Singer-songwriter, Ryan Adams, best known for his solo career and work within the band Whiskeytown, has recently released Taylor Swift’s 1989 as his own. Adams has brought his own flair to Swift’s fifth studio album. He gives the pop record a completely different indie rock vibe.
Speaking of his inspiration, Adams says, “I had been listening to 1989 off and on, and I could hear what I thought was a sort of pain in there…Maybe I only just saw it that way, but I could hear the lyrics, and I thought, ‘There’s something in there, and I want to know how far it goes.”
Taking to his Los Angeles studio, Adams finished completely remastering the album in only three weeks. The singer emphasizes the more depressing aspects of Swift’s album. By slowing them down and recreating each song, Adams transforms pop beats like Welcome to New York and Shake It Off into something a bit more serious and heartfelt. It’s almost like he extracts the hidden pain from Swift’s work.
Ryan Adams speaks of the project as if it was therapeutic. “I’m a singer-songwriter diving into somebody’s work, which felt really liberating,” he says. “I had so much on my mind and so much in my heart and soul that, bizarrely, singing her songs on that record, I could let go even a little more than I have on my own stuff lately. Somehow, it let me say some stuff I really needed to say that I didn’t even know I needed to say.”
Check out Adams’ version of Bad Blood below and download the full album on iTunes today!
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9V-8VP5dnrQ&w=560&h=315]