Review: Lana Del Rey – Born To Die (Interscope, 2012)
Sorry for the delay. I know I said I’d post at least one a week, but the last couple have been hectic… vacation/destination wedding, and a family emergency that called for me being AFK. Here’s one I had in the tank waiting for the pics for a couple of weeks. No more delays, another review coming soon!
Yes, I’m going there. A pop princess on a major label. Not exactly my wheelhouse, I know. But this album is incredible, and given the amount of time I’m pouring into it, I think it’s high time we discuss it. I repeat, INCREDIBLE.
The album opens with the title track, a soft, soulful, hip hop tinged piece of indie pop that’s smooth like butter. The whole album can be described like this, I suppose: pure smooth perfection. The first four tracks comprise the strongest opening set of any album this year, for that matter, of the last year, maybe the last 10 years… the opening tracks of Black Sheep Boy or You Are The Conductor hit just as hard, but we’re talking apples and oranges to a certain extent. Del Rey’s lyrics are clever and dripping with sexuality, and their cleverness makes them listenable in a way that pop music about sex usually isn’t for me: I hate the blatant sexuality in modern pop, and Lana, at least, doesn’t smack us over the head with it (ie. from National Anthem: “I sing the national anthem, while I’m standing over your body, hold you like a python; and you can’t keep your hands off me or your pants on…” Rowr. She’s sexy without just saying “I want to have sex with you” (which, I suppose, isn’t all that sexy and explains why I’m not a fan of that sentiment in pop).
Song after song, Del Rey blows us away with clever lines, thoughtful melodies, and her silky voice. The comparison to Nancy Sinatra is a fair one, but she channels a wide spectrum from the pop world, from bits and pieces of Gwen Stephani to a tiny taste of Betty Boop (in the chorus of Off To The Races: “I’m your little scarlet, starlet, singing in the garden, kiss me on my open mouth”). She doesn’t display much versatility to any great extent on this album, but that can hardly be described as a criticism: if it ain’t broke, etc. Not a real complaint. My only real complaint is that the album seems to drag a little by the last couple of tracks… not sure if mixing things up a bit would have helped, but I doubt it, because This Is What Makes Us Girls, the closer, is a very strong track. It certainly drags more in the deluxe format though: the three additional album tracks I have heard (non-vinyl tracks, iTunes deluxe edition IIRC) really don’t add to the album and are a struggle to get through by the time the standard edition tracks are done.
The album cover is a further reflection of the aforementioned muted sexuality: classic Hollywood beauty with a hint of the red bra through the barely transparent white shirt (something I honestly didn’t notice until I held the vinyl in my hand). I’m not sure Del Rey’s music could be better described by a single image. The album art looks amazing in the vinyl format as well, bright blues and pastels with a blurry American car in the background: like I said before, classic Hollywood. The insert is nice, another beautiful pic of Del Rey with the lyrics printed on the opposite, but I prefer gatefold! Pretty minor gripe I suppose.
I’m not going to link to any purchase links, because I want to warn that this is on a major label, and I make it a practice to avoid supporting those monsters. Hypocritical, I know, since I bought the album, but I had to have it. Better to support your favorite major label bands by seeing them live, buying merch, etc. If you can see past that, though, this album is a MUST BUY and I can’t recommend it highly enough!
Welcome!
To begin, I’m not trying to do anything new and/or groundbreaking with this blog. Music review sites exist, vinyl review sites exist; this is going to be a similar experience. I’ll be reviewing new albums, vinyls that I’ve owned for some time, and anything else that needs reviewing.
My intent was originally to review a vinyl from my collection daily, but I realize that I’m not going to be able to maintain that schedule. In recognition of my scheduling abilities, perhaps a flexible schedule is necessary. I’ll commit to posting at least one review a week.
Enjoy! Get out there and buy albums, and support your favorite artists!
-G
Vinylphilia 