Born To Die

I'd never really paid much attention to Lana Del Rey before the album release, having only heard a remix of Video Games that didn't do the original justice. I looked at what the internet was saying and the reviews seemed oddly mixed between those who said every track was great and those who seemed to have some sort of a grudge against her that no-one could properly define. I made my own mind up, and very quickly joined the ranks of those who love every track. Born To Die is a strong opener and, in similar tones to Video Games, meshes haunting melody and lyrics with a gritty, torch song quality, oddly verging between dirge and pop. Off To The Races continues the haunting theme with an offbeat love song that may at first seem like a celebration of being shallow but very quickly reveals maturity and depth, and once listened to is difficult to forget. Blue Jeans is a beautiful pop song slowed down to a pace where it almost feels like a ballad. Video Games is simply the most beautiful song of the last year. Diet Mountain Dew is a breezy almost nonchalant pop song. National Anthem is a playful song that on the surface has some lines that might make you think it's a clumsy way of celebrating the money and fame worship you hear in some other singers' songs, but the OTT way it's done and some of the lyrics, once closely listened to, clearly show it's a send up. Dark Paradise, a beautiful ballad about loss, is like an Evanescence song without the operatics. Radio is one of those guilty pleasure songs - a laid back pop song with a chorus that, if played on radio, would require much editing, and yet still manages to remain sounding innocent and beautiful. Carmen is a warning tale of the sad effects of Hollywood. Million Dollar Man is an old time dirge ballad with an undercurrent of sadness, and is extremely classy. Now comes one of my favourite new pop songs - Summertime Sadness. At this point you may think there is a theme of depression sinking into the songs, but this song is hard to describe because it somehow manages to be downbeat and uplifting at the same time. Ending the main album is This Is What Makes Us Girls, which is another one of those songs that could appear to be glamorising shallowness, yet at the same time has very knowing lyrics and manages to hook you into the story it's telling. The three extra tracks don't stray too far from the winning formula of the main album. Without You is a heartfelt ballad that it is hard to believe was left off the main album. Lolita is a playful song that perhaps is a bit too much Avril Lavigne in her unconvincing bratty stage to fit too well with the other songs, yet isn't what you'd call bad. Lucky Ones is definitely the song that should end the album, a gentle ballad that slips comfortably into the silence at the end of the CD.

There seems little point in reviewing an album that has already been reviewed by so many people, but a few thoughts are perhaps worth writing down, given the whirl of misinformation and hype and hating that has gone on. With just a couple of songs Lana Del Rey has completely rejuvenated and revalidated the whole of popular music. That may seem an overstatement, but I'm speaking as someone who wouldn't listen to the Top 40 if you offered me a large sum of money. I only had to listen to a snatch of one of Lana's songs, and I knew she was something special, something exciting from a musical realm that has been entirely stale for the past decade. Firstly the image: yes, she is striking to look at, but it is anything but an easy look, it's a confrontational look and a mysterious look; she doesn't smile, she looks like she could maybe kill you, given provocation. Everything she does flirts with the conventions of pop music, but all at one remove. In her songs, she plays a certain character, arguably several different ones. You sense that she doesn't feel any limitation on what she will do. She will quote Nabokov's Lolita, because she feels like it. She will write a song entitled 'Born To Die', she will call her album it, as no other calculating pop star would do. She sings about doomed love and death, as no other pop star would do. She mixes pungent reality with seductive fantasy. All her songs are shot through with a sad, wasted glamour that it's impossible to shake from your mind, once you've heard it. She is to pop music now what Springsteen was to pop music in the seventies and eighties. She is arguably one of the best lyricists at work today, in any genre. She presents to us 'a freshman generation of degenerate beauty queens'. The portraits she paints are old-fashioned portraits of young women and young women grown old, who have never heard of the word feminism, and blindly pledge their hearts to useless and violent and masculine men. Listen to the sadness in her portraits, rather than having some knee-jerk reaction to the un-PC characters. This is no advert for female empowerment, but it portrays these doomed and sincere women with great fidelity and affection. Del Rey doesn't sneer; she empathises with her characters, she becomes her characters. There is as much depth in her portraits of superficiality as you would find in a Matt Berninger lyric. Dark Paradise is one of the most subtly powerful and devastating portraits of living after the death of a lover that you will find. Carmen is a heartbreaking portrayal of a woman who everyone envies the false image of, while the woman herself is living in hell. Million Dollar Man is a perfect indictment of a certain kind of flashy man who women will fall for, only to be mistreated. Del Rey's women are victims, yes, but it's the sincere tragedy of their situations which makes for such memorable music. The tunes, of course, are entirely sublime. The sort of tunes you thought had died out with pop's heyday. You remember Madonna circa 'Like a Prayer'? Born To Die itself is one of the most majestic pop songs ever written. She is in the same league as Prince when he wrote 'Nothing Compares 2 U' and 'When Doves Cry'. Her voice is not a perfect instrument; there's a hitch in her voice which is occasionally disruptive, but she manoeuvres around it pretty well, and her ability to move from deep sophisticate to adolescent wanna-be is frequently striking. Buy the fifteen track version. Lucky Ones is classic.

Firstly, I want to address the inadequate online loudmouths who seem determined to drive this young woman to a breakdown with the amount of bile they've been spewing in recent months: I don't care about the hype surrounding Lana Del Rey, it doesn't interest me. I don't care that she's changed her name (hardly a new phenomenon in the entertainment industry) or how wealthy her father is. I don't care that she's a nervous live performer - it's hardly surprising given the barrage of attacks she has already faced. Oh, and I certainly don't care whether or not her lips are enhanced by collagen. It's somewhat disturbing that only female singers ever face this kind of harsh scrutiny, but otherwise it's irrelevant. All that matters to me is the music - and the music is sublime. A big part of the appeal is that incredible, shiver-inducing voice; one moment it's a world-weary drawl encompassing all the despair of broken dreams and unfulfilled hopes... the next it's girly and playful with an uncomfortable undercurrent of knowing sexuality (hence the 'Lolita' comparisons). It's perfectly matched by the 'Lynchian' quality of the music, a combination of dreamy, seductive Hollywood strings and grimy trailer-park beats. It's Nancy Sinatra lost in the world of Twin Peaks. Bizarrely a few critics have suggested a certain misogyny is present in her lyrics; they seem determined to remain oblivious to the persona Del Rey clearly adopts in virtually all the songs here - a (sadly not uncommon) teenage girl lacking in self-worth, dreaming only of wealth and celebrity and so desperate to find and hold a man that she willingly accepts indifference or even outright cruelty, telling herself she's in love. It's precisely this which makes songs like Video Games so heartbreakingly tragic. Del Rey is merely portraying (based on personal experience, apparently) the misogyny so many young women still fall victim to, partly because they aren't strong or confident enough to demand the better life they deserve. To sum up: if you liked the singles Video Games and Born To Die, there's plenty more of the same here. The only real problem Lana Del Rey faces is, how do you follow an album as accomplished as this? I for one can't wait to see what she does next.

I have to say this album caught me by surprise. I admit to being a more rock/metal/alternative orientated music listener who tends to shy away from the more commercial side of music, such as chart music. But when I first saw Lana Del Rey performing Video Games on Live at Jools Holland I was mesmerized. Her voice just captured me and her 60's look was a refreshing change. So I decided to go for it and buy the album despite all the negative talk about her. I have to say it really is a great collection of music. Her voice throughout is stunning and the songs, although some of them more chart based than I'd like, are quite strong. Coming from an alternative view of music I would recommend this album to anyone.

After hearing '' Video Games'' ,once and seeing it to be the wonderful track it is, i wondered if the album could also be as good. Always on the lookout for something new i made the leap of faith and brought it.................................... It arrived and i saw the beautiful Lana on the cover , mmmm yum, a strange crop , you can't make out the car shes in front of or anything else for that matter; Then its that first listen time, will it be good? will it be crap? will i like it at all? O.K im teasing with you its great , no really great, and im very picky with music, 12 tracks that have something to say , yes i know 21st century music with something to say, unusual yes but about time too; track 1 Born to die , wasn't sure at first, but now i love it , '' lets go get high'' dont people at radio stations listen before they play music any more?. Other stand out tracks, Dark Paradise , Summertime Sadness, This is what makes us girls and ,the gotta be a single, Radio. The only week link for me is Million dollar man but when i play the album its the hole thing , and no skipping tracks just like the old days with vinyl . So if like me your unsure but like the singles so far buy it you'll love it. P.S this girls gonna be a big star , and shes sexy too,

Since catching Lana Del Ray on Jools Holland's show last year, I was pretty captivated by her performance of Video Games, a fragile, modern torch song for the "whatever" generation. I think i've heard Placebo, The National, Gaga, Madonna, Kate Bush/Tori Amos, Jay-Z and Timbaland influences throughout the CD, all this whilst still sounding fresh and new, a great achievement. Luckily I missed all the internet phenomenon & fake songstress press headlines (is Juliette Lewis really a good measure of talent?), so I think i've actually come to this CD genuinely unspoiled by any unnecessary distraction. This was the one CD that I've been looking forward to and it really doesn't disappoint. Song wise, I have my current favorites, National Anthem, Radio to name two and the singles sound refreshed as part of a larger body of work. Honestly I'm at a place where I don't think there's a bad song on here (although I did go for the unexpanded version, you can have too much of a good thing). Was looking forward to this release and it's working it's magic on the bus rides in to work and back, atmospheric, chilling, talented and surely the first must have of 2012 and a classic album that I'll still be listening to in 20 years.

I bought this album on impulse, and on the strength of the singles "Video Games" and "Born To Die", and was relieved that it not only lived up to, but far surpassed my expectations. The album is immersed in Del Rey's smooth caramel, retro-style singing, but with a strong modern influence to the songs. There are hints of blues/jazz style melodies, and also a more soft-spoken, husky style of singing to compliment the clear lyrical melodies permeating throughout the songs. This album is an expressive, art-driven project, which incorporates classic song-writing with Del Rey's unique overall sound and style of singing. Although it may be still too early to tell, but this album is likely to be my stand-out album for the year. For me, stand-out tracks, other than the aforementioned "Video Games" and Born to Die", include "Blue Jeans" and "Summertime Sadness" which holds similar enchanting and melancholic tones to "Video Games". The strength and memorability of choruses in "National Anthem" and "Dark Paradise" also gives them an edge in being stand-out tracks, with "National Anthem" being one of the more up-beat tracks on the album, incorporating a an almost hip-hop, rap element to the verses, making it one of the more provocative tracks on the album. The production of this album is impressive, managing to successfully incorporate a mixture of contrasting styles from retro/blues, to modern pop/R&B which is particularly evident in tracks such as "Diet Mountain Dew" and "Dark Paradise" and "Radio", creating a unique but enchanting style. The string arrangements on tracks, particularly so on "Video Games" and "Born to Die" adds emotional depth to the already heartfelt melodies and lyrics, creating a rich and eloquent tone. While it is almost impossible to name a poor track on this album, certain tracks such as "Off to the Races" and "This is What Makes Us Girls" seem to lack some of the same resonance and strong sense of song-writing as the other tracks on the album. Having said that, this is not necessarily a criticism as the overall strength of this album is still capturing and inspiring, and it would be impossible to expect every single track to have the same striking impact as stand-out tracks such as "Video Games".

There is a quality about Lana Del Rey that makes her hard to dislike once you've heard this album a few times. More specifically there are tracks on this album which once you get them stuck in your head then it's like they are on an endless loop. A good example of this is National Anthem, which has some well crafted lyrics and a catchy tune. I was originally very sceptical about Lana Del Rey, I thought that she was just too melancholy. Hearing the track "Born To Die" being played at the top of every ski-lift in France, (which is not what you want to hear when you are about to do a black run!) only reinforced this initial view. However listening to the album changed this perception. Overall this is a dark album with death, personal and social problems being a recurring theme however don't let this distract you from what is essentially a superbly composed collection of songs delivered by a truly powerful vocal.

Great

Le cd est impeccable, Lana del rey est juste une star !

Awsome record, sleeve was a bit damaged though :(

Ótimo produto, não ouvi ainda por que não tenho um toca-discos mas o vinil é perfeito