I don't post here very much, but i really enjoy yall's comments and analysis and predictions. so fun to follow! I'm a little older- Lana's age (ok i have one year on her), so idk i didn't wanna get in the way of you kids fun. but here's something personal about me- I REALLY need this album. I had been living my sad girl era 2021 and 2022, and this married man has broken my heart recently. (not unethical as he had certain agreements with the wifey or so he said). i'm hoping this album will help me get over him.
Since it’s been a week & a day since Chemtrails was released, I thought I’d finally give my thoughts now that I’ve given the album proper time to settle. I’ve given the album about 30 listens all the way through so far, so I sort of know what my thoughts are.
First off, this just screams ‘end of summer, transitioning into autumn album. The original September release date would have been absolutely perfect, as this album would be a great play from September – November and I really look forward to hearing it then. Last weekend, my friend and I saw another friend for his birthday, and the three of us sat around a bonfire outside while I played Chemtrails and it fit the mood just perfectly.
In my opinion, this album features some of her, perhaps even her definite, best vocals. Yosemite is just insane all around with her vocals in the very best way. Not All Who Wander Are Lost also features those gorgeous high vocals she does so flawlessly. The singing style on the bridge of Dance Till We Die is one of the best moments of the whole album, and I hope she makes more songs where the entirety is in the style of the bridge.
Dark But Just a Game is a career highlight. Anyone who disagrees with me here is just simply wrong. Immediately, the production on the verses and chorus reminded me of two separate songs, but I couldn’t quite place my finger on it. The verses sort of remind me of Adele’s version of Lovesong, but that’s not exactly what I’m thinking of. It’ll come to me one day in the middle of the night, I’m sure of it. Either way, this was an immediate favourite and I really, really hope she makes more songs in this sort of style.
I’m also glad to see Breaking Up Slowly finally getting some praise here and there, because I really do love this song and I knew I would. I’ve become quite the Nikki Lane fan after seeing her open for Lana in Wichita during the NFR Midwest leg, and I think her harmonies with Lana sound really pretty. I’ve been anticipating this song since the live snippets in October, and it lived up to my expectations.
I’m also glad Zella Day finally got her moment with Lana. I’ve been a huge Zella Day fan for the past 6+ years, so I’m so happy they finally have a song together (I just wish it was an original rather than a cover!)
I haven’t quite decided where Chemtrails lands in my overall album ranking, but it’s somewhere in the middle. I do feel though that with time, this album will crawl its way to an upper spot, especially when autumn hits and it really fits the time of the season.
Here’s my track ranking (subject to change over time), with 1 being my favourite:
1. Dark but Just a Game
2. Tulsa Jesus Freak
3. Breaking Up Slowly
4. Yosemite
5. Wild at Heart
6. White Dress
7. Dance Till We Die
8. Chemtrails Over the Country Club
9. Let Me Love You Like a Woman
10. Not All Who Wander Are Lost
11. For Free
Something I will say about this album though is that the track order seems so weird to me. Songs like “Wild at Heart” & “Dark but Just a Game” seem like such obvious closing tracks, so it’s super odd and comes off as out of place to me that they’re both right in the middle. Also, the actual closer “For Free” seems much more like mid-track, like a little interlude. White Dress also just doesn’t seem like a proper opener either. As beautiful as it is, I just feel like it doesn’t set the tone of the album either thematically or sonically. I know it’s one of the more unpopular songs, but out of all the songs on the album, “Let Me Love You Like a Woman” strikes me as the most “opener”-esque. I think that thought is really because of how the song both begins and ends. The ending is so abrupt, that it’s almost like a pre-lude to the story she’s about to tell. Especially if it were to be followed by Chemtrails, I feel like those songs would be really nice back-to-back together to start the album. & that opening line from LMLYLAW, “I come from a small town, how ‘bout you?” really is so fitting for the album and would’ve been a great way to open it. I reordered the album to what makes more sense to me and have been listening to it in a playlist & have really been enjoying this order, but I'm still experimenting with it:
Overall though, really love this album. I love how all of her albums are distinctly different, she truly is capable of anything. Can't wait to see what's to come next, and will be happily enjoying this album in the mean time x
this album had a lot of potential but it ended up being underwhelming after the first 5 tracks, i mean, they're not bad bad songs but honestly? i'm tired of hearing the old same sad song formula. it's not even about the fact that they're slow or quiet,, they just feel like a bunch of demos waiting to be produced. we know lana is capable of so much more, so why is she releasing the same song over and over? ugh.
Morissetteus liked a post in a topic by How2Disappear in Did you know that there's a tunnel under Ocean Blvd - Pre-Release Thread: OUT March 24th, 2023