PrettyBaby

I don't think I'd be as big a fan without AKA. (Though I was pretty impressed by BTD.) But now that I know what she's capable of, I think I'm a Lana fan for life. Besides, it's the fan community that keeps me coming back here. As long as people still have interesting things to talk about, I'll probably still be here!
 
(Where's a group-hug emoticon when you need one?!?)

That album pretty much solidified my love for her music and made me ditch Adele. I'm not even sorry.

I wanted to make this a whole thread, but I'm not ready. Here's my question:
 
"When the leaks stop, are you still gonna be as involved a fan?"
 
I think the answer for most of the forum will be No, but I'm not sure. To my dismay, we've never even had a month go by since February without at least one leak (and usually much more!), and I don't care what you say--one day they will stop. For now, it might to some of you guys seem like a big party, but when there's a drought, will you still be as active as you are now?
 
Just a thought. I haven't thought it out as well I would've liked, but every single one of us on here needs to ask him-or-herself this. I mean it.

I personally don't think she would have included the monologue and made the video 10 minutes long if there wasn't a deeper message she was trying to convey. I mean, the deeper message can be as simple as freedom, sure, but there is always more to look into with Lana. She's just mysterious like that and it's a part of her appeal as an artist and celebrity. I agree with Mattiern here.
 
 
Art can be as simple or as complicated as the artist wants it to be, and it's the job of their audience/fanbase to figure it out to the best of their ability! Otherwise, I doubt Lana would have shared such an emotional video with us. She did it for herself as well as us, I think.
 
 
I think you're being quite self-contradicting here. I see you sometimes on the Lanalysis thread, reading between the lines with others and trying to find out how Lana's lyrics connect to things she's done. Why not do that with the music videos too? You're right in that we don't need to find a deeper meaning, but some people really enjoy doing that and you shouldn't scrutinize them for it. I think it's a beautiful video as well, and sometimes I think people look too much into things like you said, while other times, I love trying to find out why she did this and why she did that. Just my thoughts on things.
 
Anyway, onto my actual opinion of the video! I think it's gorgeous. I understand a bit of both sides of the headdress argument, and it's all speculation until Lana addresses the issue herself, really. Maybe she was trying to symbolize freedom or something, or just didn't think it would be such a big deal to people. I think it's insensitive too, but I'm kind of superficial like Lana is, so in all honesty my first thought when seeing the headdress was, "That's a really gorgeous headpiece, and Lana looks good in it." I do think the gun bit and its inclusion in that part of the song was overdoing it, but I see the points some other people made and it could have been intentional on her part to convey a different message. I definitely believe it's her best video yet and it got me even more excited for the album, which I didn't think was possible!

If the original blue jeans video is in HD
 
OMG

y'all doing too much with these conspiracies. This is libel. So what If he decided to mentor Lana in music so what? I can't but smh and pray for this man's career as an educator being run through the mud and being in question as we try to piece together these abstractions that Lana works with. Her mind is like a diamond.
 




 
A great teacher should be able to recognize the strengths of their students and hopefully encourage growth as a whole person. He is clearly able to make a connection with his students as reflected by his popularity grades. Who knows what would have happened if he had never shown Lizzy classic hip-hop?

OT: Sitar, your sig is synched up perfectly with OTTR right now and it's kinda mesmerizing...

You guys should be ashamed of yourselves.
 
 
 

I am sure you have noticed that Lana bought a house in Beverly Hills. I think she moved in after she got back from Glasgow and had Chuck and Charlie with her, during the move. Barrie just joined her today (he posted a pic from her house on FB and Twitter), and Lana is of course busy buying stuff for the house (including the pony!). She now has her new Jaguar F-type to tool around (someone posted on ATRL that Jaguar gave her 3 cars!!) and all this makes it seem she is settling down after years of somewhat nomadic existence (Alabama(?), NYC, NJ trailer park, LA, London, Glasgow, Chateau Marmot). On one hand I feel really happy for her, on the other hand I wonder how it will affect her music and song-writing. Your thoughts?

I think it's great for her to settle down! Just sit back, and relax

I can link a tumblr that has the list on right? (My dead one I never use)

I can relate to this. Both of my parents are Cuban, i am ethnically 100% Cuban. Though i was born in America, i was raised in a Cuban household, learned Spanish before English, was immersed in a specific Cuban community, but i really haven't felt any connection with Cuban culture since i was very, very young. I have essentially had an American experience, that is, i am culturally American. And i have certainly gone through times when i didn't necessarily feel American either.
 
When it comes to identity, for me personally, the truth is that, as a white, middle class, heterosexual, cisgender male, it hasn't been important, it's not really an issue. Of course that's because it's not a necessity to me, being that i belong to the demographic that holds the most influence and power around the globe. I am of the dominant, privileged group. It's often an uncomfortable thing to negotiate and reconcile with myself. Fortunately, i don't feel the need to blame myself for these things that i was born into, and i'm still figuring out the different ways in which to think about my position in society, in the world.
 
It would be insane to believe that the world is only what i see and experience. Despite the amount of time i spend on it, i really, really, REALLY dislike the internet. It depresses me, it overwhelms me, it makes me feel hopeless, etc. One of the biggest factors in my feeling this way is seeing how homogenous things have gotten and keep getting, and the way that it all becomes so oversaturated, and so rapidly. Sometimes it seems that everything is melting into one, that the same things reach everyone, that everyone thinks the same, that everyone is the same person. Then i remind myself that there are always specific things--ideas, places, people, etc. that i gravitate toward, which are contributing to and shaping my limited reality. I am only exposed to a very small facet of culture and life. Most of us are. Humanity is so diverse, the human experience so varied, that it makes my head spin.
 
What's the point of all this? To all of us: get the fuck off of tumblr.

perhaps i'm wrong, but i interpreted that fluorine meant that this type of appropriation that strips things of their true meaning is rampant in this tumblr day and age, not that it's OK for it to be so. it's fundamental that we question everything and not accept the status quo and and just give up and shrug and think "that's just how things are". no way! this is a great discussion because it helped a lot of people transcend their individual, possibly uninformed perspective on this and other matters. lana herself has appropriated images just because they're beautiful to her and by changing their context gives them a new "artistic" connotation. her glamorization of the mob is terrible, for example, when you think of the people who are subjected to the tiranny of the mafia in italy (and worldwide). i think it's worthwile to debate and give things real thought. that's what i love about this forum: through themes that stem from lana-related discussions, everyone reflects on important issues and shares their views and in that, we are mutually enriched by other's outlooks and personal experiences and sometimes reconsider previous stances. hopefully all of this can lead to broadening our horizons and transcending the limitations of our geographical and mental locations
 

EXCUSE ME!!!! Match Made in Heaven is flawless also Daddy Issues [i'm stuck with both on my head lately lol]
 
I think it's another one the MMIH sounds deeper more mmm manly (?)

I don't mean that people shouldn't be allowed to be inspired by their own heritage. That makes for great art, too --- look at Lana's Americana obsession! Instead, I was taking issue with the stance that they should be limited to their own cultures when finding artistic inspiration, something that is quickly becoming impossible as the world globalizes.
 
For example, when a Japanese singer decides to make an R&B record, isn't that technically "cultural appropriation?" Hardly anyone would say so (I think), but that's where this line of thinking eventually ends up. So much of art is cultural theft, and I'm personally against telling people what "should" or "shouldn't" be used in art just because it may not be considered politically correct by everyone.
 
Besides, things like caricatures and stereotypes are far more damaging than someone from one culture borrowing from another because they find beauty in it, as Lana has done here. This creates a positive association, not a negative one.

Well, I believe if Miss Hannah would answer the question, maybe Lana wouldn't have ended it 3 minutes short.

I tried listening to Tool some time ago, they are not shy about esoteric references but I don't find their music very melodious, sorry!
 
About Lana's beauty, I sure find her beautiful and obviously many other people do too, so I think it makes her musical expression of the feminine archetype more effective.

monicker, i just love everything you said. i've thought about these matters but never put them into (eloquent) words. 100% agree! you should have a music column in a good publication (magazine/newspaper, etc). and then, one day they'd ask you to interview lana and it would all come full circle!

Always an interesting perspective from you, PrettyBaby I find the stuff you said about your relationship with beauty to be really interesting. Also, i really agree with the idea of giving people some breathing room so to speak, and allowing each to embrace what they embrace, to value what they value, for is that not what sets cultures apart from each other and what makes the human experience so diverse?
 
This is all off-topic at this point, but so be it...
 
Music, essentially, is math. Though, of course, it’s so much more than that. But if you wanted to examine it from its fundamental core and a theoretical stance, it’s strictly math. It's no wonder that in ancient Greece, music, math, and philosophy were considered inseparable and, really, part of the same larger field of study. The magic and transcendence of just being pure math comes from that ineffable, unique quality that results from the creative combination and ordering of sounds, that which moves people emotionally. It's near impossible to determine why exactly you like something and dislike something else, and therein lies a lot of music's power.
 
"Math Rock" is kind of a misnomer and a bit of a silly term, i think. Why is it that playing in “odd” time signatures and shifting quickly between different time signatures is considered mathematical as opposed to music that stays in 4/4 the whole time? It’s like “Emo”--what music isn’t emotional? Instead of singling out a style of music for its heightened emotion, maybe there should be another term for denoting the few exceptions where emotion is deliberately avoided. Anyway, i digress from the digression.
 
I simultaneously believe that all music is experimental and that no music is experimental. It’s all experimental because isn’t that what anyone is doing when they sit down to write music--trying out ideas to see how they work? Some hired gun who comes on board to compose a song for Britney Spears--isn’t that person experimenting with different ways to construct something within a desired mold with a set goal, just as much as, say, Krzysztof Penderecki is experimenting when he sits down to write a crazy symphony with his own compositional goals in mind? They just have different functions and end points. But, on the other hand, isn’t everyone also following some general guide and pre-established framework when writing music? Experimental as a term to define music i think is hokey anyway, it’s more often than not (as is the case with Math Rock), more about having a certain sound and style than it is a general approach to constructing music. The great 20th century French composer Varese once said, “I do not write experimental music. My experimenting is done before I make the music. Afterwards, it is the listener who must experiment.” I love that quote. As you may imagine, the consensus considers his music to be wildly “experimental.”

This is fascinating to me. I've wondered for a long time about the connection between music and math. Not having much formal training in music, I don't really get why I like what I like; I just know I like it. I checked out some math rock once. Bought a Don Caballero CD. Was really excited. I put it in and immediately thought, "Wow, I love this sound!" About halfway through the song, I thought, "Wow, this is boring, I never want to listen to this again!" (And I haven't since.)
 
I love music that is experimental-but-not-too-experimental. That's why I love Lana's music. (And Lizzy's even more.) I don't know if I would have been as captivated by "Blue Jeans" if she wasn't so beautiful to look at, but I do know it was mainly her haunting physical voice and bold-yet-vulnerable stylistic "voice" that reeled me in.
 
I feel so torn about my relationship with beauty. I never felt like I had a lot of physical beauty, so that made it easy for me to go along with my Protestant heritage that tended to regard beauty as shallow at best. But in recent years, hearing other perspectives, notably Catholic ones, has made me re-evaluate my approach to beauty, and now I see it as something to be "stewarded," if that makes any sense. (Christianese for "taken good care of and used well.") So it was within that new framework that I encountered Lana. She's basically the first music artist whose physical beauty I've allowed myself to appreciate as part of the entire experience since I was a (hormone-crazed) teenager. (Went through an extended "it's all about the music" phase. Probably wouldn't recognize a lot of my favorite bands' members if I passed them on the street.)
 
Now I guess I'm on this kick where I try to see "the true, the good, and the beautiful" in everyone. And appreciate the fact that different people place different emphases on different values, but that doesn't make them "wrong" as I used to think. (Charm and beauty can be misused, but so can truth and humanitarian values.) We need people who sort of specialize in these different areas, I think. We need to give each other the freedom to pursue these different values, while we pursue our own favorite (without completely dropping the others).
 
I think Lana "stewards" her physical beauty in good ways. But there's no way it's all she has going for her.

In light of Chloe's discovery here, I would have to agree with litewave's point that "Lana ...embodies the broken soul of America, and of the world, that is now returning," and conclude that by "old America" she means pre-colonization America. Now it makes more sense to me.

TAKE IT BACK.
 
 
(Even the unreleased songs, Hellion? smdh)

In light of Chloe's discovery here, I would have to agree with litewave's point that "Lana ...embodies the broken soul of America, and of the world, that is now returning," and conclude that by "old America" she means pre-colonization America. Now it makes more sense to me.

AAAANd she's back 2 making youtube comments!

This is fascinating to me. I've wondered for a long time about the connection between music and math. Not having much formal training in music, I don't really get why I like what I like; I just know I like it. I checked out some math rock once. Bought a Don Caballero CD. Was really excited. I put it in and immediately thought, "Wow, I love this sound!" About halfway through the song, I thought, "Wow, this is boring, I never want to listen to this again!" (And I haven't since.)
 
I love music that is experimental-but-not-too-experimental. That's why I love Lana's music. (And Lizzy's even more.) I don't know if I would have been as captivated by "Blue Jeans" if she wasn't so beautiful to look at, but I do know it was mainly her haunting physical voice and bold-yet-vulnerable stylistic "voice" that reeled me in.
 
I feel so torn about my relationship with beauty. I never felt like I had a lot of physical beauty, so that made it easy for me to go along with my Protestant heritage that tended to regard beauty as shallow at best. But in recent years, hearing other perspectives, notably Catholic ones, has made me re-evaluate my approach to beauty, and now I see it as something to be "stewarded," if that makes any sense. (Christianese for "taken good care of and used well.") So it was within that new framework that I encountered Lana. She's basically the first music artist whose physical beauty I've allowed myself to appreciate as part of the entire experience since I was a (hormone-crazed) teenager. (Went through an extended "it's all about the music" phase. Probably wouldn't recognize a lot of my favorite bands' members if I passed them on the street.)
 
Now I guess I'm on this kick where I try to see "the true, the good, and the beautiful" in everyone. And appreciate the fact that different people place different emphases on different values, but that doesn't make them "wrong" as I used to think. (Charm and beauty can be misused, but so can truth and humanitarian values.) We need people who sort of specialize in these different areas, I think. We need to give each other the freedom to pursue these different values, while we pursue our own favorite (without completely dropping the others).
 
I think Lana "stewards" her physical beauty in good ways. But there's no way it's all she has going for her.