3. Opalite

1. Musical Style: 1970s/80s ABBA-infused Pop

2. Literary References: "Storm Inside a Teacup" goes all the way back to Cicero; often used in American idiom as "tempest in a teacup."

3. Key Lyric: "This is just / A storm inside a teacup / But shelter here with me, my love / This life will beat you up"

4. Favorite Lyric: "I had a bad habit / Of missing lovers past / My brother used to call it / 'Eating out of the trash'"

5. Taylor's Callback: "I thought my house was haunted / I used to live with ghosts" calls back to "Haunted" from "Speak Now" as well as the "Anti-Hero" video, in which this idea is literally portrayed. Also...

6. TL/DR: "It's not that big of a deal...shake it off!"

7. Previous Track 3s: Teardrops on My Guitar, Love Story, Back to December, Treacherous, Style, I Did Something Bad, Lover, the last great american dynasty, gold rush, Anti-Hero, My Boy Only Breaks His Favorite Toys.

If you're looking for the perfect pop confection, look no further than Taylor's track threes, and "Opalite" is the most unapologetically catchy pop tune on the entire album. 

The lyrics are simple: both the characters in the narrative lived in the dark night of sadness until they found each other; now they've emerged together into the sunlight of happiness. The Beatles said it a bit more simply: "She loves you, yeah, yeah, yeah!" Taylor echoes this simplicity with "Now the sky is Opalite, oh, oh, oh, oh!"

For the third song in a row, give credit to Max Martin and Shellback for their drum and bass composition, which drives the song forward, especially on the bridge, which is where the song quite literally takes flight.

Taylor's vocals soar upward as she sings, "This is just / A storm inside a teacup," and the emotional effect is like soaring into the air. The rhythm intensifies this feeling, leading up to the climax of the bridge in which she builds four layers of harmony with the word love, once again echoing what The Beatles did with the bridge of their version of "Twist and Shout."

Someone on social media posted recently that "Taylor's honorary doctorate should have been in engineering because she's so good a building bridges." I wish I could give that person proper credit, because the bridge is always my most anticipated section of all her songs, and the bridge on "Opalite" elevates the song from catchy to classic. 

This is the most infectiously memorable song on the album, the track that I loved the most upon my first listen. The link to Travis Kelce is also undeniable, as opal is his birthstone, and critics have praised its upbeat mood and lyrics, describing it as one of Taylor's most happy and optimistic songs of her career.

"Opalite" is certain to join the pantheon of legendary Taylor track threes, most notably "Anti-Hero," "Love Story," "Style," "Back to December," and "the last great american dynasty," all of which feature memorable narratives within brilliant melodies. 

This is also probably the most danceable track on the album, and Internet creators, particularly in the Philippines, have already created viral Tik Tok videos choreographing the song. If Taylor makes her own video featuring more of Mandy Moore's dance moves, it might turn out to be her biggest hit of all time.