Taylor Swift has written and recorded the year's best and most exciting pop album

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Yeah, that was the CMAs. She did sound pretty good.

It was cool, too, because she played a non-album track ("Ours") that probably the majority of viewers had never even heard before.
 
I'm pleased with her recent decision to go with straight hair. Now if she could just abolish the written script of her name from album covers and I'd be happy. I wish I could find it now but there was a great article I read a while back that outlined how a "script name" was an enormous industry visual cliche for artists appealing to an early teen female demographic. But the only two cases I can remember now are Britney Spears' first album and Miley Cyrus' Party in the USA cover:

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I'd like to see her own her own image. individuality! etc.
 
I read today that Taylor Swift has been cast as Eponine in the planned movie version of the Les Miserables musical.

I am extremely skeptical. Some of the productions have Eponine cast with an actress with a slightly more "pop" voice than some of the other characters, but ..... yeah. Extremely skeptical. No disrespect to her success and songwriting prowess. I don't know if she has the range to do it.*

If she fucks up On My Own, I will have her cute little head.





*but shit, Madonna impressed me in Evita; the vocal training she had for the role paid off in spades. I never would have thought she'd have had the range to pull that off.
 
corianderstem said:
*but shit, Madonna impressed me in Evita; the vocal training she had for the role paid off in spades. I never would have thought she'd have had the range to pull that off.

That would be great. Gotta say, one reason I haven't sought to see Taylor live in spite of digging most of her tunes is her vocal struggles on stage. Her voice is perfect for the kind of music she plays but it could be stronger.
 
they're definitely taking a risk putting her in the same production as someone freakishly talented like Hugh Jackman. but I do remember for SNL that she went all out bringing Harbaugh levels of enthusiasm to every sketch, so I don't doubt she'll commit whatever she has to do for the role.

thinking about it as a draft situation I wonder what the upside potential on a 22 year old singer's voice is in general.
 
Can't wait for the stirring moment when Jean Valjean pees his pants.
 
That's it, Spring Awakening. Maybe Lea did a Les Miz song on Glee (or somewhere else) once? I don't know, for some reason I'm making a random connection there.
 
Now I don't know a god damn thing about Les Miz. What is the character of Eponine like? What's her deal, is she a cool character? Big part?

I'm happy for Taylor, even though I don't give much of a shit about her acting career. If she thinks she can do both, more power to her. I just hope that it doesn't interfere at all with her prolific songwriting. (I doubt it will.) I just want that next album, really.

I'd like to stay away from cynicism on this. I'd like to think that this was not a casting based on star power, and that she actually went and wanted it and auditioned and really impressed the producers/casting directors and legitimately earned the role. Of course, she could have just thrown her hat in the ring and the studio wanted another marquee name so they picked her. But, I'll stick with the "She auditioned and knocked 'em dead!" storyline. It was a very coveted role, so yeah, I'd like to think they wouldn't just give it to somebody without seeing them prove their chops first.

Basically, I wouldn't underestimate her. I think most likely she'll do very well in the role, and I'm hoping it could even gain her more respect among some non-fans or skeptics.

Maybe even a Best Supporting Actress Academy Award!!!
 
That would be great. Gotta say, one reason I haven't sought to see Taylor live in spite of digging most of her tunes is her vocal struggles on stage. Her voice is perfect for the kind of music she plays but it could be stronger.

I haven't seen her live yet and, yeah, she certainly has shown off some less than perfect vocals on TV, but the word is that her live singing improved a great deal on her most recent world tour. She put out that live album, and it sounds good.

Still, she will never be known for her live singing. But, fuck it. Keep bringing them dope studio cuts.
 
Eponine is one of the three big female roles. Young Cosette (wouldn't be Taylor) has a big scene and a little song, and then she gets a huge song (On My Own) and a duet a little later on, and then reappears in the finale.

She's basically the 1800s French version of a street rat, running with a gang of thieves and general low-lives, friends with Marius, one of the male leads, and deeply in love with him, even though she's just a friend to him. That sort of thing.

I've been less than impressed seeing Taylor sing live on TV, but I can't knock her for that here, as she'd get oodles of time to record her bits in the studio. But maybe she's gotten much better, like GAF said. I can only hope she has - I felt awfully bad for her when she sang that duet with Stevie Nicks at the Grammys. That was painful.

Anyway, this is Eponine's big song, sung by Lea Salonga. (I love this version; I absolutely LOATHE the singer who originated the role on the London stage. Ugh, so whiny.)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GGx_z4v4484
 
That's it, Spring Awakening. Maybe Lea did a Les Miz song on Glee (or somewhere else) once? I don't know, for some reason I'm making a random connection there.

Oh, and yeah - on the YouTube page with the Lea Salonga version, there's a link to Lea M's version from Glee.
 
She's basically the 1800s French version of a street rat, running with a gang of thieves and general low-lives

Are you trying to kill me, cori? Are you trying to give me a heart attack?

That's the coolest fucking thing I've ever heard.

Taylor as an 1800s French street rat? I think I need a cigarette.
 
Ha!

Young Cosette (wouldn't be Taylor) has a big scene and a little song,

Oops. That's not Eponine's song, that's Cosette's. I even typed Cosette. So Eponine just has that big solo number, and the big duet, and a good bit as a trio with two other characters in the finale.
 
Watched that performance of "On My Own", and I've definitely heard that song a few times before. Good tune. I think she'll do it justice.

And looks like she's probably gonna have to dye her hair dark for this role. Awesome. She's pulled it off before... in the "You Belong With Me" video, and on sketches on SNL, and the cameo she made on CSI a few years back.

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Gaf, is there actually any basis in fact of her releasing a new album this year, or are you just optimistic?
 
Well, with no set release date, or album title, or anything like that, all we can really do is go on speculation and word of mouth. But yeah, it's supposed to come out late this year. Probably October or November. She did a radio interview with Ryan Seacrest a few months back and said she's already written 25 songs or something. She's posted pics on the Twitter of her in the studio making the new album, etc.

Plus, with the amount of albums she sells, I don't see her record label allowing her to go more than two years without putting out an album.

Here are the release dates of the first three albums:

October 24, 2006
November 11, 2008
October 25, 2010
 
I think Taylor mentioned in one of the big feature articles recently that she feels pretty comfortable with a 2 year album cycle as well. It was a little weird hearing when her tour wrapped up in November since I've grown accustomed to the typical U2 400 Country 8 Planet Super-Tours that last ages. But from the start of the Speak Now Tour in March to November, that's a decent length to hit the Pacific, Europe, and NA. So she'll have been off for a year by the time it's necessary for another big publicity push.

edit- actually, I wonder if she'd pull a J.lo and release the album at the same time as Les Miz.
 
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