Midnight Rain
{{Short description|2022 song by Taylor Swift}}
{{About|the Taylor Swift song}}
{{good article}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=December 2024}}
{{Infobox song
| name = Midnight Rain
| type = song
| artist = Taylor Swift
| album = Midnights
| genre = Electropop
| released = {{start date|2022|10|21}}
| studio = * Rough Customer (Brooklyn)
- Electric Lady (New York)
| length = 2:54
| label = Republic
| writer = * Taylor Swift
| producer = * Taylor Swift
- Jack Antonoff
| misc = {{External music video|1={{YouTube|Odh9ddPUkEY|"Midnight Rain"}}|header=Lyric video|type=song}}
}}
"Midnight Rain" is a song by the American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift from her tenth original studio album, Midnights (2022). She wrote and produced the track with Jack Antonoff. Driven by a distorted Moog synthesizer, the production of "Midnight Rain" incorporates a dubstep–influenced bass, trap and house beats, and Swift's pitched-down vocals. The song is electropop with elements of R&B, hip-hop, and indietronica. In the lyrics, the narrator contemplates on a lost love back in her hometown: although the ex-lover wanted a comfortable domestic life, she chose to pursue her career and fame.
Several critics who picked "Midnight Rain" as a highlight on Midnights deemed its production and vocal manipulation interesting and captivating. A few reviews found the vocal production otherwise off-putting or derivative. "Midnight Rain" peaked at number five on both the Billboard Hot 100 and Global 200, and it reached the top 10 on charts in Australia, Canada, India, Malaysia, the Philippines, Portugal, Singapore, and Vietnam. The song received certifications in Australia, Brazil, Canada, Spain, and the United Kingdom. Swift included the song on the set list of the Eras Tour (2023–2024).
Background and release
File:Taylor Swift The Eras Tour Midnights Era Set (53109777579) (cropped).jpg|alt=Swift in a rhinestoned dress standing onstage as a backup dancer holds an umbrella behind her|left]]
Taylor Swift announced her tenth original studio album, Midnights, at the 2022 MTV Video Music Awards on August 28;{{Cite magazine |last=Dailey |first=Hannah |date=October 20, 2022 |title=Everything We Know About Taylor Swift's Midnights So Far |url=https://www.billboard.com/lists/taylor-swift-midnights-everything-we-know/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221113133112/https://www.billboard.com/lists/taylor-swift-midnights-everything-we-know/ |archive-date=November 13, 2022 |access-date=November 13, 2022 |magazine=Billboard}} its title and cover artwork were released shortly after via social media.{{Cite magazine |last=Martoccio |first=Angie |date=August 29, 2022 |title=Taylor Swift Announces New Album Midnights: 'A Journey Through Terrors and Sweet Dreams' |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/taylor-swift-announces-new-album-1234583475/ |url-access=limited |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220829064007/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/taylor-swift-announces-new-album-1234583475/ |archive-date=August 29, 2022 |access-date=November 13, 2022 |magazine=Rolling Stone}} She conceived Midnights as a collection of songs about her nocturnal ruminations, detailing a wide range of emotions such as regret, lust, nostalgia, contentment, and self-loathing.{{Sfn|Zaleski|2024|p=209}} The standard album was produced by Swift and Jack Antonoff, as a result of the two experimenting with music while their partners were both shooting for a film in Panama.{{Sfn|Zaleski|2024|p=209}}
The album's track listing was revealed via a thirteen-episode video series called Midnights Mayhem with Me on the platform TikTok, where each video contained the title of one track at a time.{{Cite magazine |last=Jones |first=Damian |date=October 7, 2022 |title=Taylor Swift Reveals All Song Titles on New Album Midnights |url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/taylor-swift-midnights-album-tracklist-3314098 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220923075749/https://www.nme.com/news/music/taylor-swift-midnights-album-tracklist-3314098 |archive-date=September 23, 2022 |access-date=November 13, 2022 |magazine=NME}} The title of "Midnight Rain" was revealed in the episode posted on September 28, 2022.{{Cite magazine |last=Kaufman |first=Gil |date=September 28, 2022 |title=Taylor Swift Makes it 'Midnight Rain' For Latest Midnights Track Reveal |url=https://www.billboard.com/music/pop/taylor-swift-midnight-rain-track-six-midnights-track-reveal-1235145977/ |access-date=January 17, 2023 |magazine=Billboard |archive-date=December 1, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221201093149/https://www.billboard.com/music/pop/taylor-swift-midnight-rain-track-six-midnights-track-reveal-1235145977/ |url-status=live }} Republic Records released Midnights on October 21, 2022; "Midnight Rain" is sixth on the standard album's track listing.{{Cite web |last=Blackwelder |first=Carson |date=October 21, 2022 |title=Taylor Swift Drops 10th Studio Album Midnights, Reveals 7 Surprise Tracks |url=https://abcnews.go.com/GMA/Culture/taylor-swift-drops-10th-studio-album-midnights-reveals/story?id=91856454 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240912205030/https://abcnews.go.com/GMA/Culture/taylor-swift-drops-10th-studio-album-midnights-reveals/story?id=91856454 |archive-date=September 12, 2024 |access-date=November 25, 2024 |website= |publisher=ABC News |language=}}{{cite AV media notes |title=Midnights |type=vinyl liner notes |year=2022 |publisher=Republic Records |id=2445790050 |last=Swift |first=Taylor |author-link=Taylor Swift}} Swift performed "Midnight Rain" as part of the Midnights act on her sixth concert tour, the Eras Tour (2023–2024).{{Cite web |last=Shafer |first=Ellise |date=March 18, 2023 |title=Taylor Swift Eras Tour: The Full Setlist From Opening Night |url=https://variety.com/2023/music/news/taylor-swift-eras-tour-setlist-1235552488/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230318073358/https://variety.com/2023/music/news/taylor-swift-eras-tour-setlist-1235552488/ |archive-date=March 18, 2023 |access-date=March 19, 2023 |website=Variety |language=en-US}} Midway through the performance, Swift changed costume and appeared in a rhinestone bodysuit, as dancers performed a choreography using umbrellas.{{Cite news |last=Horton |first=Adrian |date=March 18, 2023 |title=Taylor Swift Review – Pop's Hardest-Working Star Gives Eras Tour Her All |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2023/mar/18/taylor-swift-eras-tour-review-arizona |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230318140036/https://www.theguardian.com/music/2023/mar/18/taylor-swift-eras-tour-review-arizona |archive-date=March 18, 2023 |access-date=March 18, 2023 |newspaper=The Guardian}}{{Cite news |last=Yahr |first=Emily |date=March 18, 2023 |title=Taylor Swift's Eras Tour Opener: A Complete Recap of All 44 Songs |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/music/2023/03/18/taylor-swift-eras-tour-setlist-costumes-recap/ |url-access=limited |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230318162008/https://www.washingtonpost.com/music/2023/03/18/taylor-swift-eras-tour-setlist-costumes-recap/ |archive-date=March 18, 2023 |access-date=March 18, 2023 |newspaper=The Washington Post}}
"Midnight Rain" debuted and peaked at number five on the Billboard Global 200; the track and four other Midnights songs made Swift the first artist to chart the entire top five the same week.{{Cite web |last=Trust |first=Gary |date=October 31, 2022 |title=Taylor Swift's 'Anti-Hero' Debuts Atop Both Billboard Global Charts |url=https://www.billboard.com/music/chart-beat/taylor-swift-anti-hero-debut-billboard-global-charts-1235163784/ |access-date=December 14, 2024 |website=Billboard |archive-date=October 31, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221031184411/https://www.billboard.com/music/chart-beat/taylor-swift-anti-hero-debut-billboard-global-charts-1235163784/ |url-status=live }} In the United States, the track debuted and peaked at number five on the Billboard Hot 100. It was one of the Midnights tracks that made Swift the first artist to occupy the top 10 of the Hot 100 the same week and the woman with the most top 10 entries (40), exceeding Madonna (38).{{Cite magazine |last=Trust |first=Gary |date=October 31, 2022 |title=Taylor Swift Makes History as First Artist With Entire Top 10 on Billboard Hot 100, Led by 'Anti-Hero' at No. 1 |url=https://www.billboard.com/music/chart-beat/taylor-swift-all-hot-100-top-10-anti-hero-1235163664/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221031172231/https://www.billboard.com/music/chart-beat/taylor-swift-all-hot-100-top-10-anti-hero-1235163664/ |archive-date=October 31, 2022 |access-date=October 31, 2022 |magazine=Billboard}} It reached the top five of charts in Australia, Canada, the Philippines, Malaysia, and Singapore; top 10 Vietnam and Portugal; and the 20 in South Africa and in Iceland. The track was certified gold in Spain and the United Kingdom, platinum in Brazil and Canada, and double platinum in Australia.
Lyrics and interpretations
In the lyrics, Swift's narrator contemplates on a lost love back in her hometown{{Cite magazine |last=Sheffield |first=Rob |author-link=Rob Sheffield |date=April 25, 2024 |title='Midnight Rain' (2022) |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/taylor-swift-songs-ranked-rob-sheffield-201800/midnight-rain-2022-1234615336/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230117102646/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/taylor-swift-songs-ranked-rob-sheffield-201800/midnight-rain-2022-1234615336/ |archive-date=January 17, 2023 |access-date=December 12, 2024 |magazine=Rolling Stone}} and how she chose her career and fame over a domestic life. The refrain goes: "He wanted it comfortable/ I wanted that pain/ He wanted a bride/ I was making my own name."{{cite web |last=Moreland |first=Quinn |date=October 24, 2022 |title=Taylor Swift: Midnights Album Review |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/taylor-swift-midnights/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221024063311/https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/taylor-swift-midnights/ |archive-date=October 24, 2022 |access-date=October 24, 2022 |website=Pitchfork}}{{Cite web |last1=Thompson |first1=Stephen |author-link=Stephen Thompson (journalist) |last2=Touros |first2=Cyrena |date=October 26, 2022 |title=Taylor Swift Stays Up Late for the Introspective Midnights |url=https://www.npr.org/2022/10/13/1128915052/taylor-swift-stays-up-late-for-the-introspective-midnights |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221202015119/https://www.npr.org/2022/10/13/1128915052/taylor-swift-stays-up-late-for-the-introspective-midnights |archive-date=December 2, 2022 |access-date=January 17, 2023 |website= |series=Pop Culture Happy Hour |publisher=NPR |type=radio broadcast transcript}} She reflects how the ex-boyfriend "stays the same" and she was "chasing that fame": "All of me changed like midnight rain." In the verses, the narrator reflects on how her hometown was a "wasteland" full of pretentious people and ruminates on the possibilities of the domestic life she "gave away".{{Cite web |date=October 25, 2022 |title=Who Is Taylor Swift's 'Midnight Rain' About & Who Is the Mysterious Voice Singing? |url=https://www.capitalfm.com/news/taylor-swift-midnight-rain-about-who-voice-lyrics/ |access-date=December 12, 2024 |website= |publisher=Capital |language=}} Towards the conclusion, the narrator reflects on this past with regret, "I guess sometimes we all get some kind of haunted/ And I never think of him except on midnights like this." Some critics consider "Midnight Rain" the album's emotional centerpiece;{{efn|Attributed to Ryan, Pitchfork{{'s}} Quinn Moreland, Variety{{'s}} Chris Willman,{{Cite magazine |last=Willman |first=Chris |date=October 21, 2022 |title=Taylor Swift's Midnights Marks a Return to Electronic, Confessional Pop That's Worth Losing Sleep Over: Album Review |url=https://variety.com/2022/music/album-reviews/taylor-swift-midnights-album-review-1235410102/ |url-status=live |magazine=Variety |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221021040515/https://variety.com/2022/music/album-reviews/taylor-swift-midnights-album-review-1235410102/ |archive-date=October 21, 2022 |access-date=October 21, 2022}} and Parade{{'s}} Samuel R. Murrian{{Cite web |last=Murrian |first=Samuel R. |date=December 13, 2022 |title=Every Taylor Swift Album, Ranked |url=https://parade.com/entertainment/taylor-swift-albums-ranked |access-date=January 19, 2023 |website=Parade |archive-date=February 5, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230205232331/https://parade.com/entertainment/taylor-swift-albums-ranked |url-status=live }}}} Elise Ryan of the Associated Press deemed it the thesis statement of the "13 sleepless nights" that Swift designated for Midnights.
There were interpretations that related "Midnight Rain" to Swift's previous songs. According to The A.V. Club
Some analyses factored in the influence of Swift's fame.{{Cite news |last=Hodgkinson |first=Will |author-link=Will Hodgkinson |date=October 21, 2022 |title=Taylor Swift Review: Midnights—An Old-Fashioned Album About Human Weakness |url=https://www.thetimes.com/article/taylor-swift-new-album-review-midnights-hhxnn89q7 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20221021052524/https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/taylor-swift-new-album-review-midnights-hhxnn89q7 |archive-date=October 21, 2022 |access-date=December 13, 2024 |work=The Times}} For Esquire{{'s}} Alan Light, her songwriting embodies the narrative-based approach that she used in her 2020 albums Evermore and Folklore. He wrote that the track demonstrates her mature perspective on her own career path, "the determination, ambition, and sacrifices that got her to such rarefied altitude".{{Cite web |last=Light |first=Alan |author-link=Alan Light |date=October 24, 2022 |title=Taylor Swift's Midnights Does Something Astonishing. Even For Her. |url=https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/music/a41752359/taylor-swift-midnights-review/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230117101209/https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/music/a41752359/taylor-swift-midnights-review/ |archive-date=January 17, 2023 |access-date=January 17, 2023 |website=Esquire}} In The New York Times, Lindsay Zoladz contended that the track represented Swift's shifted attitude towards romance: whereas her 2008 single "Love Story" depicted marriage as the ideal romantic ending with starry-eyed fairy tale imagery, "Midnight Rain" expresses ambivalence towards not only marriage but also the societal expectations and "traditional timelines of adulthood".{{Cite news |last=Zoladz |first=Lindsay |date=October 24, 2022 |title=Taylor Swift, 30-Something, Is Revising Her Own Love Stories: Critic's Notebook |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/10/24/arts/music/taylor-swift-midnights-millennial-women.html |url-access=limited |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221027182558/https://www.nytimes.com/2022/10/24/arts/music/taylor-swift-midnights-millennial-women.html |archive-date=October 27, 2022 |access-date=December 12, 2024 |work=The New York Times}} Writing for the Alternative Press, Ilana Kaplan considered "Midnight Rain" one of the album tracks where Swift grappled with the "good-girl" image that she had constrained herself to, a notion that she had explained in the 2019 documentary Miss Americana.
Production and music
Swift wrote and produced "Midnight Rain" with Antonoff, who programmed the track and played percussion, drums, and multiple synthesizers (Moog, Juno 6, Prophet-5, and modular synth). Antonoff and Laura Sisk recorded the song at Rough Customer Studio, Brooklyn, and Electric Lady Studios, New York City. The track was mixed by Serban Ghenea, assisted by Bryce Bordone, at MixStar Studios, Virginia Beach, Virginia, and mastered by Randy Merrill at Sterling Sound, Edgewater, New Jersey.
{{Listen
| filename = Midnight Rain by Taylor Swift (sample).ogg
| title = "Midnight Rain"
| description = Driven by a Moog synthesizer, "Midnight Rain" features trap, house, and R&B influences in its beats and production. This sample displays Swift's pitched-down vocals in the final refrain.
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At 2 minutes and 54 seconds long,{{Cite web |last1=Nugent |first1=Annabel |last2=O'Connor |first2=Roisin |last3=Whiting |first3=Amanda |date=October 21, 2022 |title=Taylor Swift Releases Midnights: Fans and Critics Praise the Dark and Cryptic Album – As It Happened |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/news/taylor-swift-2023-midnights-album-grammys-b2275511.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230204225723/https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/news/taylor-swift-2023-midnights-album-grammys-b2275511.html |archive-date=February 4, 2023 |access-date=February 4, 2023 |website=The Independent}} "Midnight Rain" has a sparse production{{Cite web |last=Firth |first=Abigail |date=October 24, 2022 |title=Taylor Swift Midnights |url=https://readdork.com/albums/taylor-swift-midnights/ |access-date=December 11, 2024 |website=Dork |archive-date=February 25, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240225212018/https://readdork.com/albums/taylor-swift-midnights/ |url-status=live }} driven by a distorted Moog synthesizer throughout.{{Cite web |last=Kaplan |first=Ilana |date=October 21, 2022 |title=Review: Midnights Is Taylor Swift's Darkest, Most Self-Reflective Work to Date |url=https://www.altpress.com/taylor-swift-midnights-review/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221021051418/https://www.altpress.com/taylor-swift-midnights-review/ |archive-date=October 21, 2022 |access-date=November 26, 2022 |website=Alternative Press}}{{Cite web |last=Ruggieri |first=Melissa |date=October 21, 2022 |title=Taylor Swift Returns to Pop with Poetic Midnights, Her Most Deeply Personal Album Yet |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/music/2022/10/21/taylor-swift-midnights-album-review/10553445002/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230108034601/https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/music/2022/10/21/taylor-swift-midnights-album-review/10553445002/ |archive-date=January 8, 2023 |access-date=January 16, 2023 |website=USA Today}} Its bass displays influences of dubstep, and its beats feature elements of house, trap,{{cite news |last=Petridis |first=Alexis |author-link=Alexis Petridis |date=October 21, 2022 |title=Taylor Swift: Midnights Review – Small-Hours Pop Rich with Self-Loathing and Stereotype-Smashing |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2022/oct/21/taylor-swift-midnights-review-small-hours-pop-rich-with-self-loathing-and-stereotype-smashing |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221022001540/https://www.theguardian.com/music/2022/oct/21/taylor-swift-midnights-review-small-hours-pop-rich-with-self-loathing-and-stereotype-smashing |archive-date=October 22, 2022 |access-date=October 21, 2022 |newspaper=The Guardian}} and indie pop.{{Cite web |last=Ryan |first=Elise |date=October 21, 2022 |title=Review: Taylor Swift Gets Dark, Electric on Midnights |url=https://apnews.com/article/taylor-swift-midnights-review-45cf7eca3326d784829b405deb48310f |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221021050627/https://apnews.com/article/taylor-swift-midnights-review-45cf7eca3326d784829b405deb48310f |archive-date=October 21, 2022 |access-date=January 17, 2023 |website= |publisher=Associated Press}} The track begins with Swift's vocals that are manipulated to a lower pitch resembling a male singing voice,{{Cite magazine |last=Lipshutz |first=Jason |date=October 21, 2022 |title=Every Song Ranked on Taylor Swift's Midnights |url=https://www.billboard.com/lists/taylor-swift-midnights-album-songs-ranked/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221021040336/https://www.billboard.com/lists/taylor-swift-midnights-album-songs-ranked/ |archive-date=October 21, 2022 |access-date=January 16, 2023 |magazine=Billboard}}{{Cite news |last=Powers |first=Ann |author-link=Ann Powers |date=October 21, 2022 |title=In the Haze of Midnights, Taylor Swift Softens Into an Expanded Sound |url=https://www.npr.org/2022/10/21/1130293117/midnights-taylor-swift-review |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221021065926/https://www.npr.org/2022/10/21/1130293117/midnights-taylor-swift-review |archive-date=October 21, 2022 |access-date=October 21, 2022 |agency=NPR}} constituting its hook. To achieve this sound, Antonoff modulated her singing voice using synth plugins including Soundtoys and iZotope Vocalsynth; he said that it was the first time he used such devices in music production.{{Cite web |last=Mullenpublished |first=Matt |date=August 22, 2023 |title=Jack Antonoff on Vintage Gear, Analogue Synths and Taylor Swift's Midnights: 'The Oberheim OB-8 Was the Star of That Album' |url=https://www.musicradar.com/news/jack-antonoff-interview-taylor-swift-midnights-oberheim |access-date=June 3, 2024 |website=MusicRadar |archive-date=May 24, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240524025208/https://www.musicradar.com/news/jack-antonoff-interview-taylor-swift-midnights-oberheim |url-status=live }} The overall sound is electropop{{Cite web |last=Lee |first=Taila |date=October 22, 2022 |title=5 Takeaways From Taylor Swift's New Album Midnights |url=https://www.grammy.com/news/taylor-swift-midnights-new-album-takeaways-songs-anti-hero-lavender-haze-reputation-lover-tiktok-3am-tracks-edition |access-date=January 17, 2023 |publisher=The Recording Academy |archive-date=January 17, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230117161455/https://www.grammy.com/news/taylor-swift-midnights-new-album-takeaways-songs-anti-hero-lavender-haze-reputation-lover-tiktok-3am-tracks-edition |url-status=live }}{{Sfn|Zaleski|2024|p=216}} with elements of R&B,{{Cite web |last=Jenkins |first=Craig |date=October 24, 2022 |title=Midnights{{'}} Moonlit Lessons |url=https://www.vulture.com/2022/10/midnights-album-review-taylor-swift.html |url-access=limited |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221031180303/https://www.vulture.com/2022/10/midnights-album-review-taylor-swift.html |archive-date=October 31, 2022 |access-date=January 16, 2023 |website=Vulture}} electronica,{{Cite news |last=McMillen |first=Andrew |date=October 27, 2022 |title=Album Review: Does Taylor Swift's Midnights Live Up to the Hype? |url=https://www.theaustralian.com.au/arts/review/album-review-metal-legends-slipknot-still-firing-bile-on-the-end-so-far/news-story/1a957170ee2ecd188ed9bdb6e4ec6df5 |url-access=subscription |access-date=December 12, 2024 |work=The Australian}} hip-hop,{{Cite news |last=Richardson |first=Mark |date=October 24, 2022 |title=Midnights Review: Taylor Swift After Dark |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/midnights-review-taylor-swift-jack-antonoff-anti-hero-single-11666647508 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240211011818/https://www.wsj.com/articles/midnights-review-taylor-swift-jack-antonoff-anti-hero-single-11666647508 |archive-date=February 11, 2024 |access-date=January 5, 2024 |work=The Wall Street Journal}} and electro-hip-hop.{{Cite magazine |last=Nuss |first=Allaire |date=November 7, 2022 |title=Taylor Swift's 10 Seminal Albums, Ranked |url=https://ew.com/music/taylor-swift-albums-ranked/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221126041743/https://ew.com/music/taylor-swift-albums-ranked/ |archive-date=November 26, 2022 |access-date=November 26, 2022 |magazine=Entertainment Weekly}} The atmosphere and pacing were described as slow-burning and "woozy" by several critics.{{Cite web |last=Wood |first=Mikael |date=October 21, 2022 |title=Out of the Woods, Taylor Swift's Midnights Heralds the Return of A Pop-Music Mastermind |url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/music/story/2022-10-20/taylor-swift-midnights-album-review |url-access=limited |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221021040329/https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/music/story/2022-10-20/taylor-swift-midnights-album-review |archive-date=October 21, 2022 |access-date=January 16, 2023 |website=Los Angeles Times}}
Music critics discussed the significance of the vocal manipulation. Mackenzie Wadsworth of the Tallahassee Democrat considered it a "mature sister" to the styles of Swift's 2017 album Reputation, bringing forth an alternative pop feel.{{Cite web |last=Wadsworth |first=Mackenzie |date=October 24, 2022 |title=Taylor Swift's Midnights Stuns Listeners |url=https://www.fsunews.com/story/entertainment/2022/10/23/taylor-swifts-midnights-stuns-listeners-13-stories-sleepless-nights/10578846002/ |access-date=December 12, 2024 |website=Tallahassee Democrat}} According to Ellen Johnson of Paste, the effect aligns "Midnight Rain" with the subgenre indietronica and the beats evoke the styles of Strfkr.{{Cite magazine |last=Johnson |first=Ellen |date=October 20, 2022 |title=Taylor Swift Deals in Dark Magic on Midnights |url=https://www.pastemagazine.com/music/taylor-swift/midnights-album-review/ |url-status=live |magazine=Paste |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221022212054/https://www.pastemagazine.com/music/taylor-swift/midnights-album-review/ |archive-date=October 22, 2022 |access-date=October 21, 2022}} Billboard{{'s}} Jason Lipshutz described the shift between Swift's pitched-down voice and normal singing as a call and response between the song's narrator and the ex-lover in question. Several reviews compared the production, particularly the vocal parts, to Antonoff's work on Lorde's 2017 album Melodrama.{{efn|Attributed to the Associated Press{{'}} Elise Ryan, Universal Music NZ's Chantal Dalebroux,{{Cite web |last=Dalebroux |first=Chantal |date=October 24, 2022 |title=Taylor's Midnights: A Deep Dive Into The Late Hours |url=https://umusic.co.nz/umusic/taylors-midnights-a-deep-dive-into-the-late-hours/ |access-date=January 17, 2023 |publisher=Universal Music NZ |archive-date=January 17, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230117142602/https://umusic.co.nz/umusic/taylors-midnights-a-deep-dive-into-the-late-hours/ |url-status=live }} and Spin{{'s}} Bobby Olivier{{Cite web |last=Olivier |first=Bobby |date=October 21, 2022 |title=On Midnights, Taylor Swift Dares To See Herself |url=https://www.spin.com/2022/10/taylor-swift-midnights-review/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221126041209/https://www.spin.com/2022/10/taylor-swift-midnights-review/ |archive-date=November 26, 2022 |access-date=November 25, 2022 |website=Spin}}}} Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone said that the "butch/femme duet" where Swift experiments with her singing was akin to the styles of Prince, while Jon Caramanica of The New York Times wrote that the "overcast mood" of the production and vocals were influenced by Drake and the Weeknd.{{Cite news |last=Caramanica |first=Jon |author-link=Jon Caramanica |date=October 21, 2022 |title=Taylor Swift, Caught Between Yesterday and Tomorrow on Midnights |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/10/21/arts/music/taylor-swift-midnights-review.html |url-access=limited |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221022110127/https://www.nytimes.com/2022/10/21/arts/music/taylor-swift-midnights-review.html |archive-date=October 22, 2022 |access-date=November 11, 2022 |work=The New York Times}}
Critical reception
Several critics who picked "Midnight Rain" as a highlight on Midnights considered its production experimental, interesting, and captivating.{{Cite news |last=McCormick |first=Neil |author-link=Neil McCormick |date=October 21, 2022 |title=On Midnights, Taylor Swift Kisses Goodbye to the Crowd-Pleasing Hit |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/music/what-to-listen-to/taylor-swift-midnights-album-review-pop-queen-kisses-goodbye/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20221021055050/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/music/what-to-listen-to/taylor-swift-midnights-album-review-pop-queen-kisses-goodbye/ |archive-date=October 21, 2022 |access-date=January 17, 2023 |work=The Daily Telegraph}} Spencer Kornhaber of The Atlantic appreciated how the "oozing and panning noises" evoke a "feeling of suspended time".{{Cite magazine |last=Kornhaber |first=Spencer |date=October 28, 2022 |title=Don't Blame a Man for Midnights |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/culture/archive/2022/10/taylor-swift-midnights-jack-antonoff-criticism/671911/ |url-access=limited |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221205112816/https://www.theatlantic.com/culture/archive/2022/10/taylor-swift-midnights-jack-antonoff-criticism/671911/ |archive-date=December 5, 2022 |access-date=January 8, 2023 |magazine=The Atlantic}} Wadsworth considered the sound an amalgamation of Swift's past styles, and Craig Jenkins from Vulture deemed it one of the R&B-tinged album tracks that showcased her abilities to create "a mannered genre reset constantly threatening to cut in an alluring new direction". Commenting on the vocal modulation, Spin's Bobby Olivier regarded it as "well executed, [...] landing an uncharacteristically soulful smolder". Lipshutz ranked "Midnight Rain" fifth on his ranking of all 13 Midnights tracks; he described the shifted-vocal hook as "rock-solid", giving Swift's real singing voice more clarity and power in the final refrain. Some critics were also fond of the storytelling lyrics. The Times
There were not as welcoming comments regarding the vocal effects. Spin
Personnel
Credits are adapted from the liner notes of Midnights.
- Taylor Swift – vocals, songwriter, producer
- Jack Antonoff – songwriter, producer, modular synths, Juno 6, Moog, Prophet 5, drums, programming, percussion, recording
- Laura Sisk – recording
- Megan Searl – assistant engineer
- Jon Sher – assistant engineer
- John Rooney – assistant engineer
- Randy Merrill – mastering engineer
- Serban Ghenea – mixing engineer
- Bryce Bordone – assistant mix engineer
Charts
Certifications
{{Certification Table Top|caption=Certifications for "Midnight Rain"}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=Australia|type=single|award=Platinum|number=2|relyear=2022|certyear=2024|access-date=June 14, 2024|refname=aria}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=Brazil|artist=Taylor Swift|title=Midnight Rain|award=Platinum|type=single|certyear=2024|relyear=2022|access-date=July 22, 2024|refname="PMB"}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=Canada|award=Platinum|certyear=2023|title=Midnight Rain|artist=Taylor Swift|type=single|access-date=January 19, 2023|relyear=2022|refname=musiccanada}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=New Zealand|artist=Taylor Swift|title=Midnight Rain|type=single|award=Platinum|access-date=December 19, 2024|source=radioscope|relyear=2022|certyear=2024|refname="RMNZ"}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=Spain|artist=Taylor Swift|title=Midnight Rain|award=Gold|type=single|certyear=2024|relyear=2022|id=taylor-swift-midnight-rain|access-date=November 11, 2024|refname="promusicae"}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=United Kingdom|award=Gold|certyear=2024|title=Midnight Rain|artist=Taylor Swift|type=single|access-date=June 24, 2024|relyear=2022|id=18815-1598-1|refname=bpi}}
{{Certification Table Bottom|nosales=true|noshipments=true|streaming=true}}
Notes
{{notelist}}
References
{{reflist}}
= Source =
- {{Cite book |last=Zaleski |first=Annie |author-link=Annie Zaleski |title=Taylor Swift: The Stories Behind the Songs |publisher=Thunder Bay Press |year=2024 |isbn=978-1-6672-0845-9 |pages=203–231 |chapter=The Midnights Era}}
{{Taylor Swift songs}}
{{Authority control}}
Category:Songs written by Taylor Swift
Category:Songs written by Jack Antonoff