Vertimus

'Bartender' stands out from everything else that wasn't released as a single from the album (except 'The Greatest'). It has structure and form, it's musically tight, and it's idiosyncratic in concept like the best of all her songwriting. I cringe a little at the 'bought me a truck' English, but that's me. I think one 'baa-ar-tender' would have been enough. I agree it's neither clever nor novel after the first occurrence.

If it's what she wanted to do now, fine. I'm glad she feels free and comfortable creating and releasing whatever she wants. I feel as you and your friends do about various aspects of NFR (though I don't like HIAB)--MAC, VB and TG are musically interesting and dynamic, but much of the rest of the album feels flaccid, almost too comfortable. Though it's fairly long, it all feels 'over too quickly.' I remember a reviewer said about Honeymoon that it was "too much of not very much," and that's how I feel about NFR as an album.

He's back in Scotland, probably in Glascow or outside of it. He released a single called 'Free Like A Bird' in November of 2018, which you can hear on iTunes, which went nowhere. Another, 'Mad Men,' came out about the same time and was up on iTunes, but has been taken down. Both are supposed to be from a forthcoming album called 'Psychedelic Soup.' Since leaving Kassidy, to me, he sounds washed out and defeated on everything he's done under his own name or under Nightmare Boy.

We can’t say that NFR is receiving “universal acclaim” yet, as it hasn’t even been released and there may be some negative public/professional reviews ahead, but I do think NFR is, generally speaking, the kind of stripped-back album critics like and approve of. There’s not overtly silly on it or caricaturish, the way, for example, some people didn’t care for Stevie Nicks’ voice (and compared it to Sponge Bob) or the gun shots on GBA. They’ll ignore what they don’t like (if anything) in the face of the maturity of ‘Hope’ specifically, as well as the fairly austere MAC, VB, California, TG and the title track. Greil Marcus, one of the most respected and hoity-toity of rock critics, praised VB, so I am sure his opinion is having influence.

There’s really not much of a concept for the TG video.

I am not and have not been saying either. I’ve been saying, “it’s okay,” and giving it a C rating.

But that’s because the snippets of the songs that weren’t fully released essentially told the entire story. The rest of almost every song is just more of the snippet, basically, especially musically. If there were bridges, it would be different.

It's a good album, but to act as if Lana is re-inventing a whole genre or venturing into unknown territory is fucking laughable. Bravo!

It’s brave because they’re expressing intelligent, considered opinions that are clearly expressed. Not just, “it’s iconic,” “it’s her best ever, I’m sobbing,” “I hate it, it’s her worst.”

You’re both very brave to say these things here, and I really appreciate your honesty. NFR is underwhelming as a whole, to me.

I rate it a ‘C.’ The songwriting seems lazy and flaccid on most of the songs. She seemed to be trying to achieve a very low dynamic, and she succeeded. She also said it was a folk album with surf overtones—I certainly don’t hear folk, though the title track’s production seems to be a slight shoutout to Joni Mitchell’s ‘Court & Spark,’ and there’s the too-obvious Ladies of the Canyon reference. Like many of her albums, there’s strong and weak tracks, good and bad. ‘HIAB’ still sounds like 3 completely different songs badly mashed together, like a third-rate B-side. She completely wastes the ‘happiness is a butterfly’ parts with the unfortunate other sections. I also miss the pure audacity, beauty and creativity she revealed on songs like ‘Live or Die,’ ‘Last Girl on Earth,’ ‘Meet Me in the Pale Moonlight,’ and especially ‘Angels Forever,’ ‘Hollywood,’ and ‘JFK.’

That’s depression, not nihilism. Nihilists don’t regularly go to Christian churches, reference God in their songs and talk about their belief in God in interviews.

He’s released a few weak singles in the last 8 months, and is back in Scotland. I wish he would reform Kassidy; they were such a terrific band, and his songwriting and vocals have suffered since.

I've listened to everything available multiple times now. All of the songs are catchy, but I'm not a big fan of it, personally. Speaking from my own taste, I'd rate it a 'C.' I'm glad she created what she wanted to create at this point in her life, but it's not what I look for from her. 'NFR,' 'Love Song' and 'California' don't really develop. As some have already said, there are no bridges, which makes a lot of difference. VB, MAC and TG are among her best work ever, so there's that.

Full agree, LF.

When you have world-class cheekbones, the last thing you need are face/cheek fillers.

Also, it isn't her weakest project to date. Heroin, Get Free, Love, and Change say HI There are/were a lot of vital, deep, three-dimensional songs on LFL among the weaker tracks [i.e., ‘junk’].

No gatefold at all. I am fairly sure that was reported here, that and no photos at all in the booklet. Let’s hope they were incorrect.

Didn’t someone report here that had seen the finished product that there were no photos whatsoever in the booklet, and no gatefold cover?

That photo should have been the cover. If I can find a good copy, I’ll adapt it and use it for the cover.

Cher is 73.

I’m not. I didn’t take it as if it did. Some people like to take what they see as the moral high ground, often because they have an obsessive, cultish attitude towards LDR and imagine they know how she feels about things—and also project their own emotions onto her. I am sure you know that too. I listened to the leaks and preordered the album afterwards. I think it’s just so-so, but I still support her and will pay for a copy.

I live in NYC and work in Manhattan. That’s where great many people buy their coffee morning and afternoon, as they’re all over the city.

It is said in earnest. It makes perfect sense. Have you tried it?