Ultraviolence - Lana Del Rey
'Ultraviolence'Lana Del Rey
Tiger Rating: 9.0 / 10
The music world is split in two. Those who are unsure about Lana Del Rey and those who loathe her. Obviously that's a joke as she has a long list of admirers and fans. For my part I find her totally intriguing even if I am unmoved by a lot of her music. She's gorgeous, quirky, unpredictable, obviously talented, hearkens back to the 1960s a lot and is polarizing - what's not to love?
My heart skipped a beat when I first heard that Black Key's Dan Auerbach was lending a hand on the album. It sounded like a strange choice at first, but evidently worked out for the best.
Lana is intriguing because she very obviously fits into no one genre. She does her own thing and is only comparable to other sulky, shoe gazing femmes, of which there are not an overabundance. It's hard to establish what her game is besides making people wonder. This album clears up nothing in terms of getting to the core of who she is (maybe she just really is retro loving, gangster Marilyn Monroe?).
Besides rubbing shoulders with other seasoned musicians and producers (which definitely pays off), she challenges herself in her vocals. She doesn't just mumble out this one with those big, bee stung lips of hers. She actually sings and proves her range is actually pretty impressive.
I like this album for the fact that it sounds like a young artist pushing herself and stepping out confidently in (slightly) new directions. I applaud that because it's more than most artists at the top of their game do. There's a definite new found confidence in LDR. She's no longer the pretty-but-weird wallflower at the prom. On 'Ultraviolence' she's graduated high school and living the freak life unapologetically all over the states.
You're never going to figure her out. She's almost mythical in her persona. Whatever. This album is bold, less sleepy and lazy than her previous efforts and it's bound to make you just a little obsessed with Lana.
Oh and I saw no further references to 'A Clockwork Orange' on the album other than the title. Probably proves she's just obsessed with style over substance. But then we knew that.
01/ Cruel World - Auerbach's presence is immediately noticeable from the sleezy bluesy intro. As an opener this one is both grand and boring at the same time. It trudges along amidst in a dusty sunset scape, sometimes sounding like a lost Raveonettes track, other times sounding like a Mighty Boosh song. Lyrically, it's kind of just about a girl feeling herself (in the figurative sense) at a party or something, knowing that all the guys like her. Lana manages to take a mundane, pop-inspired subject and twist it into something unusual and interesting.
02/ Ultraviolence - The title track that's already been released as a single, it's understated and woozy, with some well placed ambience placed in the chorus. Like on most of the tracks of this album, it's the post production and background sounds and noises that really add something special to this record. It's thick with sensuality but is never overtly sexual. Something LDR does well.
03/ Shades Of Cool - What starts out as a potential James Bond song morphs in the chorus into something boldly summery and swoons with sunshine. It's very evident that Lana has pushed herself into new areas in terms of vocals, and this track is great testimony to what she can actually do. A wicked slice of guitar solo (courtesy of Dan?) cuts through the wooziness and takes it into an underground blues club, before releasing it back to the sunlight.
04/ Brooklyn Baby - The lazy-summer-afternoon-on-a-lilo vibe continues where Lana explains how she "gets down to beat poetry". If she keeps making references to all my favourite things I'm going to have to go ahead and fall in love with her, despite her guitar playing boyfriend and "hydroponic weed". A tentative trumpet joins the fray and then fades away. A lot of the lyrics so far are just as fluffy and vague as they always are, but we never loved her for being lyrical. It's all about the vibe with Lana.
05/ West Coast - A shameless nod to Stevie Nicks, this track is pure midnight in the swamps. Some randy bar dancer is probably writhing around with a python and a guy called Buck is missing her. There may not be coherent lyrics anywhere, but she tells a story with every song. The tempo chops and changes without jarring. You just go with it at this point. Very strong track and good choice for a single.
06/ Sad Girl - Not the strongest track on the album. Could have done without it IMO. You're a sad girl. Yeah we got that thaaaaanks. Next.
07/ Pretty When You Cry - Auerbach gives a 'House Of The Rising Sun' meets 'Hotel California' (but more subdued) intro and Lana takes us to 2 a.m in a Texan bar from a Robert Rodriguez movie. Extending the whole "I'm a sad girl / I'm a bad girl", LDR let's us know that she's pretty when she cries. That's probably just as well. This is the most shoe-gaze-y track so far. It's quite lush. If you don't feel more subdued or downright depressed after this song, it's proof that you are indeed a robot. Another sharp electric solo by Dan is exactly what this track needed. It's quite cool that the guitars are layered beneath the sound. Just makes it less gimmicky.
08/ Money Power Glory - The guitars continue to punctuate the swaying atmosphere on this one. Her true (?) intentions are revealed. It's World Domination dominating Del Rey's heart. Starting in New York weirdly.
09/ Fucked My Way To The Top - And THIS is what Lana aka Lizzy Grant aka Glitter Skipping Rope (or whatevertf she calls herself) is ace at. Is she lying? Is she telling the jaw dropping truth? Neither would be surprising but these head games are well played. As far as a song goes, it is as confident and subtly sneering as all the others.
10/ Old Money - A song so genuinely beautiful and uplifting that it almost doesn't belong on the album with all the other sleazefest tracks. Well played Lana / Dan. The string sections lift it just high enough and drop it before it becomes cheesy and nauseating. Just a really really pretty song.
11/ The Other Woman - The same sweet, restrained attitude closes the album on this throwback of a track that is a little bit country, a little bit 1930s jazz and about some guy's mistress dying alone.
Herein lies the essence of Lana. A f-ck you to the mainstream. Some head games with her haters and a mix of beauty and sadness.
Perfect.
WVS
02/ Ultraviolence - The title track that's already been released as a single, it's understated and woozy, with some well placed ambience placed in the chorus. Like on most of the tracks of this album, it's the post production and background sounds and noises that really add something special to this record. It's thick with sensuality but is never overtly sexual. Something LDR does well.
03/ Shades Of Cool - What starts out as a potential James Bond song morphs in the chorus into something boldly summery and swoons with sunshine. It's very evident that Lana has pushed herself into new areas in terms of vocals, and this track is great testimony to what she can actually do. A wicked slice of guitar solo (courtesy of Dan?) cuts through the wooziness and takes it into an underground blues club, before releasing it back to the sunlight.
04/ Brooklyn Baby - The lazy-summer-afternoon-on-a-lilo vibe continues where Lana explains how she "gets down to beat poetry". If she keeps making references to all my favourite things I'm going to have to go ahead and fall in love with her, despite her guitar playing boyfriend and "hydroponic weed". A tentative trumpet joins the fray and then fades away. A lot of the lyrics so far are just as fluffy and vague as they always are, but we never loved her for being lyrical. It's all about the vibe with Lana.
05/ West Coast - A shameless nod to Stevie Nicks, this track is pure midnight in the swamps. Some randy bar dancer is probably writhing around with a python and a guy called Buck is missing her. There may not be coherent lyrics anywhere, but she tells a story with every song. The tempo chops and changes without jarring. You just go with it at this point. Very strong track and good choice for a single.
06/ Sad Girl - Not the strongest track on the album. Could have done without it IMO. You're a sad girl. Yeah we got that thaaaaanks. Next.
07/ Pretty When You Cry - Auerbach gives a 'House Of The Rising Sun' meets 'Hotel California' (but more subdued) intro and Lana takes us to 2 a.m in a Texan bar from a Robert Rodriguez movie. Extending the whole "I'm a sad girl / I'm a bad girl", LDR let's us know that she's pretty when she cries. That's probably just as well. This is the most shoe-gaze-y track so far. It's quite lush. If you don't feel more subdued or downright depressed after this song, it's proof that you are indeed a robot. Another sharp electric solo by Dan is exactly what this track needed. It's quite cool that the guitars are layered beneath the sound. Just makes it less gimmicky.
08/ Money Power Glory - The guitars continue to punctuate the swaying atmosphere on this one. Her true (?) intentions are revealed. It's World Domination dominating Del Rey's heart. Starting in New York weirdly.
09/ Fucked My Way To The Top - And THIS is what Lana aka Lizzy Grant aka Glitter Skipping Rope (or whatevertf she calls herself) is ace at. Is she lying? Is she telling the jaw dropping truth? Neither would be surprising but these head games are well played. As far as a song goes, it is as confident and subtly sneering as all the others.
10/ Old Money - A song so genuinely beautiful and uplifting that it almost doesn't belong on the album with all the other sleazefest tracks. Well played Lana / Dan. The string sections lift it just high enough and drop it before it becomes cheesy and nauseating. Just a really really pretty song.
11/ The Other Woman - The same sweet, restrained attitude closes the album on this throwback of a track that is a little bit country, a little bit 1930s jazz and about some guy's mistress dying alone.
Herein lies the essence of Lana. A f-ck you to the mainstream. Some head games with her haters and a mix of beauty and sadness.
Perfect.
WVS
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