Norman Fucking Rockwell - Pre-Release Thread

[Rorman Nockwell 56,711]

OK well I'm not gonna type an essay rn (maybe later) but what I didn't see mentioned in everyone's essays is that she's almost 34. I'm not suggesting that she's old, but what I'm saying is she's probably outgrown wanting to look super glamorous all the time. 

 

She looked great in the DT snippet, too (not that I think there was anything wrong with her bareface phase). 

[ADDICTEDTOLANA 1,348]

OK well I'm not gonna type an essay rn (maybe later) but what I didn't see mentioned in everyone's essays is that she's almost 34. I'm not suggesting that she's old, but what I'm saying is she's probably outgrown wanting to look super glamourous all the time.

 

She looked great in the DT snippet, too (not that I think there was anything wrong with her bareface phase).

Yeah I think exactly that too! She’s almost 34 as you said, and I think there are people that at a certain age don’t want to look like when they where in ther 20s. She was 27 when she became really big; a lot changes in a persons life in 7 years, especially when you pass your 30s...

[MoreCruelThanYou 5,277]

I cantttttt takeeeee it anymoreeee I neeeeed new musicccccc

 

[honeycookie 1,032]

why do y’all think people turn into a bag of bones as soon as they hit 30.... a LOT of female singers are glamorous and innovative and using the age thing as an excuse is annoying. just say she’s lazy because of her personality. she was already pretty “old” for a breakout star in the first place.

[Rorman Nockwell 56,711]

why do y’all think people turn into a bag of bones as soon as they hit 30.... a LOT of female singers are glamorous and innovative and using the age thing as an excuse is annoying. just say she’s lazy because of her personality. she was already pretty “old” for a breakout star in the first place.

 

I don't think that; ageism should be stabbed in its face - but you do get to a point in your life where you care less, and it's not necessarily a bad thing.

 

The unprofessionalism is another matter. 

[WilshireBoulevard 5,420]

But from sexy, glamorous and beautiful to very plain is rare, if there’s any precedent for it at all, and clearly she doesn’t need to do something like THAT to ‘maintain interest,’ not after having just had a number one record. If so, it would come across as desperate, in my opinion.

 

David Bowie did alter his persona a lot during the 70s, but he was the dynamic, innovative exception, and his alterations were very artistic.

 

Most artists of that era, like Bob Seger, Robert Plante, KISS, Heart, Leonard Cohen, Fleetwood Mac, Patti Smith, Lou areed, Blondie, Gordon Lightfoot, Linda Ronstadt, Iggy Pop, etc. hardly changed at all.

 

Madonna was really the one who brought the ‘complete style change’ from project to project in with ‘Like a Virgin,’ abandoning the look and sound of her debut.

 

I wouldn't call her plain at all. With no makeup and glamour she's still stunningly beautiful. I think taking issue with a woman in her mid thirties not wanting to go to the same lengths in terms of makeup and dress she went to in her twenties when she was getting famous is a bit iffy.

 

I'd be really open to this era of going more natural and focusing on her art if she was focusing on her art at all. If she wanted to take a break, that's fine. The accusations of her being unprofessional aren't because she's not churning out music or indeed taking a break, but because she's giving us radio silence about an album we were promised 'at the top of the year.'

 

I wonder if she will go back to the name Elizabeth, particularly with the references to the Elizabethan era in her poetry. If she wants to shed the Lana persona and who she used to be I'd be interested in seeing that. It must be hard keeping up the Lana stuff when so much of it is built on thinks she might want to move beyond, like K. Idk. Like I said, it would be interesting, but it's still shit being sold the idea of LDR and her authenticity. But I imagine it must be a thousand times worse for her, coming up with a persona, building an empire on it, and then being expected to remain as that person you created to get famous.

 

Anyway leak NFR. 

[ADDICTEDTOLANA 1,348]

why do y’all think people turn into a bag of bones as soon as they hit 30.... a LOT of female singers are glamorous and innovative and using the age thing as an excuse is annoying. just say she’s lazy because of her personality. she was already pretty “old” for a breakout star in the first place.

 

I’m not saying that as soon as you hit 30 you turn in to a bag of bones... but we can agree that she never was like an average pop star even when she was younger, so since it’s normal that past 30 a lot of people tone it down (if you’re not a pop star like Gaga or Beyoncé or whatsoever) maybe, and I’m saying maybe, since she’s almost 34 she’s not feeling like doing all that glamorous things that she was doing at 27. I’m not excusing her, I’m just trying to find an answer other than laziness

[MoreCruelThanYou 5,277]

why do y’all think people turn into a bag of bones as soon as they hit 30.... a LOT of female singers are glamorous and innovative and using the age thing as an excuse is annoying. just say she’s lazy because of her personality. she was already pretty “old” for a breakout star in the first place.

30 is the new 20.

 

 

 

Its actually so much harder waiting for May 20 knowing that we have an official release date for a non-NFR track, especially not having had Lana confirm it. I mean I understand not wanting to do alot of official promo, but does she really not know how much of a disservice she is doing to her loyal fans? Like there are ways she could send us hidden messages, like on her missdaytona twitter account. She could actually have some fun with this, being sneaky. But nope; radio silence.

 

 

&thats how I know this bitch is homophobic

[Vertimus 9,557]

There is nothing wrong with her ‘bare face,’ but purposely posting badly-taken color and B&W selfies shot at terrible angles so that she looks deformed or a victim of poor plastic surgery is not ‘bare-faced.’

 

She could easily take, or have taken, photos of herself in which she looks lovely/pretty but without much makeup. And that’s not what she’s been doing for two years.

 

It’s as if, as with the Billboard cover, that when others take photos of her now, she often chooses the least flattering if she’s given a choice in the matter.

 

So to me that seems at least partially a feminist message: ‘This is what I really look like, or do if I make no effort. And I am okay with that.’ But that doesn’t jibe too well with the LDR of ‘dripping peaches,’ by which I assume she meant her breasts as they look when she exits the sea.

 

As I wrote before, there are semi-precedents for this in the case of Nico, who willfully destroyed her international beauty as she felt men didn’t take her seriously as an artist with that beauty, and Marianne Faithfull, who, after years of suicide attempts, debauchery, violence and homelessness in the Seventies, released very unattractive album covers for the almost next three decades. In old age, Faithfull finally started having lovely photos of herself taken for her album covers.

 

Both Nico and Faithfull were junkies for most of their adult lives, however, and that played a significant role in their image difficulties, or was a partial reflection of those difficulties.

 

I have no problem at all with LDR ‘just being herself’ and just looking like herself, but the desire for human beauty is a universal constant, found in all cultures to some degree since the dawn of recorded history. Most or all of us hope or want to look good in photos, the best we can at the moment, and we want attractive photos of our friends, family, and pets. That’s seen as just normal, just healthy.

 

So I don’t know why she wouldn’t want to look

‘like herself’ but also as reasonably attractive as most of us hope to look in our own selfies and group photos.

 

At this point I expect the NFR album art to be one of her industrial photos on the cover, like those accompanying the poetry book, with a small plain selfie-style photo of her inside.

[MoreCruelThanYou 5,277]

Lets make a “Lana aesthetic nuances” thread so we can stop crowding this one pls and thx?

[LanaFlowers 8,752]

HOLY SHIT where is graham?? Can’t believe I forgot about him. I need a crazed essay stat

I miss him too, he really disappeared I hope he's fine

[LanaFlowers 8,752]

even her casual looks were stylised in some way and it's not that time consuming tbh it takes me an hour to get ready which isnt that bad-but it's honestly her personal preference and I do wonder how much of her was concocted by individuals around her who inspired her rather than herself. I mean she even said herself she listened to "lame techno" before her teacher introduced her to other genres and has picked up styles off her boyfriends etc.

another thing that makes me sad. like, is this what we're still doing? come on girl

 

guess we should just hope she falls in love with someone interesting again

[WilshireBoulevard 5,420]

There is nothing wrong with her ‘bare face,’ but purposely posting badly-taken color and B&W selfies shot at terrible angles so that she looks deformed or a victim of poor plastic surgery is not ‘bare-faced.’

 

She could easily take, or have taken, photos of herself in which she looks lovely/pretty but without much makeup. And that’s not what she’s been doing for two years.

 

It’s as if, as with the Billboard cover, that when others take photos of her now, she often chooses the least flattering if she’s given a choice in the matter.

 

So to me that seems at least partially a feminist message: ‘This is what I really look like, or do if I make no effort. And I am okay with that.’ But that doesn’t jibe too well with the LDR of ‘dripping peaches,’ by which I assume she meant her breasts as they look when she exits the sea.

 

As I wrote before, there are semi-precedents for this in the case of Nico, who willfully destroyed her international beauty as she felt men didn’t take her seriously as an artist with that beauty, and Marianne Faithfull, who, after years of suicide attempts, debauchery, violence and homelessness in the Seventies, released very unattractive album covers for the almost next three decades. In old age, Faithfull finally started having lovely photos of herself taken for her album covers.

 

Both Nico and Faithfull were junkies for most of their adult lives, however, and that played a significant role in their image difficulties, or was a partial reflection of those difficulties.

 

I have no problem at all with LDR ‘just being herself’ and just looking like herself, but the desire for human beauty is a universal constant, found in all cultures to some degree since the dawn of recorded history. Most or all of us hope or want to look good in photos, the best we can at the moment, and we want attractive photos of our friends, family, and pets. That’s seen as just normal, just healthy.

 

So I don’t know why she wouldn’t want to look

‘like herself’ but also as reasonably attractive as most of us hope to look in our own selfies and group photos.

 

At this point I expect the NFR album art to be one of her industrial photos on the cover, like those accompanying the poetry book, with a small plain selfie-style photo of her inside.

 

Idk, I can vibe with her rejecting standards of beauty. I lowkey like the Hope cover (drag me)- it's like I'm sitting next to her and she's showing me the song, or watching her while she's doing the iPad bit from the song or whatever. A professional photo wouldn't have gone with the vibe of the song, which is a glimpse into her thoughts and feelings at the time. If NFR is alive and not a complete mess then I'm guessing that'll be the theme. Candid, raw, a departure from her old image. One of the most glammed-up women dropping the facade that beauty and submission are easy or worthy things to strive for is pretty powerful, especially in the Trump era. 

 

But then she turns around and goes to Hillsong with friends who def seem homophobic. So idk what to think. 

[Creyk 11,699]

I'm loving all the discussion on the last pages.

In-depth thoughts about one of the most fascinating creatures on the planet...yeah that's what a fan forum should be.

[divebarsinger 2,715]

sorry but some of the discourse here is basically "BOO SHE'S NOT LOOKING AS PRETTY AS I PERSONALLY WANT HER TO AND SHE HASN'T EVEN GOT AN EXCUSE LIKE BEING AN ADDICT." and it's so tiresome and absolutely problematic af. "she's looking ugly in photos now." is really not a good intellectual argument. and acknowledging people "like looking at beauty" without acknowledging the standards involved and the myriad ways which they oppress people is gross as hell, sure people like 'beautiful things', what we associate as being 'beautiful' is also greatly decided for us in society at large by multimillion dollar companies and it is garbage and should be challenged. aesthetically i understand the disappointment absolutely, but tearing apart her features and imperfect 'angles' now? it's weird and creepy and not a good look. by all means we can notice she has had surgery, by all means we can have an opinion on that choice but some of this is just... nauseating.

[Vertimus 9,557]

I'm loving all the discussion on the last pages.

In-depth thoughts about one of the most fascinating creatures on the planet...yeah that's what a fan forum should be.

It’s all of a piece with LDR, I think. We can’t, with the limited information we have, separate her glamour and beauty from her music, lyrics, personality and role-playing, especially when she’s written so much about her own beauty and the power it has provided her.

 

So I hardly think almost any aspect is ‘off the table,’ including her appearance and presentation to the world, both privately and publicly.

 

Regarding ‘Hope,’ we know she’s just said, about the 50s debutants, “I’m not that,” and I don’t think, as these are the latest comments on her appearance and being, that they can or should be discounted or written off.

[LanaFlowers 8,752]

so if lizzy grant wears makeup and styles her hair then who is this girl when she’s barefaced? someone who doesn’t exist? a new persona we haven’t formally introduced to yet?

it's elazybeth

 

 

so if lizzy grant wears makeup and styles her hair then who is this girl when she’s barefaced? someone who doesn’t exist? a new persona we haven’t formally introduced to yet?

 

as someone who used to do a full face of makeup and style my hair every day basically since i was allowed to wear makeup, post on ig all the time and be active on social media etc; i haven’t worn makeup in two years bar special occasions like weddings and stuff, i haven’t used heat on my hair except maybe once or twice a year otherwise i wear my natural texture, my ig is anonymous and i don’t post at all i just use it to get notifs for when my friends and fave musicians post, all my social media is anonymous now too and like u get the point.. but i’m so much happier now than i was back then. i don’t feel the need to perform femininity for others cuz i’m just fine being myself. my self esteem and self confidence is so much better. like u said, we can think it’s entirely different what she’s going through and i too believe in psychology, but just because you guys think this new lana is a “step down” from the old lana or whatever doesn’t mean it actually is. she’s grown and changed. i doubt we’re all the same person we used to be back in 2012 when she was always glamorous too. you can call her selfies ugly but they really aren’t. there’s no such thing as ugly, just perceived value based on how conventionally u fit into european beauty standards and whatever is “trendy” at the moment. it feels like a lot of ppl on here think that she’s losing her worth because of how she’s changed and it’s really disheartening because they’re associating her natural state as less than when she complied with societal standards and i’m really tired of it

Here's the thing though, we've seen her without makeup before. We've seen her dressed casually before. And I think most of us didn't really care or have anything to say about that. No think pieces, no essays, no nothing. I don't remember seeing anyone worrying about her mental health because she left her fake lashes at home, or wore jeans with a plain t shirt instead of a gold lame dress to go grocery shopping. A change in one's appearance alone doesn't have to mean anything. But there's a lot more than that going on, and if you consider all these things, you can't blame people for their reactions. She doesn't look free, she looks lost. She doesn't look confident, she looks like she's given up on life. Her empty smiles mean nothing to me. I'm suicidal and I smile all the time. Brief moments of joy captured in film mean nothing. When I  look at her I don't see a strong, mature woman who gives 0 fucks and is living her best life without a care in the world -without having to worry about her lipstick smudging or her eyeliner flaking. I see an aimless, dejected little girl. She has lost her drive, and it shows. Her actions show that, as does her lack of action. Her choices, professionally and creatively. I would be right there agreeing with you if nothing else was amiss. But everything's changed, and we're not shallow for acknowledging that. Examining something on its own is different to examining it as part of a bigger picture. There is a bigger picture here.

[Vertimus 9,557]

sorry but some of the discourse here is basically "BOO SHE'S NOT LOOKING AS PRETTY AS I PERSONALLY WANT HER TO AND SHE HASN'T EVEN GOT AN EXCUSE LIKE BEING AN ADDICT." and it's so tiresome and absolutely problematic af. "she's looking ugly in photos now." is really not a good intellectual argument. and acknowledging people "like looking at beauty" without acknowledging the standards involved and the myriad ways which they oppress people is gross as hell, sure people like 'beautiful things', what we associate as being 'beautiful' is also greatly decided for us in society at large by multimillion dollar companies and it is garbage and should be challenged. aesthetically i understand the disappointment absolutely, but tearing apart her features and imperfect 'angles' now? it's weird and creepy and not a good look. by all means we can notice she has had surgery, by all means we can have an opinion on that choice but some of this is just... nauseating.

Look, on Facebook she’s published some selfies that yes, make her look distorted and almost deformed, and I feel certain that she herself knew these were ‘unattractive’ selfies. That was part of the beginning of this new image process.

 

I hardly think viewing those photos and acknowledging them is in any harmful to anyone—or nauseating. Perhaps you haven’t seen them, though I am sure many of you have. She posted them herself; it’s not as if a spiteful paparazzi did.

 

Nico and Marianne Faithfull both tried to destroy themselves after multiple bad experiences with men, men in the music industry, fame and the way they were covered by and exploited in the media. For many, and even one another, their lives were cautionary tales (Faithfull wrote and recorded ‘Song for Nico’ in the late 1990s).

 

I admire both for their art and their personal struggles, and am only sharing their stories to underscore that there is a semi-precedent for what we’re seeing with LDR during this NFR period (which actually began during the LFL era). Many people, women and men, have been driven out of their minds by the pressures of the pop music experience and everything that comes with it—Jim Morrison, for example, dead at 27. Syd Barrett, Janet Joplin, Al Green, Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston, Andy Gibb, and so on.

 

Though she’s written rather extensively about heroin herself, I am not suggesting by any means that she is a junky.

[divebarsinger 2,715]

Look, on Facebook she’s published some selfies that yes, make her look distorted and almost deformed, and I feel certain that she herself knew these were ‘unattractive’ selfies. That was part of the beginning of this new image process. I hardly think viewing those photos and acknowledging them is in any harmful to anyone—or nauseating. Perhaps you haven’t seen them, though I am sure many of you have. She posted them herself; it’s not as if a paparazzi did.

 

Nico and Marianne Faithfull both tried to destroy themselves after multiple bad experiences with men, men in the music industry, fame and the way they were covered by and exploited in the media. For many, and even one another, their lives were cautionary tales.

 

I admire both for their art and their struggles, and am only sharing their stories to underscore that there is a semi-precedent for what we’re seeing with LDR during this NFR period (which actually began during the LFL era).

 

Though she’s written rather extensively about heroin herself, I am not suggesting by any means that she is a junkie.

 

i think your personal preferences about how she looks are greatly influencing your "logic" here and tbh i'm really not hearing anything of substance other than "i personally find the way she's presenting herself ugly now and i can't understand why she'd do that so i doubt it's her choice to look how i personally find ugly." no matter how many people and bands you reference (i'm 30 by the way, i'm aware of pretty much everything and everyone you've referenced, isn't news to me)

 

i'm done here lol. this is circular.

[LanaFlowers 8,752]

What did Chuck post? Can't see anything. 

 

I left a (nice) comment explaining on Sarah's post and she just deleted it. Evidently, she doesn't care. Oh, and the other friend commented that they should go for a staycation there. 

 

Anyone want to keep defending these tone-deaf bitches now? Case closed; they're trash. 

Chuck posted about boycotting the Beverly Hills hotel a while back.

 

Yeah I saw that comment too. #baddielyfe4eva