Lana Del Rey swims in her success and embraces her fans’ praises as her second album of the year drops with a bang.
Lana Del Rey’s official poster for her “Blue Banisters” album.
Del Rey’s album “Blue Banisters” was quickly revealed soon after the release of her album “Chemtrails Over the Country Club” in early 2021.
The album consists of a persistently personal dive into Del Rey’s life, previous love interests and the national lockdown. “Blue Banisters” also gave
her a reason to release some of her highly-anticipated, unreleased tracks that may have leaked online in the past.
When Del Rey announced the new album, then titled “Rock Candy Sweet” to the world the day after “Chemtrails” was released, she kicked off a wildfire of conspiracy on if and how it would release in its scheduled month of June.
Del Rey has been known in the past to push and delay her releases, so fans tried not to get their hopes up. In fact, the album appeared quite unreachable until Del Rey dropped three surprise track singles from the album, renamed “Blue Banisters”, on May 20.
The tracks released were “Textbook”, “Wildflower Wildfire” and the title track “Blue Banisters”. All of these tracks comprise a poetic and literary style. They showcase Del Rey at her best lyrical writing since her acclaimed album “Norman f******g Rockwell” in 2019 and also teased the return of sound fans have been begging her for.
After a few months, Del Rey dropped a fourth single from the album, “Arcadia”, in which the music video ends in the Ennio Morricone interpolated “Interlude – The Trio”. This track is a well-rounded, structured, bass-boosted western tune fans will never forget.
“Blue Banisters” put Del Rey right back into the spotlight. By doing television interviews and receiving high praise, the singer proves she’s yet to go anywhere.
Experiencing “Blue Banisters” evokes an intense emotional reaction from many listeners. It’s a mix of sadness and anxiety as well as happiness and loss. The track “Dealer” is a wonderful example of this— it’s a metaphor-riddled song showcasing how it feels when your lover isn’t there for you.
Del Rey proves her melodies are exceptional in “Living Legend” and the Mike Dean-produced “Wildflower Wildfire”, in which the rhyming word choice mimics the flow of both tracks’ runtime.
Del Rey raised a huge bar for herself with “Norman f*****g Rockwell”, and when the debatably notable “Chemtrails Over The Country Road” released, she knew her next release would have to be a spectacle.
In that, it can be believed she has achieved success. Her fans are blown back by this album and its rawness. Although it may not be a mainstream hit, it is more than enough to be considered one of the best alternative albums to release in 2021.
Gabe Kanae can be reached at jaedynyoung@sagebrush.unr.edu or on Twitter @NevadaSagebrush.
