ByDayAnother

It ranks low for me too. Shades of Cool and West Coast are among her greatest, the direction is cohesive and a necessary deviation from BTD-P, as well as being rich with individual moments within songs that I love, but the songwriting on balance pales in comparison to works before and after.

I recently turned 30, having listened to Lana since 18, and have really grown up alongside and through her work in many ways. In some ways it’s a vicarious growing up in that I’m behind her, and indeed behind where I thought I’d be by now, but it gives me hope to grow in similar ways. To empathise with where she is now through music inspires my own artistic practice and life narrative, so feel you catharsis-wise. Character or not, she has developed into a whole world that she nurtures for herself and invites us into so regularly, so intimately. Wake me up, when pre-release ends. 🥲

yes, UV with its irony and its anger and spite is very defensive (love it!), but this is her getting honest with herself (which is more important than her being honest with us, she is being VERY generous with her confessions this album).

It could be said that happiness is darker than most people realise until they have no option but to try to be happy. Because it is a choice, and it’s not something that is passively felt. It is willed, practiced, and exerted for a long time in spite of the darkness. UV sounds like blind rage drilling through dark tunnels (as it should), OB so far sounds like wilful, if quiet, self-assurance, wandering the halls of a dark house with a flickering candle.

A charlatan - don’t look back babe

yes, as interesting as the last line from MAC going into NFR’s first line would have been great, ultimately the “Goddamn Manchild” serves the same function anyway - people had been listening to albums’ worth of her codependency (with some exceptions - HBTB, LFL deep-cuts), then she opens with that. I also adore how NFR title track is mixed - I love me some wall of noise reverb, but this for me was the first time her voice was mixed crystal clear with that acoustic piano, matching the above sentiment in sound as well as lyrical theme. There was no getting around it - this was Lana doing a 180, and we were gonna hear exactly what she had to say. -chef’s kiss-

I love NFR and disagree with your critique, BUT, I do agree that switching it with MAC would be very interesting, and that it would work. ”are you ready for it? ….goddamn, man child” woulda slayed

It’s just too linear, and too flat-sounding, it plods, the melody isn’t noteworthy. It’s basic, basically. You can tell not just from the lyrics but approach that she’s trying to please her fans (her MO for this era), and her work with Rick had come to its logical conclusion with this album, from which there were multiple better choices of fan-pleasing whilst-pushing-her-craft singles. It’s cute and has one of her better videos though!

If she’s smart she won’t make a statement, the music is Lana’s statement at this point, every time she tries to explain herself in other media she shoots herself in the foot.

I think that reasonable potential criticism could come down to what be construed as self-indulgence, such as with But this is Lana we’re talking about. We been knew about the self-myth-making, it’s part of her work. So any criticisms this way will sound tired. People beyond Twittersphere are exhausted with identity politics as anything more than clickbait. She might get called out, but it won’t matter, just as it hasn’t before with her consistent melting-pot of cultural influences and references, which is itself an American staple: multiculturalism in all its complementariness and conflict, thereby continuing to bolster her metatextuality on American culture.

mercifully I haven’t listened to Grandfather yet - I couldn’t make it through the non-stop tags (how did y’all do that to yourselves?!)

don’t get me started - i’m isolating with COVID and so caved and listened to the untagged songs and knew instantly that I should have waited. So clearly made for a holistic listen. Can’t believe I could be waiting nearly three weeks now. Don’t make the same mistake I did kids, it’s too late for me, I just had things to do - like nothing at all. 🥲

“How long till f****** start uploading ch**d p**n disguised as leaks.mp3” LDR10 Track 9 title confirmed, where she turns her blistering gaze from critics to leakers head on

Your Leaker confirmed

Those file names on that site… why do these read like LDR10 lyrics 😂

It is written

Unless a full leak happens, I’m sated with Sweet. I really dug A&W, but I longed for something a little closer to the title track to tithe me over. This will do very, very nicely.

Okay, I cracked with one track:

I just tested positive for COVID - now I have to isolate for seven days knowing that a chunk of the album is right there but not in full nor optimum quality hence inevitably ruining my first playthrough if I give in which will be even harder now 🥲 torture

Maybe this not-quite-a-leak will actually ensure that it doesn’t leak in full given that Lana’s team will be hawk-eyeing the situation and the rest of potential leakers won’t dare