Taylor Swift fan shocked after new album is mispressed as 90s electronica compilation
“Who is this?!” “Please help me,” said one confused Taylor Swift fan on TikTok after playing the record
Left: Fernando Leon/TAS23/Getty Images
Right: Richard H Kirk of Cabaret Voltaire
Swifites – you’ve got the tickets, you’ve got the merch and now, you’ve got the special edition orchid marbled vinyl copy of Taylor Swift’s new album, Speak Now (Taylor’s Version). You take it out of its sleeve, however, place it down, press play… and it’s a 15-track compilation of rare 90s electronica. If this has happened to you, don’t worry, you’ve come to the right place. We can explain.
Producer, DJ and record label boss Damian Lazarus posted to his Instagram account on Tuesday a video sent to him of a Taylor Swift fan playing the new record by the pop star, instead being treated to the rave sonics of Herbert, Thunderhead The Word By Eden, Liquid Son and many more.
Due to a vinyl mispressing, the old-school sounds of Above Boards’ recent compilation, Happy Land: A Compendium Of Electronic Music From The British Isles 1992-1996 Vol. 1, have ended up being etched into the wax of a number of copies of the Shake It Off star’s latest album. How many copies have been mispressed is as of yet unknown.
In the video, you can hear the shocked and confused Taylor Swift fan (@mischief_marauder on TikTok) respond with gasps of “Who is this?!” as she plays the spoken word intro to Cabaret Voltaire’s Soul Vine (70 Billion People). “’Speak Now (Not Taylor’s Version),” she laughs, followed by “Please help me”.
In the post, Damian Lazarus writes “As far as record company mistakes go, this has to be one of the finest. Anyone that has bought the Orchid marbled vinyl copy of @taylorswift beautiful Speak Now album is not actually hearing Ms Swift but instead is hearing the incredible HAPPY LAND compilation curated by my best friends and @crosstownrebels team of @edcartwright & @leonjames70
“Basically if you bought the vinyl and [were] excited to listen to Speak Now, you will now be confronted by some of the most bizarre and brilliant music ever made by the likes of Cabaret Voltaire, Ultramarine, Thunderhead and Matthew Herbert. Good luck!!!!”
UMG has since issued a statement to MusicTech, which reads:
“We are aware that there are an extremely limited number of incorrectly pressed vinyl copies in circulation and have addressed the issue. If you have purchased one of the affected goods, please contact customer service at your respective retailer for a replacement or refund.”
Check out the rest of Above Boards’ compilations via bandcamp.
