We laughed, the people next to us cried, and we all partied for two marathon nights. We left U.S. Bank Stadium feeling as if the Vikings had won the Super Bowl. Twice.
No, Swifties won BIG TIME. Here are 10 takeaways:
1. The acoustics. Yes, U.S. Bank Stadium is always a challenge when it comes to concert sound. It was doubly challenging for the Taylor Swift shows, not only because of the unfortunate natural echo of the billion-dollar football palace but also because of 64,000-some concertgoers singing along to every single song. From our seats near the back of the main floor, were we hearing the echo of the megastar or her myriad unpaid backup singers — or both? Frankly, our ears haven't recovered from the insane screams when Swift announced "Dear John" as a surprise song Saturday.
2. The pacing. Everything was meticulously orchestrated from the set list to the settings to the costume changes. She forever held everyone's interest even if it wasn't your favorite "Era." Between "Eras," the singer was off stage for only a minute or three, never long enough to justify an escape to a restroom or refreshment stand. Talk about Swift — and stamina.
3. What a difference five years and four new albums make. On her last tour five years ago, Swift played 24 tunes, including four medleys, in about two hours at the Minneapolis stadium. This time around, she offered 44 tunes — 12 in truncated readings but definitely more than snippets — in about 3 hours and 20 minutes. The four albums she released since the 2018 tour — "Lover," "Folklore," "Evermore" and "Midnights" — provided 26 tunes in the Eras Tour set list.
4. She knows "All Too Well." With her massive set list, Swift would've been prudent to perform the original five-minute version of 2012's "All Too Well" instead of the 10-minute remake from her 2021 update of the "Red" album. But fans were clearly glad to be in it for the long haul; it became a midconcert centerpiece and, amazingly, one of the loudest singalongs of the night.
5. Main floor vs. the stands. Where you sit — or stand in the case of Swifties — always affects your appreciation of a concert. Maybe more so for the Eras Tour. If you were on the floor — or field — you got to see Swift up close because she worked the three stages, joined by a runway. However, you didn't see most of the artful images projected onto the stage itself. For instance, an acoustic guitar — glitter encrusted, of course — decorated the stage for "Fearless." Elevated seats provided a fuller perspective on the lusciously designed presentation, but then you relied on the big live-video screen for up-close looks. Heck, just be thankful you snagged a ticket.
6. The missing Era. Swift covered only nine of her 10 albums or eras. We missed the first one — "Taylor Swift," that well-crafted collection about teen love, gone good and bad. Four selections from that 2006 LP have been featured as "surprise songs" on the Eras Tour. But why not include at least one cut in the regular rotation? There's usually only one selection from "Speak Now" — and it's a shortened version (of "Enchanted") at that. How 'bout "Tim McGraw," "Teardrops on My Guitar" or "Picture to Burn"? We appreciated the country era, y'all.
