Norman Fucking Rockwell - Post-Release Discussion Thread + Poll

[Bettie Page 2,113]

i cant just listen to one song, i have to go through the whole album 

[Nobody 21,540]

listening to nfr but turning it off after doin time >>

[FallingCherry 7,731]

not ajay putting a goddamn mark to all the songs except for california and bartender, the best two...

I'm not surprised she needs more time for Bartender. It's a really weird track and it's very different from what we hear nowadays. Maybe if the track came out in the 50's with jazz elements, it would've sounded completely normal. But nowadays having this kind of songs on an album is kinda disturbing. Either way, she still said there is not a single bad song on the album and she called it album of the year!

[lets ride 799]

I repeat - NOT ONE SONG IN THE ALBUM IS A FILLER. 

 

Somewhere in England, Adele is having a nervous breakdown. I bet she's breaking down in tears right now as I type this. 

 

 

literally, there are *very* few albums i couldn't fathom removing a single track from. i have a weird way of visualizing tracklists that usually involves an element skewing the representation based on a tracklist's hotspots (making for some wildly different conceptualizations since filler can/will strike anywhere). but this is soooo tight at the moment (nn) like…. i literally go to the tracklist and wouldn't even know where to click. cinnamon girl is tempting since it's a fucking bop and i want it now but love song i could actually end up doing as my first dance, so no skips. then what, doin time? after that video? no skips. FIILY? why? 

 

the only bump could be MAC and VB tracks two and three, but VB is central to the setup for the rest of the album and now i'm also annoyed at the describing of this as a mood album. i personally think it's insulting to reduce any of her albums to that but she does it herself so i digress on thaT. but yeah no i think this experience with the tracklist is, in my mind, pointing to an album with robust, consistent quality, but also the way she told the story in such a half-compartmentalized-half-meta fashion makes it just really gripping and unexpected to listen to. the flow is really immaculate, and thank u lana for this time capsule/treasure/monument/opus like we will literally still be listening to this on our headphones while we're lying in our death beds, if i'm not then something went wrong

[Zetterberg 1,879]

Happiness is a glass of wine, i'll pour one every night

HTD xmas edition https://www52.zippyshare.com/v/2t97YJcG/file.html

[God&Monster 1,092]

I can't believe few people like HTD, I love it the sound of it.

 

Highlights imo:

NFR

Venice Bitch

Doin Time

Cinnamon Girl

California

The Greatest

Bartender

 

The whole album is fantastic from start to finish. A tie with Honeymoon so far - which is my fave.

[ChaoticLipster 24,618]

I can't believe few people like HTD, I love it the sound of it.

 

Highlights imo:

NFR

Venice Bitch

Doin Time

Cinnamon Girl

California

The Greatest

Bartender

 

The whole album is fantastic from start to finish. A tie with Honeymoon so far - which is my fave.

I know I’m shocked by the poll....least favourite? Wtf?

[American Bore 815]

At first I was surprised to see that NFR got so many streams, but after thinking, people listen more to the title track, it's normal. What's not surprising is Cinnamon Girl coming second. And one amazing thing is how praised Love song is. People seem to love it!

 

NFR (song) is on the new music friday playlist (well in the UK at least) so probs a factor in it getting so many streams.

[Beautiful Loser 48,890]

I’m sorry but the ending of Cinnamon is just magnificent, am I the only one who picture a short film to it?? It sounds so cinematic and dramatic, I really, really wish they could make a video for it with a small story, something like Ride, National Anthem or Tropico. Because that shit is... wow. Magical.

[ThisIsRusko 1,521]

so after listening to the album alot in the last 2 days.

my list so far:

 

Hope is Dangerous thing

Mariners Apartment Complex

Vanice Bitch

Love Song

The Greatest

Fuck it i Love you

Cinnamon Girl

 

Happiness is a Butterfly

Doin Time

 

Bartender

California

Norman Fucking Rockwell

 

The Next Best A. Record

How to Dissapear

 

 

---

 

PINK:

Perfection,beautiful, flawless

 

VIOLET:

Amazing songs, something little is missing tho

 

DARK VIOLET:

not fully feeling them (yet, many lana songs grow on someone within one year)

i feel like the choruses take me out of these songs. something is not getting me...

 

ORANGE:

I don't know.

maybe i have listened to them too much before.

Especially HOW TO DISSAPEAR! i LOVED the live version. and it was one of my favorite songs. but listening to this new version makes me really sad.

it feels like they took out the soul of the piano live version...

 

 

but all of this will probebly change after some weeks and months

[UltraHeroin 8,803]

I guess after many many listens I can finally drop my NFR review. Spoiler alert, I'm gonna praise the shit out of it. Also this is the only review that actually matters here on lb, I mean, look at my member title. It's the only relevant one bitch! Jk lol, but yeah, enjoy. 

 

 

Norman fucking Rockwell-This one is definetly one of my top favourites from this album. The strings in the beginning are one of the most beautiful ways she started an album, I love every second of it. Then the piano breaks down with one of the most interesting melodies I've heard from Lana. The melodies she found for this song are just untouchable. The lyrical content speaks for itself and her voice is fucking perfection throughout the song. (''why wait for the best when I could have you....YOoOoouuUuu'') and of course there's that fucking heavenly outro with amazing vocals again and all the strings and piano coming together. Ugh, one of her best title tracks. 10/10

 

Mariner's apartment complex- I love the lyrics of this song, maybe her best lyrics on the album (although Hope exists). The track is so smooth and summery. I love the guitars and the drums. The piano in the background makes the sound richer and her vocals are so raw and clear.All the background production on this is phenomenal. Those hazy guitars in the outro...mmmm. 9.5/10

 

Venice bitch- Where do I even begin? Can I even begin? Y'all already know the way I feel about this one  . BEST FUCKING TRACK. 11/10

 

Fuck it, I love you- This one is lovely as well although is not in my most favourites. It is again, a very breezy and summery song, pretty catchy and has really nice lyrics too. I personally prefer the single, digital version. I just love those added synths which really make the track richer, those slight guitars and of course the surf drums. the outro is amazing. 9/10

 

Doin' time- I love what she did with this cover, it's definetly such a summer song and the production is amazing and so groovy. I think it works really well for this album, fitting in but also bringing something new, more of a hip hop influence to the record. Her vocals and her general delivery is so sexy and sultry and I love that we have a cooler, upbeat moment on the album. 9/10

 

Love song- I still get fucking chills with this song!!! The intro alone is just so beautiful I have no words. Her voice sounds really beautiful, clear, vulnerable, sweet. The lyrics are not that deep or intense but do they need to be? I say no. It's just such a sweet track that melts my heart every damn time. The strings picking up when the chorus starts are sending me, the production is literal heaven. My only wish is that the melody whould've gone somewhere else for like an outro or maybe a bridge. But one of the best nonetheless. 9.5/10

 

Cinnamon girl- I feared it was going to be just a catchy song that was gonna age badly, but that fucking outro!! That made me appreciate the song way more than before. The verses are nice, the chorus is so atmospheric and dreamy, I love Lana's voice and those little distorted chord-sounds. That last high pitched chorus makes a nice bridge and then the fucking outro goes off. It's such a BTD-NFR track, I live for every second of those strings ad synths, and then it all cools off with some nice beats. Love it! 9.5/10

 

How to disappear- This one is my least favourite track on the album. I still enjoy it thoroughly and I really love the instrumental break at the end, I think it's lovely, but overall, the melody and the production just don't impress me that much. And yeah, I don't like the bells. The lyrics are really nice, thoughtful, melancholic, but I don't usually have the urge to listen to this one outside the full album. 8/10

 

California- The most Ultraviolence-like song on the album, of course I fucking love this one. It feels so special, her vocals are different, they're not in that soft angelic tone, they're a little more rough and definelty the rawest ones on the record. I also love the layering in them, makes the song feel bigger. I like that the pre-choruses are different and I love both variations. The chorus is pretty long yeah, but it changes halfway and the ''we'll do whatever you want'' part always gets me. the production is so beautiful, the strings are always there in the back bubbling under the drums and guitar. And the lyrics? beautiful. 10/10

 

The next best American record- I still love this song so much. My favourite parts of it were always the verses and the bridge and I'm so grateful she didn't change those. That's one of her best bridges in a song ever. The fucking atmosphere. I don't dislike the new lyrics that much but I definelty love the older ones better. The chorus now kinda has a different mood which is a little off. I always loved the production on this song so nothing else much to say. 9/10

 

The greatest- The instruments, the production, the lyrical content, Lana's voice, the solo guitar, the outro UGHH, this song is so goddamn nice. I said these things before, nothing much to add. Just perfection. 10/10

 

Bartender- The most unique sounding track on this record. I don't usually love piano ballads but this one doesn't even feel like one. the lyrics are really cool, the overall vibe of this song is really cool. Everything is interesting about it, Lana's voice, the lyrics, the melodies, the piano even. Such a gorgeous, interesting track, one of the surprising highlights on this record. 10/10

 

Happiness is a butterfly- The lyrics are nice but they're kinda all over the place lol. Doesn't bother me that much though. I'm not particularly in love with the melodies, yes they're catchy but when the serial killer part comes on, I get pretty bored of it and want to move on to the taxi part which I like best. the second part of the song with the added strings and then the electric guitars here and there, it's just so beautiful and ups it for me a little bit. But overall, it's one of the weker tracks for me. 8.5/10

 

Hope is a dangerous thing for a woman like me to have-but I have it- This song is the perfect choice as the closing track. The lyrics are just unreal. The depth and the message and the emotions she conveys through these lyrics are incredible. Best lyrics on the album hands down. Other than that, the production is really simple, maybe too simple for my liking, I don't really like piano ballads. I know the sound definetly suits the song best this way but it's not quite my favourite thing. Her vocals are of course fucking beautiful, especially when she goes high in the outro. And I love the addition of Jack talking at the end, it's so cool how the album ends with that. 8.5/10

 

[Shades 1,699]

literally, there are *very* few albums i couldn't fathom removing a single track from. i have a weird way of visualizing tracklists that usually involves an element skewing the representation based on a tracklist's hotspots (making for some wildly different conceptualizations since filler can/will strike anywhere). but this is soooo tight at the moment (nn) like…. i literally go to the tracklist and wouldn't even know where to click. cinnamon girl is tempting since it's a fucking bop and i want it now but love song i could actually end up doing as my first dance, so no skips. then what, doin time? after that video? no skips. FIILY? why? 

 

the only bump could be MAC and VB tracks two and three, but VB is central to the setup for the rest of the album and now i'm also annoyed at the describing of this as a mood album. i personally think it's insulting to reduce any of her albums to that but she does it herself so i digress on thaT. but yeah no i think this experience with the tracklist is, in my mind, pointing to an album with robust, consistent quality, but also the way she told the story in such a half-compartmentalized-half-meta fashion makes it just really gripping and unexpected to listen to. the flow is really immaculate, and thank u lana for this time capsule/treasure/monument/opus like we will literally still be listening to this on our headphones while we're lying in our death beds, if i'm not then something went wrong

 

good video or not, doin time doesn't rly belong on NFR. she still cute tho

[Rorman Nockwell 56,751]

I’m sorry but the ending of Cinnamon is just magnificent, am I the only one who picture a short film to it?? It sounds so cinematic and dramatic, I really, really wish they could make a video for it with a small story, something like Ride, National Anthem or Tropico. Because that shit is... wow. Magical.

 

I'm quoting this so she sees it because she definitely reads here and does this.

 

Sis. Do this.

[lets ride 799]

I’m sorry but the ending of Cinnamon is just magnificent, am I the only one who picture a short film to it?? It sounds so cinematic and dramatic, I really, really wish they could make a video for it with a small story, something like Ride, National Anthem or Tropico. Because that shit is... wow. Magical.

 

i would really like to know how long it took them to perfect all of the intros and outros, the notes, the melodies….. the start of california is one of the very saddest things i've ever heard. it's like those notes temporarily unlock every atom of heartbreak and sadness i've held onto. and now i'm in the second chorus and yeah, she knew what she was doing here of course and i'm getting my ultraviolence fix. whew, what a song.

[Beautiful Loser 48,890]

It’s the second day (feels like the third since I stayed up until 3 AM playing the album) and each time I play California, I feel like crying. I don’t know why, but shit. It’s something special about it, I swear, every. single. time. Maybe it’s my favorite because it makes me feel things but ugh, I honestly can’t pick a favorite on this record.

[Terrence Loves Me 72,700]

I seriously love this album but it doesn't sound fresh to me, and i think thats because we've heard sooo many snippets beforehand. From now on when lana teases new songs on her instagram im seriously not even clicking them because if u think about it.. whats actually the point? U cant full enjoy it, it leaves u wanting more and then it ruins the novelty when it gets released, i already think WHF is gonna feature looking for america and whatever music she teases from now on is quite possible to be on the record

[delley 215]

https://www.instagram.com/p/B1wHoNsAVvV/?hl=pl omg?

[GeminiLanaFan 49,049]

3 ways to immediately improve HTD:

- bring back the piano;

- get rid of the jingle bells;

- have her repeat « I’m always gonna be right here, no one’s going anywhere »

I seriously love this album but it doesn't sound fresh to me, and i think thats because we've heard sooo many snippets beforehand. From now on when lana teases new songs on her instagram im seriously not even clicking them because if u think about it.. whats actually the point? U cant full enjoy it, it leaves u wanting more and then it ruins the novelty when it gets released, i already think WHF is gonna feature looking for america and whatever music she teases from now on is quite possible to be on the record

When she said « surprise release » with WHF, i immediately hoped we would get nothing before the album. I didn’t mind the snippets (thought they had me expecting the album to come way sooner), except the HTD one. Why tease the demo when the result is drastically different from the original??

[lets ride 799]

good video or not, doin time doesn't rly belong on NFR. she still cute tho

 

it really fits for me. if venice bitch is their psychedelic trip, doin time is their hollywood blockbuster (or, the music video). she's almost teasing west coast for us. it punts some energy back into it, signifying where they became legit, and it was great. a detail i love is how doin' time, in its original lyrics, puts lana singing in the position of the man, a theme that's been present since MAC. once again, she knew what she was doing.

 

as an album track, it feels no further a deviation than venice bitch being 9 minutes long, tnbar being a controversially-reworked legendary demo, or hope, a seemingly one-off bare ballad. i'm not struggling to appreciate every one of them (esp vb lmao but some ppl……)

[Terrence Loves Me 72,700]

When she said « surprise release » with WHF, i immediately hoped we would get nothing before the album. I didn’t mind the snippets (thought they had me expecting the album to come way sooner), except the HTD one. Why tease the demo when the result is drastically different from the original??

homegirl said she was really excited and didnt wanna stop working so we all know what that means.... snippets 24/7!!