Lana Del Rey: A Representation Of An Artist's Growth (Part 2)

This is the second part of a two-part series analyzing the evolution of Lana Del Rey as a songwriter, so click here to read the first part (or else the point I keep alluding to may not make any sense).

Note: While these are my Top 10 picks, the songs themselves are not listed in an order that defines them as being subjectively better or worse as another. This is simply the way I felt it was best to outline them in order to smoothly transition from one example to the next in a comprehensive manner.

5. Coachella – Woodstock In My Mind (Lust for Life)

While certainly not her most revered or commercially recognized, this is one of my personal favourites of Lana Del Rey. The subject matter, the manner in which it is addressed, and the blatant reveal of an empathetic and ponderous voice such as Lana’s can’t be denied, and it is touching on a deep level. Written during a time where “tensions were rising over country lines,” the contemplative, desperate questions and feelings of helplessness appear to be a theme that remains consistent throughout the album, as well as a constant worry in the world as a whole. But, in an artistic sense, for a woman obsessed with cloaking herself in a dolled-up persona, to proverbially purge herself of her troubled mindset in this way is a huge step in an artist’s growth. To reveal one’s deepest fears is to give oneself fully to the expression of art. With tracks first released such as Off to The Races and Summertime Sadness there were stories being told, yes, but they were of a fictional life of glamour, money, and Hollywood idealism. This song, on the other hand, placed in an album in which Lana began to express her political and societal views, shows an openness that just can’t be discredited or barraged. A line such as, “What about all these children and all their children’s children/And why am I even wonderin’ that today/Maybe my contribution could be as small as hopin’/That words could turn to birds/And birds would send my thoughts your way” must be admired, no matter who you are.

4. Change (Lust for Life)

Found in the latter section of the same album, Change plays on the theme of lyrical purification to an even greater extent while never losing the simple cleverness and allure of Lana’s natural melodical abilities. Connecting to a similar question posed in the last example, she asks, “Who am I to sympathize when no one gave a damn/I’ve been thinkin’ it’s just someone else’s job to care.” As strange as it may be to say, she’s becoming artistically “self-aware” and commenting on that state of realness. The heart-shaped sunglasses-wearing, bubble blowing drama queen of before never posed such questions in regards to her as an artist, as an influence, and as a human being in a world where people are meant to support each other, and what her role is in that. As each subsequent album since Born to Die was released, the questions of who Lana Del Rey really is, who she wants to be, and who she is perceived to be were only ever built upon, adding to the mystique of the whole charade. But I believe those answers have been more or less obvious since 2017, the year this album was released. It was the beginning of her unveiling, the transition from Lana Del Rey, American beauty queen, to Elizabeth Grant, as the person, as the songwriter, represented by flowered hair, a simple white dress, and a big smile.

3. Venice Bitch (Norman F*cking Rockwell!)

Venice Bitch rides the same wistful wave of Brooklyn Baby…except, embellished to the extreme. Spanning almost nine minutes and progressing effortlessly from one melodic motive to another with a solid chorus to ground the steady movement, this track is one of Lana’s finest. It may also be one of the greatest examples of the carefree summer ways of existence she’s wanted to portray since her Born to Die (without such a suggestive attitude). I’ll admit, the length of the song first made me hesitant as I find that most tracks with this length are left with too much breathing room it doesn’t know how to fill and are left feeling short of breath instead of light and airy. Lana, however, uses each second without suffocation. There is a story, yes, but it is about the experience more than anything. It’s refreshing to receive from an arguably mainstream alternative artist such as herself. Lana’s just creating art. Obscure, unusual, relaxed art. It’s music a person can allow themselves to merely be in, and I encourage anyone to ignore the time stamp and listen to Venice Bitch in its entirety on a long summer drive, as that’s where it’s meant to live.

2. Mariner’s Apartment Complex (Norman F*cking Rockwell!)

Upon first hearing Mariner’s Apartment Complex on the day of its release, I was thoroughly impressed. When I think of Lana as a “songwriter,” this is my archetypical example of that. She’s experimented with multiple styles over her many releases, but in my opinion, she found something glorious not just with this song, but with all that was Norman F*cking Rockwell!. The words and the music don’t sound like separate entities here, and it would be a disservice to disconnect them just to dissect them as such. They don’t only compliment each other, but depend on each other, creating, again, such an experience and a specific sound that I had never heard before and would be bent on finding again. Maybe it’s not her most emotional, but to place it in a line-up right next a pop hit like Summertime Sadness is quite fascinating. That isn’t an insult whatsoever to the former, or to any of Lana’s first releases, but it just solidifies the case of her growth as an artist and that her comfortable embodiment of the mature songwriter she’s become is eons away from how she was, and who she was, when she first found success in her career.

1. Hope Is A Dangerous Thing for A Woman Like Me To Have – But I Have It (Norman F*cking Rockwell!)

Quite the title. But it’s quite the song. Admittedly, I didn’t think of it much at first, whether that be because I initially perceived the opening melody to be awkward, or because its stripped back nature requires a certain patience and intentness to fully appreciate it, I’m unsure. But I didn’t find it as plainly grabbing as other tracks on the album. However, once I took a second, and listened…maybe it was the captivity of the chorus, or the way Lana’s voice becomes more and more strained and heartfelt each time it’s repeated, or that the more I paid attention, the more soul I felt radiate from the sound in waves. Either way, I became utterly enraptured. I couldn’t “look away” in an auditory sense. Unfortunately, I don’t feel that there’s much to say from a critic’s perspective because this song just is. And what it is, is brilliance. It’s one of those songs that stands the test of time and illustrates what it means to create. It’s a song you listen to and feel close to the soul who wrote it. It’s this song that I end with and say that, if none other, I no longer heard Lana Del Rey within it; I heard, finally, Elizabeth Grant.