:Loml

Swift developed her eleventh studio album, The Tortured Poets Department, "for about two years" after finishing her previous album, Midnights (2022).{{cite magazine |last1=Dailey |first1=Hannah |date=April 16, 2024 |title=Everything We Know About Taylor Swift's New Album The Tortured Poets Department So Far |url=https://www.billboard.com/lists/taylor-swift-the-tortured-poets-department-everything-we-know/taylor-swift-new-album-tortured-poets-department-collaborators/ |access-date=April 17, 2024 |magazine=Billboard |archive-date=April 19, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240419110034/https://www.billboard.com/lists/taylor-swift-the-tortured-poets-department-everything-we-know/taylor-swift-new-album-tortured-poets-department-collaborators |url-status=live }} Conceived amidst publicized reports on Swift's personal life, including a breakup with the English actor Joe Alwyn and a brief romantic linking with the English musician Matty Healy,{{Cite news |last=Sisario |first=Ben |author-link=Ben Sisario |date=April 19, 2024 |title=Taylor Swift's Tortured Poets Arrives With a Promotional Blitz |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/19/arts/music/taylor-swift-tortured-poets-department.html |url-access=limited |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240422193932/https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/19/arts/music/taylor-swift-tortured-poets-department.html |archive-date=April 22, 2024 |access-date=September 26, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language= |issn=}} The Tortured Poets Department was described by her as a "lifeline" album which she "really needed" to make.{{Cite magazine |last=Bonner |first=Mehera |date=February 16, 2024 |title=Taylor Swift Reveals Bonus Track Title and New Album Cover for The Tortured Poets Department |url=https://www.cosmopolitan.com/entertainment/celebs/a46813336/taylor-swift-the-bolter/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240216224610/https://www.cosmopolitan.com/entertainment/celebs/a46813336/taylor-swift-the-bolter/ |archive-date=February 16, 2024 |access-date=April 19, 2024 |magazine=Cosmopolitan}} Republic Records released The Tortured Poets Department on April 19, 2024;{{Cite web |date=April 19, 2024 |title=As The Tortured Poets Department drops, here's all Taylor Swift's albums ranked by sales |url=https://www.musicweek.com/talent/read/as-the-tortured-poets-department-drops-here-s-all-taylor-swift-s-albums-ranked-by-sales/089645 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240419095336/https://www.musicweek.com/talent/read/as-the-tortured-poets-department-drops-here-s-all-taylor-swift-s-albums-ranked-by-sales/089645 |archive-date=April 19, 2024 |access-date=September 26, 2024 |website=Music Week}} "Loml" is track 12 out of the 16 tracks of the standard edition.

Swift performed "Loml" live for the first time on May 9, 2024, during the first Paris show of the Eras Tour.{{cite magazine |last1=Iasimone |first1=Ashley |title=All the Surprise Songs Taylor Swift Has Performed on The Eras Tour (So Far) |url=https://www.billboard.com/lists/taylor-swift-eras-tour-surprise-songs/paris-3/ |magazine=Billboard |access-date=August 4, 2024 |date=August 3, 2024}} A digital variant of The Tortured Poets Department containing a recorded version of this performance was released on May 24.{{Cite web |title=Taylor Swift Is Selling Live Versions of 3 'Tortured Poets Department' Surprise Songs for a Very Limited Time |url=https://people.com/taylor-swift-releases-live-from-paris-tortured-poets-acoustic-collection-surprise-songs-8653469 |access-date=June 28, 2024 |website=Peoplemag |language=en |archive-date=May 24, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240524205816/https://people.com/taylor-swift-releases-live-from-paris-tortured-poets-acoustic-collection-surprise-songs-8653469 |url-status=live }} She performed "Loml" live again twice, as part of piano mashups with "Don't You" (2021) at the concert in Munich, Germany, on July 28, and with "White Horse" (2008) at the concert in Miami, United States, on October 19, 2024.{{cite web |last=Louise Smith |first=Katie |date=November 4, 2024 |title=Every Surprise Song Performed On Taylor Swift's Eras Tour So Far |url=https://www.capitalfm.com/artists/taylor-swift/eras-tour-surprise-songs-setlist/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240909171138/https://www.capitalfm.com/artists/taylor-swift/eras-tour-surprise-songs-setlist/ |archive-date=September 9, 2024 |access-date=November 4, 2024 |publisher=Capital}}

{{Listen

| filename = Loml by Taylor Swift (sample).ogg

| title = "Loml"

| description = "Loml" is instrumented by a simple piano arrangement, letting Swift's voice deliver the narrative lyrics of a devastating failed relationship that was once hopeful.

}}

Swift wrote and produced "Loml" with Aaron Dessner, who played synth bass, keyboard, piano, and synthesizer on the track. Bella Blasko and Jonathan Low recorded the song at Long Pond Studios in the Hudson Valley. Swift's lead vocals were recorded by Laura Sisk at Electric Lady Studios, New York, and Christopher Rowe at Prime Recording Studios, Nashville. "Loml" was mixed by Serban Ghenea at MixStar Studios, Virginia Beach. At 4 minutes and 37 seconds long,{{Cite web |last=Bailey |first=Alyssa |date=April 19, 2024 |title=Taylor Swift's 'loml' Lyrics Offer a Devastating Look at Her Joe Alwyn Breakup |url=https://www.elle.com/culture/music/a60537979/taylor-swift-loml-lyrics-meaning-joe-alwyn-breakup/ |access-date=November 21, 2024 |website=Elle |language= |archive-date=June 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240616040952/https://www.elle.com/culture/music/a60537979/taylor-swift-loml-lyrics-meaning-joe-alwyn-breakup/ |url-status=live }} "Loml" is a piano-led ballad with a minimal production featuring Swift's vocals accompanied by piano keys,{{Sfn|Zaleski|2024}}{{cite news |date=April 19, 2024 |title=Taylor Swift Strikes Out Looking on The Tortured Poets Department |url=https://www.pastemagazine.com/music/taylor-swift/taylor-swift-strikes-out-looking-on-the-tortured-poets-department |access-date=August 4, 2024 |work=Paste |archive-date=April 20, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240420000218/https://www.pastemagazine.com/music/taylor-swift/taylor-swift-strikes-out-looking-on-the-tortured-poets-department |url-status=live }} evoking an intimate and melancholic soundscape.{{Cite news |last=Hodgkinson |first=Will |author-link=Will Hodgkinson |date=April 19, 2024 |title=Love, Men and the Story Behind Each Song on Taylor Swift's New Album |url=https://www.thetimes.com/culture/music/article/taylor-swift-tortured-poets-department-track-by-track-guide-zp7qjwszr |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20240419043009/https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/taylor-swift-tortured-poets-department-track-by-track-guide-zp7qjwszr |archive-date=April 19, 2024 |access-date=November 20, 2024 |work=The Times |language= |issn=}}{{Cite web |last=Light |first=Alan |author-link=Alan Light |date=April 22, 2024 |title=With The Tortured Poets Department, Taylor Swift Makes One for Herself |url=https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/music/a60560613/taylor-swift-the-tortured-poets-department-review/ |access-date=November 20, 2024 |website=Esquire |language= |archive-date=April 22, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240422102558/https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/music/a60560613/taylor-swift-the-tortured-poets-department-review/ |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |last=West |first=Bryan |author-link=Bryan West (journalist) |date=April 19, 2024 |title=Filing Tortured Poets into Taylor Swift’s card catalog, track by track |url=https://www.tennessean.com/story/entertainment/music/2024/04/18/tortured-poets-department-taylor-swifts-track-by-track-review/73379713007/ |access-date=November 21, 2024 |website=The Tennessean |language= |archive-date=May 9, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240509104246/https://www.tennessean.com/story/entertainment/music/2024/04/18/tortured-poets-department-taylor-swifts-track-by-track-review/73379713007/ |url-status=live }} There were comparisons of the production style of "Loml" to that on Swift's 2020 albums Folklore and Evermore.{{Cite web |last=Vanderhoof |first=Erin |date=April 19, 2024 |title=On The Tortured Poets Department, Taylor Swift Is Still Rejecting Your Judgment |url=https://www.vanityfair.com/style/story/tortured-poets-department-taylor-swift-review?srsltid=AfmBOopNNqEU7i06ak0qXdSjjI6ghSS6EVS6S6B9tWnmAbpYWEqT4jaa |access-date=November 20, 2024 |website=Vanity Fair |language=}}{{cite magazine |last1=Lipshutz |first1=Jason |date=April 19, 2024 |title=Taylor Swift's The Tortured Poets Department: All 31 Tracks Ranked |url=https://www.billboard.com/lists/taylor-swift-the-tortured-poets-department-tracks-ranked/ |access-date=August 4, 2024 |magazine=Billboard |archive-date=April 20, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240420200628/https://www.billboard.com/lists/taylor-swift-the-tortured-poets-department-tracks-ranked/ |url-status=live }} Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone specifically compared the piano melody to that from the title track of Evermore.

The lyrics of "Loml" recount a failed romantic relationship that was once full of promises and hopes but ended in devastation, using extensive death-related imagery of phantoms, the Holy Ghost, and graveyards.{{Cite web |last=Ahlgrim |first=Callie |date=April 28, 2024 |title=Taylor Swift's 15 best breakup songs, ranked |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/taylor-swift-best-breakup-songs-2023-4#12-loml-4 |access-date=November 21, 2024 |website=Business Insider |language= |archive-date=June 28, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240628041229/https://www.businessinsider.com/taylor-swift-best-breakup-songs-2023-4#12-loml-4 |url-status=live }} The track begins with Swift's narrator recalling that this relationship started from "rekindled flames" that were "never quite buried". She and the love interest got back together after being distant for a while, patching up the "memories of the time [she] was away", telling themselves, "We were just kids, babe."{{Cite web |date=April 19, 2024 |title=Who and what is Taylor Swift's song 'loml' about? |url=https://www.capitalfm.com/news/music/who-and-what-is-taylor-swift-song-loml-about/ |access-date=November 21, 2024 |website= |publisher=Capital |language= |archive-date=June 17, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240617180808/https://www.capitalfm.com/news/music/who-and-what-is-taylor-swift-song-loml-about/ |url-status=live }} Swift's narrator tells herself that she sacrificed her passionate feelings in hopes of stability in this romance: "I thought I was better safe than starry-eyed."{{Cite web |last=Willman |first=Chris |date=April 19, 2024 |title=Taylor Swift's Best Tortured Poets Department Lyrics |url=https://variety.com/2024/music/news/the-tortured-poets-department-best-lyrics-taylor-swift-1235975572/ |access-date=November 21, 2024 |website=Variety |language= |archive-date=April 22, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240422092722/https://variety.com/2024/music/news/the-tortured-poets-department-best-lyrics-taylor-swift-1235975572/ |url-status=live }} In return, this romantic partner tells her that she is the "love of [his] life" multiple times.{{cite news |last1=McRedmond |first1=Finn |date=April 19, 2024 |title=Taylor Swift: The Tortured Poets Department track by track review – A manifesto for all the believers who will try at love one more time |url=https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/music/review/2024/04/19/taylor-swift-the-tortured-poets-department-track-by-track-a-manifesto-for-all-the-believers-who-will-try-at-love-one-more-time/ |access-date=August 4, 2024 |newspaper=The Irish Times |archive-date=April 19, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240419120021/https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/music/review/2024/04/19/taylor-swift-the-tortured-poets-department-track-by-track-a-manifesto-for-all-the-believers-who-will-try-at-love-one-more-time/ |url-status=live }}

The more time she spends in this connection, the more false promises the partner makes; she describes herself as a "fool" and him as a "con-man" who sold her "a get-love-quick scheme", and he offers hopes of marriage, children, and being with her forever.{{Cite web |last=Nicolaou |first=Elena |date=April 19, 2024 |title='Loml' lyrics: What does the Taylor Swift song title mean? |url=https://www.today.com/popculture/music/loml-lyrics-meaning-taylor-swift-song-rcna148566 |access-date=November 21, 2024 |website=Today.com |archive-date=June 25, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240625080316/https://www.today.com/popculture/music/loml-lyrics-meaning-taylor-swift-song-rcna148566 |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |last=Donnellan |first=Sara |date=April 19, 2024 |title=Taylor Swift 'Loml' Lyrics: Breakdown of TTPD Track 12 |url=https://www.usmagazine.com/entertainment/news/taylor-swift-loml-lyrics-breakdown-of-ttpd-track-12/ |access-date=November 21, 2024 |website=Us Weekly |language= |archive-date=September 13, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240913175611/https://www.usmagazine.com/entertainment/news/taylor-swift-loml-lyrics-breakdown-of-ttpd-track-12/ |url-status=live }} As the song progresses, Swift's narrator realizes all the promises she was given turned out to be false. In the bridge, she details how her romantic partner got drunk one time and "shit-talked [her] under the table, talking rings and talking cradles". She could not help but feel like the whole romance was an illusion, leaving her shattered: "Dancing phantoms on the terrace/ Are they second-hand embarrassed/ That I can't get out of bed, 'cause something counterfeit's dead." Before the final refrain, she reflects on how quickly this romance ended: "It was legendary/ It was momentary/ It was unnecessary/ Should've let it stay buried."{{Cite web |last=Miyashita |first=Nina |last2=Waterhouse |first2=Jonah |date=April 24, 2024 |title=All the hidden meanings in Taylor Swift's The Tortured Poets Department album |url=https://www.vogue.com.au/culture/features/taylor-swift-the-tortured-poets-department/image-gallery/6d24952094c0b5fd2a02d1406bdf8a53 |access-date=November 21, 2024 |website=Vogue Australia |archive-date=April 23, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240423150126/https://www.vogue.com.au/culture/features/taylor-swift-the-tortured-poets-department/image-gallery/6d24952094c0b5fd2a02d1406bdf8a53 |url-status=live }}

Towards the song's concluding remarks, Swift's narrator is left with intense feelings of disappointment and sadness from what happened. She describes her love interest as a "lion" with a "valiant roar" but also a "coward" that gave her a "bland goodbye".{{Cite web |last=Willman |first=Chris |date=April 29, 2024 |title=Taylor Swift’s 75 Best Songs, Ranked |url=https://variety.com/lists/best-taylor-swift-songs-ranked/karma/ |access-date=November 21, 2024 |website=Variety |language= |archive-date=December 14, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221214191137/https://variety.com/lists/best-taylor-swift-songs-ranked/karma |url-status=live }} She then comes to terms with what happened, looking back at his words: "{{-'}}I'll never leave'/ 'Never mind'." In the final words, she mourns what could have been: "You're the loss of my life",{{Cite web |last=Rosenbloom |first=Alli |date=April 19, 2024 |title=Taylor Swift’s surprise double album The Tortured Poets Department is daggers wrapped in a lullaby |url=https://edition.cnn.com/2024/04/18/entertainment/album-review-taylor-swift-reaction/index.html |access-date=November 21, 2024 |website= |publisher=CNN |language= |archive-date=September 28, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240928181134/https://edition.cnn.com/2024/04/18/entertainment/album-review-taylor-swift-reaction/index.html |url-status=live }}{{cite web |last1=Fish |first1=Ryan |date=April 22, 2024 |title=Every Song on Taylor Swift's The Tortured Poets Department, Ranked |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/lists/taylor-swift-the-tortured-poets-department-songs-ranked/cassandra/ |access-date=August 4, 2024 |publisher=The Hollywood Reporter |archive-date=July 9, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240709084140/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/lists/taylor-swift-the-tortured-poets-department-songs-ranked/cassandra/ |url-status=live }} a twist on the title "Loml", which is a popular colloquialism for "love of my life".{{Cite news |last=Schwedel |first=Heather |date=April 20, 2024 |title=Every Proper Noun on Taylor Swift's Tortured Poets Department, Charted and Annotated |url=https://slate.com/culture/2024/04/taylor-swift-tortured-poets-department-album-lyrics-explained.html |access-date=May 3, 2024 |work=Slate |language=en-US |issn=1091-2339 |archive-date=May 3, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240503025444/https://slate.com/culture/2024/04/taylor-swift-tortured-poets-department-album-lyrics-explained.html |url-status=live }}{{cite news |last1=Eley |first1=Amy |date=April 19, 2024 |title=Everything Taylor Swift has revealed about her new album track list |url=https://www.today.com/popculture/music/taylor-swift-track-list-tortured-poets-department-album-rcna137392 |access-date=April 19, 2024 |work=Today.com}}{{cite news |last1=Bonner |first1=Mehera |date=April 11, 2024 |title=Taylor Swift's New Song 'loml' Has a More Complicated Meaning Than Everyone Initially Thought |url=https://www.cosmopolitan.com/entertainment/celebs/a60464392/what-does-loml-stand-for-taylor-swift/ |access-date=April 18, 2024 |work=Cosmopolitan |archive-date=April 18, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240418025648/https://www.cosmopolitan.com/entertainment/celebs/a60464392/what-does-loml-stand-for-taylor-swift/ |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |date=April 25, 2024 |title=Roundtable: A Review of Taylor Swift's The Tortured Poets Department |url=https://atwoodmagazine.com/ttpd-taylor-swift-the-tortured-poets-department-album-review/ |access-date=November 21, 2024 |website=Atwood Magazine |language= |archive-date=June 21, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240621202510/https://atwoodmagazine.com/ttpd-taylor-swift-the-tortured-poets-department-album-review/ |url-status=live }}

Annie Zaleski sums up the core message as a realization that "an old flame is best left extinguished".{{Sfn|Zaleski|2024}} Laura Snapes of The Guardian viewed the lyrical style of "Loml" as "digressive [and] detailed", reminiscent of Swift's 2012 song "All Too Well".{{cite news |last1=Snapes |first1=Laura |date=April 19, 2024 |title=Breakups, fantasies and her most cutting lyrics: inside Taylor Swift's The Tortured Poets Department |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2024/apr/19/taylor-swift-album-the-tortured-poets-department-lyrics |access-date=August 4, 2024 |work=The Guardian |archive-date=April 22, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240422092026/https://www.theguardian.com/music/2024/apr/19/taylor-swift-album-the-tortured-poets-department-lyrics |url-status=live }} Business Insider{{'s}} Callie Ahlgrim drew parallels between the graveyard imagery of "Loml" with that from Swift's 2020 track "The 1"; "digging up the grave another time." Alex Hopper of American Songwriter also pointed out other possible references to Swift's past songs: the fated love depicted in "Invisible String" (2020) and the difficulty of moving on in "Hits Different" (2022).{{cite news |last1=Hopper |first1=Alex |date=May 29, 2024 |title=Behind the Meaning of Taylor Swift's Post-Mortem of a Relationship, 'loml' |url=https://americansongwriter.com/behind-the-meaning-of-taylor-swifts-post-mortem-of-a-relationship-loml/ |access-date=August 4, 2024 |work=American Songwriter |archive-date=August 1, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240801135511/https://americansongwriter.com/behind-the-meaning-of-taylor-swifts-post-mortem-of-a-relationship-loml/ |url-status=live }}

"Loml" was picked as a standout from The Tortured Poets Department in many album reviews.{{cite news |last1=Jayswal |first1=Palak |date=May 5, 2024 |title=Review: Taylor Swift – The Tortured Poets Department |url=https://www.slugmag.com/music/national-music-reviews/review-taylor-swift-the-tortured-poets-department/ |access-date=August 4, 2024 |work=SLUG |archive-date=May 10, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240510061607/https://www.slugmag.com/music/national-music-reviews/review-taylor-swift-the-tortured-poets-department/ |url-status=live }}{{cite news |last1=Wohlmacher |first1=John |date=April 23, 2024 |title=Album review: Taylor Swift – The Tortured Poets Department |url=https://beatsperminute.com/album-review-taylor-swift-the-tortured-poets-department/ |access-date=August 3, 2024 |work=Beats Per Minute |archive-date=April 23, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240423190310/https://beatsperminute.com/album-review-taylor-swift-the-tortured-poets-department/ |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |last=Daly |first=Rhian |date=April 19, 2024 |title=Taylor Swift – The Tortured Poets Department review: pop's prolific queen sorts through love's wreckage |url=https://thefortyfive.com/opinion/taylor-swift-the-tortured-poets-department-review/ |access-date=November 21, 2024 |website=The Forty-Five |language=}} Critics generally acclaimed the emotional songwriting that they found resonant and affecting. Ryan Fish of The Hollywood Reporter called "Loml" the album's most emotional track, and The A.V. Club{{'s}} and Uproxx{{'s}} Josh Kurp were impressed by the lyrical twist on the phrase "loml".{{Cite web |last=Carr |first=Mary Kate |date=April 19, 2024 |title=Taylor Swift's The Tortured Poets Department is stuck in the past |url=https://www.avclub.com/taylor-swift-the-tortured-poets-department-review-1851419476 |access-date=November 21, 2024 |website=The A.V. Club |language= |archive-date=April 19, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240419201239/https://www.avclub.com/taylor-swift-the-tortured-poets-department-review-1851419476 |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |last=Kurp |first=Josh |date=April 19, 2024 |title=Taylor Swift’s The Tortured Poets Department Is Another Classic |url=https://uproxx.com/pop/taylor-swift-the-tortured-poets-department-review/ |access-date=November 21, 2024 |website=Uproxx |language= |archive-date=April 20, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240420015257/https://uproxx.com/pop/taylor-swift-the-tortured-poets-department-review/ |url-status=live }} Ahlgrim said that "Loml" was the only song from the album that made her cry; she admired its "painful precision" in capturing a love that burns intensely then extinguishes quickly.{{cite news |last1=Ahlgrim |first1=Callie |date=April 19, 2024 |title=Taylor Swift's The Tortured Poets Department is the messiest, horniest, and funniest album she's ever made |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/taylor-swift-tortured-poets-department-album-review-tracklist-breakdown-2024-4#loml-is-the-most-heart-wrenching-song-on-the-tracklist-12 |url-access=subscription |access-date=August 4, 2024 |work=Business Insider |archive-date=April 19, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240419213621/https://www.businessinsider.com/taylor-swift-tortured-poets-department-album-review-tracklist-breakdown-2024-4#loml-is-the-most-heart-wrenching-song-on-the-tracklist-12 |url-status=live }}

Several critics highlighted different lyrics as their favorite. Paste, Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone, and Laura Snapes of The Guardian singled out the line "A con man sells a fool a get-love-quick scheme" as a standout; the former also picked the lyric, "And all at once, the ink bleeds." The Daily Telegraph{{'s}} Poppie Platt was specifically moved by the "devastating" bridge,{{Cite news |last=Platt |first=Poppie |date=April 22, 2024 |title=Taylor Swift’s double album: all the Easter eggs you may have missed |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/music/artists/taylor-swift-tortured-poets-department-album-easter-eggs/ |access-date=November 21, 2024 |work=The Daily Telegraph |language= |issn= |archive-date=July 9, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240709151555/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/music/artists/taylor-swift-tortured-poets-department-album-easter-eggs/ |url-status=live }} while Beats Per Minute's John Wohlmacher lauded the final refrain; "What a valiant roar/ What a bland goodbye/ The coward claimed he was a lion", saying the track contains some of the strongest writing on the album. In a less enthusiastic review by Olivia Horn of Pitchfork, "Loml" failed to deliver the emotions it was supposed to do, because there was "no hierarchy of tragic detail [...] to distill an overarching emotional truth, tending to smother rather than sting".{{cite news |last1=Horn |first1=Olivia |date=April 22, 2024 |title=The Tortured Poets Department / The Anthology |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/taylor-swift-the-tortured-poets-department-the-anthology/ |access-date=August 4, 2024 |work=Pitchfork |archive-date=April 25, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240425125150/https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/taylor-swift-the-tortured-poets-department-the-anthology/ |url-status=live }}

Other reviewers also praised the production and Swift's vocals. Paste complimented "Loml" for relying on Swift's voice and "a lone piano" to deliver the lyrics effectively. Wohlmacher agreed, saying the "minimal and suggestive" instrumental made room for an intricate narrative. Neil McCormick in The Daily Telegraph was moved by the sorrow and brooding soundscape and Swift's "fantastic singing" that made the emotions palpable,{{Cite news |last=McCormick |first=Neil |author-link=Neil McCormick |date=April 22, 2024 |title=Taylor Swift, The Tortured Poets Department: a sharp, savage attack on her British exes |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/music/what-to-listen-to/taylor-swift-the-tortured-poets-department-review-healy/ |access-date=November 21, 2024 |work=The Daily Telegraph |language= |issn= |archive-date=May 13, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240513204555/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/music/what-to-listen-to/taylor-swift-the-tortured-poets-department-review-healy/ |url-status=live }} an idea corroborated by Melissa Ruggieri of USA Today, who thought that her vocals contained an ache that would make listeners "feel raked over with nails".{{Cite web |last=Ruggieri |first=Melissa |date=April 19, 2024 |title=Taylor Swift's Tortured Poets is hauntingly brilliant, even the 15 surprise songs |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/music/2024/04/19/taylor-swift-tortured-poets-department-review/73342235007/ |access-date=November 21, 2024 |website=USA Today |language= |archive-date=April 19, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240419174553/https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/music/2024/04/19/taylor-swift-tortured-poets-department-review/73342235007/ |url-status=live }} Teen Vogue{{'s}} Claire P. Dodson highlighted the moment that Swift's voice "nearly breaks" when she sings: "the coward claimed he was a lion."{{Cite web |last=Dodson |first=P. Claire |date=April 19, 2024 |title=On Tortured Poets, Taylor Swift Enters Too Much Into Evidence |url=https://www.teenvogue.com/story/taylor-swift-tortured-poets-album-review |access-date=November 21, 2024 |website=Teen Vogue |language= |archive-date=April 20, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240420061647/https://www.teenvogue.com/story/taylor-swift-tortured-poets-album-review |url-status=live }} In a review for Exclaim!, Alex Hudson upheld "Loml" as the only track from the standard album that most evokes "an affecting breakup postmortem".{{Cite web |last=Hudson |first=Alex |date=April 22, 2024 |title=Taylor Swift's The Tortured Poets Department Is Full of Sound and Fury, Signifying Nothing |url=https://exclaim.ca/music/article/taylor-swift-the-tortured-poets-department-album-review |access-date=November 21, 2024 |website=Exclaim! |language= |archive-date=April 22, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240422173604/https://exclaim.ca/music/article/taylor-swift-the-tortured-poets-department-album-review |url-status=live }}

"Loml" has appeared on some rankings of Swift's entire catalog. Placing the song at number 21 on his list of 75 best songs by Swift, Variety{{'s}} Chris Willman said that it contained some of her best lyrics by stacking "one gut punch after another". Ranking all of her 274 songs up until April 2024, Sheffield included "Loml" at the 33rd place; he said that the song "hits home" because of its ordinary and "unmelodramatic" qualities and that it peaked with a "perfectly simple epitaph": "It was legendary/ It was momentary."{{cite news |last1=Sheffield |first1=Rob |author-link=Rob Sheffield |date=April 26, 2024 |title=All 274 of Taylor Swift's Songs, Ranked |url=https://au.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/taylor-swift-all-247-songs-ranked-58660/loml-2024-2-58977/ |access-date=August 4, 2024 |work=Rolling Stone}} Ahlgrim included "Loml" in her list of the 15 best breakup songs by Swift; she deemed it accomplished in portraying heartbreak with evocative details, transforming the sentiments "from emotional to harrowing".

When The Tortured Poets Department was released, tracks from the album occupied the top 14 of the US Billboard Hot 100; "Loml" debuted and peaked at number 12 on the chart, where Swift became the first artist to monopolize the top 14.{{Cite magazine |last=Trust |first=Gary |date=April 29, 2024 |title=Taylor Swift Claims Record Top 14 Spots on Billboard Hot 100, Led by 'Fortnight' with Post Malone |url=https://www.billboard.com/lists/taylor-swift-hot-100-top-14-fortnight-post-malone-record/ |access-date=November 21, 2024 |magazine=Billboard |archive-date=April 29, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240429170523/https://www.billboard.com/lists/taylor-swift-hot-100-top-14-fortnight-post-malone-record/ |url-status=live }} In Australia, the song reached number 15 on the ARIA Singles Chart and made her the artist with the most entries in a single week with 29;{{Cite news |last=Gbogbo |first=Mawunyo |date=April 29, 2024 |title=Taylor Swift's New Album The Tortured Poets Department Smashes Chart Records in the US, UK and Australia |url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-04-29/taylor-swift-tortured-poets-department-charts-uk-billboard-aria/103779382 |access-date=May 10, 2024 |publisher=ABC News |archive-date=May 10, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240510010807/https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-04-29/taylor-swift-tortured-poets-department-charts-uk-billboard-aria/103779382 |url-status=live }} it was certified gold by the Australian Recording Industry Association. Elsewhere, "Loml" peaked at number 16 on the Billboard Global 200 and reached the top 20 in Philippines (19), Malaysia (19), Canada (17), and New Zealand (16). The song received a silver certification from the British Phonographic Industry (BPI).

Credits are adapted from the liner notes of The Tortured Poets Department.{{Cite AV media notes |title=The Tortured Poets Department |id=602458933314 |publisher=Republic Records |year=2024 |type=The Manuscript edition vinyl liner notes |last=Swift |first=Taylor |author-link=Taylor Swift}}

• Taylor Swift – lead vocals, songwriter, producer
• Aaron Dessner – producer, songwriter, bass synthesizer, keyboard, piano, synth
• Bella Blasko – recording, drums, percussion
• Bryce Bordone – mix engineer
• Serban Ghenea – mixing
• Glenn Kotche – drums, percussion
• Jonathan Low – recording
• Christopher Rowe – lead vocals recording
• Laura Sisk – lead vocals recording

{{Certification Table Top|caption=Certifications for "Loml"}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=Australia|title=|artist=|type=single|award=Gold|relyear=2024|certyear=2024|access-date=September 27, 2024|refname="ARIA"}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=New Zealand|title=Loml|artist=Taylor Swift|type=single|award=Gold|relyear=2024|certyear=2024|access-date=January 9, 2025|source=radioscope}}

{{Certification Table Entry|region=United Kingdom|title=Loml|artist=Taylor Swift|type=single|award=Silver|relyear=2024|certyear=2024|access-date=November 9, 2024|id=20503-1598-1|refname="BPI"}}

{{Certification Table Bottom|streaming=true|nosales=true|noshipments=true}}

{{reflist}}

• {{Cite book |last=Zaleski |first=Annie |author-link=Annie Zaleski |title=Taylor Swift: The Stories Behind the Songs |publisher=Headline Publishing Group |year=2024 |isbn=9781802798586}}

{{Taylor Swift songs}}

Category:2024 songs

Category:Taylor Swift songs

Category:Songs written by Taylor Swift

Category:Songs written by Aaron Dessner

Category:Song recordings produced by Taylor Swift

Category:Song recordings produced by Aaron Dessner

Category:2020s ballads

Category:Breakup songs