Why reputation sounds so different, at a glance

Here are the distributions of key signatures in each of Taylor’s albums – you’ll note that reputation is the first album with songs that are entirely in minor keys. (In two songs from 1989, as well as “Safe and Sound”, was the verse in a minor key.) Meanwhile, G Major and E Major, her favourite keys from Red and Speak Now (probably the albums that diehard fans would describe as being the most distinctively Taylor) – have entirely disappeared.

To build on the footnotes in the graphs – songs like “Sparks Fly” start off on a minor key (D Minor) – but if you consider the entire chord sequence (dm – B Flat – F – C), it only makes sense to analyze the F Major as being the tonic (i.e. the key of the song), so that the sequence is vi-IV-I-V. This is why, at least personally, the first chord creates a sort of “tension” (not in a negative sense – maybe “energy” or “forward motion” are better descriptions) that is resolved on the third chord; the third chord feels like “settling”. (Possibly that’s just me.)