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the lakes

Bonus Track | Promotional Single | folklore (2020)

“the lakes” is the only bonus track from Taylor’s eighth studio album, folklore (2020). It is a folk ballad with themes of introspection and escapism, reflecting on Taylor’s fantasy of retiring in England’s Lake District.

Background and Release

Per the unforeseen announcement of folklore and the subsequent release of the album’s track list, “the lakes” is the featured bonus track on the eight physical deluxe editions of the album. It was unavailable on streaming platforms until Taylor released the deluxe version digitally on August 18, 2020. She said:

«I thought it would be the perfect way to slot the last puzzle piece in. Right when people were least expecting it. Because ‘hoax’ is the ending song for the record which I thought was interesting for a couple of weeks but then I actually wanted to come in with the real last song of the record, which is ‘the lakes’. It shows you the overarching theme of the whole album of trying to escape, having something you wanna protect, trying to protect your own sanity and saying ‘Look, they did this hundreds of years ago. I’m not the first person who’s felt this way.’»

Taylor Swift

Two days later, Taylor introduced subdivisions of the folklore album in thematical chapters. “the lakes” is featured in the first group, folklore: the escapism chapter, together with five other songs. In 2022, Taylor was named the Global Ambassador for the annual Record Store Day. On April 23, she released a limited number of 7-inch vinyl copies of “the lakes”, containing both the album version (on the A-side) and the original demo (B-side).

Lyrical Theme

The poetic lyrics of “the lakes” see Taylor introspecting on her semi-retirement in Windermere, located in England’s Lake District. She fantasizes about a utopia free of social media and urban settings, getting away from society, her critics and detractors, all while finding solace with her partner in the wilderness; like the Lake Poets did hundreds of years ago. In a conversation with producer Jack Antonoff, Taylor recounted a trip she and her boyfriend at the time, Joe Alwyn, took some years ago, which inspired her to write the song during lockdown in 2020:

«We’d gone to the Lake District in England a couple years ago. In the 19th century you had a lot of poets like William Wordsworth and John Keats who’d spend a lot of time there. And there was a poet district, these artists that moved there. They were heckled for it and made fun of for being these eccentrics and kind of odd artists who decided that they just wanted to live there. I remember thinking, ‘I could see this.’ You live in a cottage and you got wisteria growing up the outside of it…of course they escaped like that. And they had their own community of other artists who’d done the same thing. I’ve always, in my career since I was probably about twenty, written about this cottage backup plan that I have. I have been writing about that forever.»

Taylor Swift

Overall, the songwriting exudes a depressive tone coupled with escapism. It contains references to Wisteria, a genus of aquatic flowering plants, and William Wordsworth, the 19th-century English poet who is recognized for his Romantic works. Aaron Dessner, Taylor’s main collaborator on the folklore album, stated that the song uses hints of tragic Greek poetry and feels like getting “lost in a beautiful garden”. Taylor confirmed this by saying:

«I went to William Wordsworth’s grave and just sat there and I was like, ‘Wow. He went and did it.’ And you kept writing but you didn’t subscribe to the things that were killing you. And that’s really the overarching thing that I felt when I was writing folklore: I may not be able to go to The Lakes right now – or to go anywhere – but I’m going there in my head. The escape plan is working.»

Taylor Swift

Production

The co-producer of “the lakes”, Jack Antonoff, said that the song originally was a “big orchestral version” before Taylor told him to make it smaller. This demo version was released to all music platforms on July 24, 2021, the first anniversary of folklore. He said:

«On one of my favorite songs on folklore, 'the lakes,' there was this big orchestral version, and Taylor was like, 'Eh, make it small.' I had gotten lost in the string arrangements and all this stuff and I took everything out. I was just like, 'Oh, my God!' We were not together because that record was made [remotely], but I remember being in the studio alone like, 'Holy shit, this is so perfect.'»

Jack Antonoff

Live Performances

Taylor first performed “the lakes” as part of the concert film and documentary folklore: the long pond studio sessions (2020), together with Aaron Dessner and Jack Antonoff. It was also a surprise song during her show on June 2, 2023, on “The Eras Tour” (2023-2024) in Chicago. She played the song on piano. On June 18, 2024, Taylor sang a beautiful mashup of “the lakes” with “I Hate It Here” (2024) in Cardiff.

Critical Reception

“the lakes” received widespread acclaim from music critics, who complimented the poetic lyricism and mellow instrumentals, with many naming it a highlight on folklore and one of the best songs Taylor had ever penned. Hannah Mylrea of NME opined that “the lakes” is more poetic and romantic than any song on the standard edition of folklore, and praised the song as “allusive”. Rolling Stone‘s Brittany Spanos wrote that the song channels Romantic-era poetry, by depicting unconditional love “within a controversial life and painful experiences”. Sammy Andrews of Redbrick stated that the song demonstrates “exceptional” lyrical sophistication and maturity, attesting to Taylor’s “talent and craftsmanship as a songwriter”.

Commercial Performance

After three days of tracking, “the lakes” debuted at No. 5 on the Billboard Digital Song Sales chart, and at No. 18 on Billboard Bubbling Under the Hot 100 chart. It also reached the Top 20 on New Zealand Top 40 Singles and Canadian Digital Song Sales charts, and the Top 30 on Hungarian Singles, Scottish Singles and the UK Downloads charts.