of people in the media threatening to tear her relationships apart.

The 13^th track on the album, “Clean,” brings the album to a nostalgic yet optimistic ending, featuring heavy lyrics like “the water filled my lungs I screamed so loud but no one heard a thing,” and “I think that I’m finally clean.”

Like her previous albums, each of the songs are personal recollections of what her life has been like the past two years.  Her sound and songwriting have both matured and once again, as with her previous album “Red,” she seems to have developed her own individual style that stands out in contrast to what most people would consider pop music. As long as she continues to “make the moves up as she goes” and experiment while also staying true to her song writing, she should have no trouble topping the charts and winning people’s hearts in the future.