I'm here today to discuss a very summery topic however- the flawless Lana Del Rey's Ultraviolence album of course, which was released early June. I have been listening to it all summer, until I knew every lyric, beat and rhythm off by heart- and now I'm here to share my thoughts on it. Please note that I am no way and expert in music- this is just my humble opinion, as always :)
I have loved Lana for a long time- I've mentioned her countless times, I've listened to her for countless years, she is definitely my favourite singer of all time. I know probably all of her songs off by heart- her old stuff, her new stuff and her unreleased stuff. Lana is my queen, and I would be definitely lost without her.
I loved the Born to Die saga so, so much- every album, every song, every video, even the short film. I thought it ended amazingly, every record was flawless and I genuinely cannot fault anything in the saga- it is sheer perfection. So when Lana announced that Tropico was the farewell to the Born to Die saga, and that Ultraviolence would be something new and different, I was admittedly a little bit sceptical and scared. I didn't know what to expect, and so I was terrified to hear West Coast for the first time.
And truthfully, I didn't fall in love with it immediately. I listened to it a few times and I didn't think much of it- but just like anything else of Lana's, it grew on me, slowly but surely. As Shades of Cool was released, I didn't like it at all- I classified it as boring and melancholy, but it didn't become one of my favourites of the whole album until a few weeks later. Brooklyn Baby was an instant hit- I love the last chorus 'Yeah my boyfriend's pretty cool/But he's not as cool as me' I love how it adds a bit of mystery, and ultimately creates Lana a femme fatale we all know she is. Ultraviolence itself is a good song- I'm not crazy about it, simply because of the lyrics and what Lana tells us- I don't think it's right to glamorize abuse, but at the end of the day, it's art, and that's what I take it to be.
And a week or so after the 4 singles came out, so did Ultra itself. I got it, a little after its release date, and it took me a while to properly listen to all of the songs, I don't delve right in to an album- I take in and digest each song as it comes. I only listened to the whole album probably about a month after I got it- in the middle of a hot, hot rural Lithuania countryside at my grandmother's villa.
I must say, the vintage feel of 'Money Power Glory' , 'Old Money' 'Pretty When You Cry' and 'The Other Woman' rocks. Listening to these songs in the midst of a hot summer is unbelievable, it makes them feel so much more real, pure and true. Lana's husky vocals absorb you into her songs- you become Lana, instantaneously heartbroken, reminded of poignant blues of post-relationship.
Lana is a little bit different in Ultra- in Born to Die, she is love sick and obsessed in some ways- in Ultra, her lover is obsessed with her, and a lot of it is written in the aftermath of the relationship- she is even sometimes a 'mistress'. I love this new feel and vibe- the vintage hipster atmosphere is so true to Lana- this is Lana, but maturer, more alluring, even more gorgeous Lana.
I could go into detail about each and every song, but I'm not going to. Everyone needs to take an hour or two to sit down and listen to this- Lana will inspire you. Ultra, like Born to Die is flawless- and Lana is a 'bad bitch on the side'. It makes sence- at the end of the video for Ride, she finds her freedoms- and in Ultra, she explores those freedoms. And in a way, maybe that is something we all also need to apply to our lives.
Thank you so much for reading! I will also be at Ed Sheeran at the 3Arena in Dublin this Sunday, please say hello if you spot me!
Gaby x
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