Kate Voegele’s “Bad Taste” takes pleasure in knowing that someone who once had power over you no longer gets to decide how you feel. The song’s alt-pop rock approach fits that blunt point of view. There is no attempt to sound gracious about the past or pretend that getting over someone means wishing them well.
Voegele describes the satisfaction of being happy when she knows that happiness might upset the person who hurt her. It is a petty kind of revenge, but one that does not require a confrontation or even a conversation. The other person can watch from a distance. The important change has already happened: their opinion no longer controls her life.
Voegele has called the song one of the most fun tracks on her album, and that pleasure comes from saying things people are often expected to keep to themselves. Being free of someone does not always lead to forgiveness or indifference. Sometimes it means enjoying your life and letting them hate it.
