sparklrtrailrheaven

I've been pondering something...
 
Despite a lack of information surrounding the "No Kung Fu" EP, it's been said that it was a "demo tape" of sorts, that ended up catching the attention of David Kahne, yes? So, if this is true, this would obviously mean that the No Kung Fu tracks are *not* Kahne productions. So, it could be speculated that the producer of No Kung Fu could be Steven Mertens, as he was a producer working with Lana at the time, and produced an early version of the album that became AKA-- we know that the No Kung Fu tracks are likely not from his finished version of the album, however, since there are snippets of a Mertens-produced "Brite Lites" floating around. 
 
The wrench in this theory is this: "Ruby", the demo of "Put Me in a Movie" featured on NKF (which is also notably more produced/polished than the other NKF tracks), also appears on a CD burned by Lana c. 2008, after she'd begun working with David Kahne. So, this brings to mind several theories:
 
1. No Kung Fu was not a "demo tape", and was produced with David Kahne after Mertens' AKA was scrapped. 
2. "Ruby" was a holdover from the Mertens sessions, and Lana (being Lana), still enjoyed it, including it on a CD with Kahne-produced tracks.
3. No Kung Fu is a fanmade EP, with mostly Mertens tracks and one Kahne track slipped in, from a different session.
4. No Kung Fu is Mertens production, and "Ruby" is noticeably more produced because it comes from his finished version of the album. 
 
It would help to know what we know about NKF... When did it leak? Who leaked it? What information was with it when it leaked? Do we have any definite, concrete info on it?
 
So many questions I'd love to hear any insight/ideas y'all have on this! 
 
Leave it to Lana to leave her past "stranger than a stranger" for us to decipher 

So I thought I'd share with you guys some of my Lana art I made. I used to have a Facebook page where Lana fans would message me, asking to make some kind of art for various things to put up on their Youtube/Instagrams etc. So some of my work might look familiar but yeah. It's purely just for fun btw.
MOVIE POSTERS:

 
 
 
 
ALBUM/SINGLE COVERS:
 
 
There are more pics but for some reason, even after resizing them smaller, they're still too big and the uploader won't let me upload... 

Here's a new thing! It's still a work in progress, but I'm almost done:
 

 
 

HM's cover art, as you say, is intended as a (literal) distancing from viewing LDR as a glamor object, while in fact she asserts the opposite from her Starline Tours context (an actual company). It seems intended to jar her fans, imo. So just in terms of doing something it intends (hypothetically speaking), it's very successful, though people may not like it. It will be interesting to see what LDR does next, cover wise. Does she revert to glamor, try something even more abstract than HM, maybe even dwindling to non-existence, or hopefully some whack combination we know she's capable of. But seriously, the cover of HM was pretty good. For comparison purposes, Pure Heroine's cover is the definition of not trying, imo, and at the end of the day isn't a big Adele head just a big Adele head? At least Magritte put that big green apple in a room. Taylor's 1989 cover is an interesting cover for comparison, because it's seeming to do something similar, which is to say Taylor is de-emphasizing her physical self in a rather peculiar, though mundane and familiar way. 

Quick note: Compared to her previous albums, Honeymoon was quite different. More slower, more elegant, more down to earth and real. I get how some fans don't really like it, and that's cool. But I think it had a real aura of opulence to it.
 
SOUND: Obviously it's slower and less commercial, but I think it was insanely beautiful in many ways. The string arrangements were superb and cinematic and her voice soared like an angel over the muffled 'hip hop' beats. Her voice really reached great lengths, especially in 'Honeymoon' and 'God Knows I Tried'. Although the album isn't my favourite, I can appreciate the work that was put into the whole production process.
 
LYRICS: The album wasn't lyrically as strong her previous albums and I found many words to be too repetitive however there weren't bad lyrics. Just meh. You can't really visualise a story with the lyrics and I think it lacks memorable lines.
 
AESTHETIC/VISUALS: The aesthetic was very clear. It was elegant and bright. Red, blue and white. Very patriotic to me.
When I listen to this album, I picture two lovers travelling across the country, wild in love. However towards the end of the album it feels as if these two lovers are drifting apart and Lana is yet again on her own, yearning a lost love. But it makes it more cinematic, I think.
 
The photography for this album was okay. It wasn't the best. The album cover colours were vibrant however I felt there was too much text and it kinda ruined the picture. I adore the picture of Lana on the back of the album, though. But I think more could have been done to bring the era to life.
 
COMMERICAL SUCCESS: I think overall the album was a let down in regards to promotion but then again, it's not a commercial sounding album so that's kinda expected. It didn't do as well, let's be honest. I think the album suits an acquired taste.
 
I'm sad she didn't do a Honeymoon world tour, I think so many amazing visuals could have been thrown in there. It could have been like a movie, filming all the concerts and release it on DVD or something, idk.
 
FINAL THOUGHT: Although it's not my favourite album and era, I can greatly appreciate the work that has been put into it. It's beautiful, dreamy and romantic. I don't really listen to it that much but it'll always have a special place in my heart.

Am I the only one who didn't mind the cover? It wasn't my favorite, (and I liked the UO vinyl cover more), but I thought it put across the feel of the album well, and was very pretty.  

With the HM era seemingly coming to a close, and the new age of LDR5 being ushered in, I thought it would be a good time to discuss what our favorite parts of the much-maligned HONEYMOON era were! 
 

 
So, what were your favorite:
 
Photoshoots...?
Songs...? 
Videos...? 
Other moments/parts...? 
Let's take some time to appreciate this era and all it had to offer!
 
I was going to post this as a status, but thought it deserved a thread. Mods, please let me know if this is unnecessary! 

Am I the only one who didn't mind the cover? It wasn't my favorite, (and I liked the UO vinyl cover more), but I thought it put across the feel of the album well, and was very pretty.  

I've been pondering something...
 
Despite a lack of information surrounding the "No Kung Fu" EP, it's been said that it was a "demo tape" of sorts, that ended up catching the attention of David Kahne, yes? So, if this is true, this would obviously mean that the No Kung Fu tracks are *not* Kahne productions. So, it could be speculated that the producer of No Kung Fu could be Steven Mertens, as he was a producer working with Lana at the time, and produced an early version of the album that became AKA-- we know that the No Kung Fu tracks are likely not from his finished version of the album, however, since there are snippets of a Mertens-produced "Brite Lites" floating around. 
 
The wrench in this theory is this: "Ruby", the demo of "Put Me in a Movie" featured on NKF (which is also notably more produced/polished than the other NKF tracks), also appears on a CD burned by Lana c. 2008, after she'd begun working with David Kahne. So, this brings to mind several theories:
 
1. No Kung Fu was not a "demo tape", and was produced with David Kahne after Mertens' AKA was scrapped. 
2. "Ruby" was a holdover from the Mertens sessions, and Lana (being Lana), still enjoyed it, including it on a CD with Kahne-produced tracks.
3. No Kung Fu is a fanmade EP, with mostly Mertens tracks and one Kahne track slipped in, from a different session.
4. No Kung Fu is Mertens production, and "Ruby" is noticeably more produced because it comes from his finished version of the album. 
 
It would help to know what we know about NKF... When did it leak? Who leaked it? What information was with it when it leaked? Do we have any definite, concrete info on it?
 
So many questions I'd love to hear any insight/ideas y'all have on this! 
 
Leave it to Lana to leave her past "stranger than a stranger" for us to decipher 

Am I the only one who didn't mind the cover? It wasn't my favorite, (and I liked the UO vinyl cover more), but I thought it put across the feel of the album well, and was very pretty.  

I don't think it's fair to claim that someone is not a true fan because they don't care for one of Lana's albums. You can be the biggest fan of an artist and still not like everything they've put out-- it's great if you do like all of Lana's material, but it's a stretch to say that everyone must like it simply because they call themselves a fan. 
 
Basically, I think it's fantastic that you love HM and see a lot of beauty in it, but you can't shame others for not sharing your tastes. Please be respectful of the fact that we're here because we're fans of Lana, and we're not all going to have the same opinions and preferences

If she covered this I'd be so happy
 

Am I the only one who didn't mind the cover? It wasn't my favorite, (and I liked the UO vinyl cover more), but I thought it put across the feel of the album well, and was very pretty.  

Maybe this era will include a motion picture as well as the videos?
 

heres my flop album cover 
 
https://postimg.org/image/s1pnzg319/
 


 
 
omg sry for the flop

the level of hate for this era... far too much
 
when i first heard about honeymoon (my first knowledge of it was a leaked tracklist on tumblr during like june/july 2015) i was just excited lana was still making music lol. and then when the title song was released (leaked? dont remember if it was released before the album on purpose or if somebody found it) i remember thinking how painstakingly slow it was but it was really beautiful and that made up for it. i love honeymoon as a song but im sooooo thankful the whole album wasnt like that
 
i genuinely cant pick a best song from this album. definitely her best or second best album. ive listened to it in entirety several times and the only songs i didnt really care for were music to watch boys to and swan song
 
honeymoon, terrence loves you, god knows i tried, high by the beach, freak, art deco, religion, salvatore and the blackest day ALL took turns scalping me like every week or so. once i got tired of one track i fell in love with the next, then another one, then another one 

and honestly? id love an album with songs similar to religion. religion was kind of an oddball track on honeymoon like it didnt really fit in much, but i liked it alone

With the HM era seemingly coming to a close, and the new age of LDR5 being ushered in, I thought it would be a good time to discuss what our favorite parts of the much-maligned HONEYMOON era were! 
 

 
So, what were your favorite:
 
Photoshoots...?
Songs...? 
Videos...? 
Other moments/parts...? 
Let's take some time to appreciate this era and all it had to offer!
 
I was going to post this as a status, but thought it deserved a thread. Mods, please let me know if this is unnecessary! 

I've been pondering something...
 
Despite a lack of information surrounding the "No Kung Fu" EP, it's been said that it was a "demo tape" of sorts, that ended up catching the attention of David Kahne, yes? So, if this is true, this would obviously mean that the No Kung Fu tracks are *not* Kahne productions. So, it could be speculated that the producer of No Kung Fu could be Steven Mertens, as he was a producer working with Lana at the time, and produced an early version of the album that became AKA-- we know that the No Kung Fu tracks are likely not from his finished version of the album, however, since there are snippets of a Mertens-produced "Brite Lites" floating around. 
 
The wrench in this theory is this: "Ruby", the demo of "Put Me in a Movie" featured on NKF (which is also notably more produced/polished than the other NKF tracks), also appears on a CD burned by Lana c. 2008, after she'd begun working with David Kahne. So, this brings to mind several theories:
 
1. No Kung Fu was not a "demo tape", and was produced with David Kahne after Mertens' AKA was scrapped. 
2. "Ruby" was a holdover from the Mertens sessions, and Lana (being Lana), still enjoyed it, including it on a CD with Kahne-produced tracks.
3. No Kung Fu is a fanmade EP, with mostly Mertens tracks and one Kahne track slipped in, from a different session.
4. No Kung Fu is Mertens production, and "Ruby" is noticeably more produced because it comes from his finished version of the album. 
 
It would help to know what we know about NKF... When did it leak? Who leaked it? What information was with it when it leaked? Do we have any definite, concrete info on it?
 
So many questions I'd love to hear any insight/ideas y'all have on this! 
 
Leave it to Lana to leave her past "stranger than a stranger" for us to decipher 

Truthfully, HM is my least favorite Lana album, but I still think the album and era had some redeeming qualities. Probably my biggest qualm with it is that everything still felt as if it were in a transitional phase-- the songs didn't quite sound *finished*, the videos seemed thrown together, the visuals weren't as dynamic as they have been for past eras, and Lana never seemed to settle on a certain style/mood/aesthetic for the era, as she had previously. 
 
That being said, I think the HM era had some high points! I felt like the unreleased Honeymoon video was an extremely beautiful, and an interesting route that I wish Lana had explored further. The V Magazine and Marfa Journal shoots were some of my all-time favorites, and the songs from HM are beautiful, even if they are enjoyed in small doses due to a bit of monotony and repetitiveness, imo. Also, Lana served some beautiful  looks this era (the blonde!!!!!) and some gorgeous stylings (whatever event this was from: )! 
 
And, despite being a bit of a side-note to the HM era, Lana's little Instagram videos have been so sweet and cute
 
All in all, I think the best word to describe my opinion of the HM album/era is solid. After a staggeringly incredible run of albums by Lana since 2010, HM didn't blow minds or achieve any levels of perfection, but it wasn't bad by any means-- not a great hit, but not a miss, either. I think it may have provided a bit of respite for Lana, who's been producing knockout albums and dealing with all sorts of publicity ever since Video Games hit it big-- this era was calm, cool, and maybe even sedate-- but, as they say, "solve et coagula", and hopefully LDR5 is a bit more exciting and dynamic

I don't think it's fair to claim that someone is not a true fan because they don't care for one of Lana's albums. You can be the biggest fan of an artist and still not like everything they've put out-- it's great if you do like all of Lana's material, but it's a stretch to say that everyone must like it simply because they call themselves a fan. 
 
Basically, I think it's fantastic that you love HM and see a lot of beauty in it, but you can't shame others for not sharing your tastes. Please be respectful of the fact that we're here because we're fans of Lana, and we're not all going to have the same opinions and preferences

Truthfully, HM is my least favorite Lana album, but I still think the album and era had some redeeming qualities. Probably my biggest qualm with it is that everything still felt as if it were in a transitional phase-- the songs didn't quite sound *finished*, the videos seemed thrown together, the visuals weren't as dynamic as they have been for past eras, and Lana never seemed to settle on a certain style/mood/aesthetic for the era, as she had previously. 
 
That being said, I think the HM era had some high points! I felt like the unreleased Honeymoon video was an extremely beautiful, and an interesting route that I wish Lana had explored further. The V Magazine and Marfa Journal shoots were some of my all-time favorites, and the songs from HM are beautiful, even if they are enjoyed in small doses due to a bit of monotony and repetitiveness, imo. Also, Lana served some beautiful  looks this era (the blonde!!!!!) and some gorgeous stylings (whatever event this was from: )! 
 
And, despite being a bit of a side-note to the HM era, Lana's little Instagram videos have been so sweet and cute
 
All in all, I think the best word to describe my opinion of the HM album/era is solid. After a staggeringly incredible run of albums by Lana since 2010, HM didn't blow minds or achieve any levels of perfection, but it wasn't bad by any means-- not a great hit, but not a miss, either. I think it may have provided a bit of respite for Lana, who's been producing knockout albums and dealing with all sorts of publicity ever since Video Games hit it big-- this era was calm, cool, and maybe even sedate-- but, as they say, "solve et coagula", and hopefully LDR5 is a bit more exciting and dynamic

I totally get that! That's absolutely me when people say they don't like AKA... I think it's unbelievably well-done and gorgeous, so it boggles my mind that anyone could dislike it! But, I've got to remember that we all see things through a *~different lens~*