1. Last Christmas
My rating: 4/5 Good
Well, the album doesn't start with one of the best songs, like usual. That's alright. It's still a good song, just less of a standout. I like Last Christmas, but this cover feels somewhat forgettable. Covers are harder to enjoy, especially when they don't do much different from the original. Although this is obviously a completely different style, it still doesn't do much that's unique. I think I like Ariana Grande's cover better than this cover. But don't worry, there are great songs ahead...
2. Christmases When You Were Mine
My rating: 5/5 Great
Yes! I love this song! This has got to be at least one of my top 50 favorite songs of Taylor's entire discography, if not top 30. Unpopular opinion: this is actually Taylor Swift's saddest breakup song. Yep, even sadder than All Too Well, sadder than Dear John, sadder than Last Kiss. Christmases When You Were Mine is the ultimate Taylor song to cry to. The emotion here is so raw. The lyrics are beautifully written, especially considering she wrote it while she was still in her unpolished teenage country era. It covers every stage of their breakup over the holidays: anger, reflection, loneliness, seeing through another person's eyes, overwhelmingness, jealousy, hiding emotions, wondering how an ex-love is doing, and the expected happiness of the holiday season adding to the raw emotion. Unlike some holiday ballads, this actually succeeds in having a balance of Christmas references and atmosphere with the storyline of the breakup. This song parallels another song I love from Taylor, The Moment I Knew. They're both about a similar thing - wishing you could be with who you love over the holidays and feeling lonely. I know this is an EP and not a main album, and that Taylor didn't make this much of a thing yet, but this maybe should've been track 5. But I guess the song that's track 5 on here right now would've maybe been my second choice for it. Overall, if it's the holiday season and you like sad songs, I highly recommend this.
3. Santa Baby
My rating: 5/5 Great
...aaaaaaaaand now we get essentially the polar opposite of that last song. Although Laufey's cover comes close, this is still my favorite cover of Santa Baby. This cover makes me crave more Taylor Swift jazz! I know this song isn't necessarily considered jazz, but it's just about the closest Taylor Swift has come to jazz other than maybe False God or the alternate version of Christmas Tree Farm. The production is super cool and fits Taylor's sound surprisingly well even though it's a style she doesn't come back to much. Also, I know Taylor didn't write the lyrics, but I still like them either way. I think the concept of a crush on Santa fits Taylor well even in her early era. And Taylor sounds great in this - she actually has a voice that would lend itself so well to jazz. I really need a 10 minute version of just that last "TOOOOOONIIIIIGHT", it's fantastic. So yeah, it's an awesome song. I want Taylor to release some more songs that sound like this on her 12th album.
4. Silent Night
My rating: 5/5 Great
A lot of people, including Swifties, seem to hate this cover. I guess I see why it doesn't fit a lot of people's tastes, but I love it. She used the original lyrics of Silent Night but completely changed the melody and country-fied the whole production. And it's beautiful. It starts as an acoustic CWYWM-like country song with just quiet vocals whispered over a sparse guitar line, but evolves in such a nice way, and the ending with the swelling bells and strings is amazing. I'm so glad Taylor included this song, even if I'm the only person in the universe who unironically enjoys it.
5. Christmas Must Be Something More
My rating: 4/5 Good
Okay, we've arrived at track 5 of the EP. I think it would make much more sense to have CWYWM as track 5, but as I said earlier, I know she probably wasn't really thinking about that because of a combination of still being early in her career and this not being a full album. I guess I could see why this could be an intentional track 5 though. It's about... well, I think the title explains it all. Yes, it's that same message that's been done to death in holiday media, but it's done pretty well here. The verses, although repetitive, actually have some pretty clever lyrics. I do think the chorus says "something" way too much though, and it's ultimately not the most interesting thing ever. I still like it a lot better than most people do.
6. White Christmas
My rating: 5/5 Great
Interestingly, this is the second time in a row I've reviewed a Christmas EP that ends with a cover of White Christmas. This cover, while not quite as great as Sabrina's "synth jazz" cover, is still one of the best covers I've heard of this song. I never thought I needed a country version of a holiday classic... and I got four of them. While not the best of the bunch by any means, the way the country instrumentation blends with the festive bells sounds wonderful. Sure, it's nothing too special, just a generic country cover of a Christmas song, but it's still a great way to close out this album.
Conclusion
Overall album rating: 93% (Great Album)
I think this is my favorite Christmas album, which is not surprising considering it's by one of my favorite artists. I highly recommend if you're looking for a Christmas album with a distinct sound.
Favorite songs: Christmases When You Were Mine, Santa Baby
"Least" favorite songs: Last Christmas, Christmas Must Be Something More
That's all for now! Byeeeeeeeeee!
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