Taylor Swift is by no means a “serious” artist. She is a Top 40 musician. She comes up with simple, catchy tunes for the masses to swallow up without a second thought. Consequently, I have humbled expectations every time I listen to her music. That’s how I decided to approach her upcoming album “1989.” Nevertheless, I thought I should be patient and listen to the whole album before I give my opinion of her work. However, after listening to “Shake It Off,” the first single off her upcoming album, I realized I needed no more to write a review.

With regards to her role in the music world, Taylor Swift has actually done a very good job with her single. It debuted at the number one spot on the Billboard Hot 100 list and has already sold over 500,000 units. Unfortunately, this success means that her song sounds just like anything else on Top 40 radio these days.

Stylistically, the song is a pop song, as Swift said her new album will be a departure from her earlier work, which had more “country” influences (I use the term “country” loosely; Taylor Swift is part of the reason why the CMA’s are a joke). However, every part of the song sounds like every other part and no part is really very exciting.

Lyrically, the song is a message to people who denounce Swift for various reasons. She mentions how people criticize her by saying such things as that she’s “got nothing in my brain” (her words, not mine). Swift’s response is to “shake it off.” The lyrics, fraught with childish rhymes and mindless repetition is no more profound than any of her other lyrics. In fact, her lyrics for “Shake If Off” may be her worst yet.

After listening to “Shake It Off,” I think I’d heard as much of “1989” as I ever could. People normally say not to judge a book by its cover, but this cover is so bad, I doubt the rest of the book could have been created with any more care.

Some Swift fans may be thinking, “you’re just mad because you only like hipster music.” But will anyone really remember “Shake It Off” several years from now? Honestly, I still do remember some of Swift’s older, more memorable songs, but her newest single doesn’t have nearly the same effect that say, “Love Story” had.

And although Swift’s single makes a jab at critics of her work such as myself, I think I’ll take her idea and just “shake it off.”