At the stroke of midnight on July 24, Taylor Swift will surprise-drop her new album Folklore, a collection of rootsy tracks created alongside indie stars like Aaron Dessner of The National, Justin Vernon (aka Bon Iver), Jack Antonoff and more.
"I was excited and honored when Taylor approached me in late April about maybe writing some songs remotely together," Dessner (who co-produced the LP) recalled via Instagram, also noting that he's "rarely been so inspired by someone and it’s still hard to believe this even happened -- these songs came together in such a challenging time."
Added Swift on July 23, "Tonight at midnight I’ll be releasing my entire brand new album of songs I’ve poured all of my whims, dreams, fears, and musings into. I wrote and recorded this music in isolation but got to collaborate with some musical heroes of mine; Aaron Dessner (who has co-written or produced 11 of the 16 songs), Bon Iver (who co-wrote and was kind enough to sing on one with me), William Bowery (who co-wrote two with me) and Jack Antonoff (who is basically musical family at this point).”
Interestingly, many of the same contributing musicians - including the members of The National, Thomas Bartlett and Josh Kaufman of Yellowbirds - participated in Bob Weir's Bridge Session, which led to his acclaimed Blue Mountain album.
Listen to Folklore on July 24 via all streaming platforms.
Read Dessner's full account below:
