Taylor Swift’s The Life of a Showgirl: The Encore Doubles Down on a Forgettable Era: Review

For a second I thought we were out of the woods (pun intended) with The Life of a Showgirl. But like any real girlboss, Taylor Swift always has more planned for us. The Life of a Showgirl: The Encore follows an onslaught of digital variants: the Acoustic Collection (including Alone in my Tower, Life is a Song, and Dressing Room Rehearsal versions), the Track by Track commentary version, the So Glamorous Cabaret version, and the So Punk on the Internet version. Each offered its own alternate takes of the original Showgirl songs. (Swifties created a spreadsheet to keep track.) Now, with The Encore, we’re getting a proper deluxe edition, featuring four new songs made with Max Martin and Shellback during what Swift described in an Instagram post as a state of “pure gratitude for [the fans’] exuberance for and celebration of the album we made.” Unfortunately, that rush of creativity brought on more of the same: a regurgitation of the album they were reveling in, with even more immaturity than its predecessor. It becomes clearer with every new release that Swift’s songwriting isn’t where it was even five years ago. It’s like she’s dumbing herself down, or maybe not trying as hard, becaus...