Paradise - Post-Release Discussion Thread + Poll

[lanaisperfect 19]

bel air.

it`s perfect. literally.

[ecpasar 0]

How do I can't do it, cut and paste together is: how to do it?

[NamiraWilhelm 5,050]

There seem to be lots of lil threads for discussing Paradise but no main discussion thread, so here we are. If there already is, well, i blame the people that agreed we should make one.

 

Rate tracks 1-9 in order of best to worst, and blather about them freely please, without fear of reproach Or I'll sing the Different Strokes theme song at you.

 

Me first;

1. Body electric
    
   
2. Ride
    
   
3. American
    
   
4. Blue Velvet
    
   
5. Burning Desire
    
   
6. Yayo
    
   
7. Cola
    
   
8. Gods and Monsters
    
   
9. Bel Air
   

i realise how unpopular my order is, but no amount of listening can make me like Bel Air and Gods and Monsters. The former to me seems nonsensical, I'm not sure even she knows what she's trying to express in this song. I realize I'm in danger of being branded a cretin but I'm just not digging the lyrics at all. Same with G&M; just not digging it, and all the f'ing going on just cheapens it for me.

 

Same with Cola, I know people have gone crazy for it, but I'm just not loving it. The infamous pussy line was all well and good in the intro, but to repeat it and echo it at the end? It turns the song into a parody for me. And i can forgive a lot of things, baby you da bestest for just one example, I know (unlike the critics) that she isn't retarded, she's deliberately speaking in a cutesy Betty Boop type way, but i cannot forgive 'Niceys'. Nicely would have been fine, although admittedly i dislike the word 'nice' in song lyrics anyway. And there's too many 'babys' for my liking

 

Yayo... It's tolerable but it's got nothing on the earlier versions. I'm not sure why she'd prefer it this way (although she did say she never liked the way the original turned out, did she actually say she was happy with this one?) I will continue to listen to it though, just in case I'm being biased.

 

Burning Desire is pleasant enough. I don't really have much to say about it, but it doesn't make my ears cry either.

 

Goes without saying that Blue Velvet is an epic song, and Lana's low pitches suit it well. Given that it's a cover that's all the credit she'll get on that one.

 

American is a pleasant surprise. I've really taken to it. I love it even, I'm not sure why exactly, i just find it very charming. A very sweet song with a happy vibe, even if it sounds a bit miserable as usual.

 

I was quite taken with Ride when i first heard it. The 'I hear the birds...' part is a bit Johnny Cashesque to me, which is just dandy. Vocals are a lil unrealistic, like several tracks on the album.

 

Body Electric is ruddy beautiful. The lyrics, the sound. I'm totally enamoured by it. I will say this though; I never thought I'd prefer her live version to the studio version. The artificial sounding vocals are irritating though.

 

And I'm going to throw in a moan about the track list having a similar sound. She really is the queen of sadcore >.< we know from her unreleased tracks that she's capable of a range of sounds, and is very good at them, so why this intent to sound the same? People who have -only- heard her released singles must have such a gloomy view of her music. If it's just the sound she wanted for her Born to Die era, and will vary it on the second album, fine, but I'm not hopeful. At least Born to Die had some happier tunes like OttR and Lolita.

 

YOUR TURN

[Monicker 3,035]

Body Electric That auto tune was a little painful to get past in the beginning.

 

Please point out the exactly (the seconds and words) where you are hearing the most obvious evidence of A-T.

[NamiraWilhelm 5,050]

Please point out the exactly (the seconds and words) where you are hearing the most obvious evidence of A-T.

 

You don't agree then? I'm very likely wrong, as I've said before I'm a music retard, but some parts sounded artificial to me. I'll re listen when I have time.

[Monicker 3,035]

Yeah, i don't hear it, which is why i was asking. What i hear are vocals that were, for whatever reason, recorded and EQed in a way that makes them sound very thin, and the reverb they used definitely adds to this quality. I believe there's also a very, very subtle delay on the vocals that's not flattering. I don't like how the vocals were produced and the overall tone of them, but i don't hear A-T. I don't hear any notes being pulled up or down to the "correct" pitch anywhere. Listen to every instance of "electriiiiiiiic" like at 0:54, i think if there was A-T that's where it would be most evident, but that sounds very straight to me. I'm not an authority on the subject though. I was just hoping that someone who hears it as clearly as you seem to be suggesting can point out exact moments where it stands out the most, like what specifically to listen out for, you know? I do hear exactly where one take ends and another starts throughout the song, and that's pretty distracting.

[iloveguineapigs 168]

Blue Velvet- It's just so beautiful and catchy and addictive! I love the instrumental and the vocal and I know she didn't write it, but she adds another dimension to the lyrics and the melody really lends itself to her style and it sounds like something she could've come up with. I just feel like it fits the vibe so well and I love the way she sings "velveeeeet" I'm probably the biggest Blue Velvet stan on this site, it's definitely in my "Lana TopTen."

 

Cola- The vocals on the bridge and the ending of this one surprised me sooo much! I love the chorus and agree with Lana that it just has such a vibe to it. Such a SWAY. Guitar at the end could have been overdone and cheesy, but there was the perfect amount, and of course the iconic line

 

Bel Air- Just beautiful. It sounds heavenly! I love the kids in the background and the repeating piano line is gorgeous. Her vocals in the chorus and especially the harmonies are my favorite parts.

 

American- Such a cute song, I love the hook "woo-hoo-hoo-hoo, like an American" part. As others have said, the lyrics are a bit cringey at times. "I was like, hell yeah, that guy can sing" is my least favorite, but I love how light-hearted and poppy it is.

 

Ride- Perfect lead single choice, it's epic, but something about it is not as epic as it could be. It definitely benefitted from the music video. Overall, it's a fun track to sing along too and sounds like it would sound good on the radio.

 

Yayo- Yayo was not my favorite track on AKA (not even top 5, maybe #6), but I do love the AKA version so this one kind of threw me for a loop. The lyrics are gorgeous just like the rest of the AKA era lyrics, but the vocals on this one are not very good. She just sounds like she's drunk and singing from her throat, very strange, i dunno. AND the omission of the "daaaark niiiight" !! But, I do love the insturmental, very pretty and the shuffling drums are cool, give it a very jazzy, loungey meets c&w sound.

 

Burning Desire- I think this is definitely the sexiest and the most catchy (besides Blu Velvet) song on the album. I also think it's underrated, because the percussion and the little background bass noises and sound effects are pretty cool. It's an okay track, but the ones above are better in my opinion. It's good for riding at night, in a car or whatever

 

Body Electric- Never really liked the lyrics, but the live version was really cool with the heavy piano and the epic strings. The studio version is both just so flat and over-dramatic at the same time, it's so odd. Her vocals sound over-processed and the ending is just flourish is just oo dramtaic for me, I don't know how to explain it. It kind of reminded me of "The Mummy" move/ride at Universal Studios like 10 years ago.

 

Gods and Monsters- Biggest dissapointment for me. I like the percussion and the bass in the chorus and the little huildup of the chorus, but the rest is just flat, it doesn't move. The melody is the same the whole time with no real shift between verse and chorus and the vocals are the same the entire time. Although I will say that they are pretty strong vocals. I like the chorus melody but it just doesn't scream chorus for me. The snippet sounded awesome and then we get it and the bridge was just awful.

 

Oh well, that's my Bible.

 

Yeah, i don't hear it, which is why i was asking. What i hear are vocals that were, for whatever reason, recorded and EQed in a way that makes them sound very thin, and the reverb they used definitely adds to this quality. I believe there's also a very, very subtle delay on the vocals that's not flattering. I don't like how the vocals were produced and the overall tone of them, but i don't hear A-T. I don't hear any notes being pulled up or down to the "correct" pitch anywhere. Listen to every instance of "electriiiiiiiic" like at 0:54, i think if there was A-T that's where it would be most evident, but that sounds very straight to me. I'm not an authority on the subject though. I was just hoping that someone who hears it as clearly as you seem to be suggesting can point out exact moments where it stands out the most, like what specifically to listen out for, you know? I do hear exactly where one take ends and another starts throughout the song, and that's pretty distracting.

I think they sound really processed throughout but especially on "Mary prays the rosary..."

[NamiraWilhelm 5,050]

Yeah I guess i should have just said sounds artificial rather than suggesting their was auto tune, I guess i just assumed that's what was making it sound artificial but there are other things that can attribute to that like what you've listed.

[YUNGATA 14,955]

1. American

2. Yayo

3. Blue Velvet

4.Cola

5. Ride

6. Body electric

7. Burning Desire

8. Bel Air

9. Gods & Monsters

 

Don't hurt me pls. I did a little more in depth discussion in the "Rate Paradise" so I won't repost. I deeply enjoy all of the tracks in some way or another though.

[NamiraWilhelm 5,050]

1. American

2. Yayo

3. Blue Velvet

4.Cola

5. Ride

6. Body electric

7. Burning Desire

8. Bel Air

9. Gods & Monsters

 

Don't hurt me pls. I did a little more in depth discussion in the "Rate Paradise" so I won't repost. I deeply enjoy all of the tracks in some way or another though.

 

I'm glad I'm not the only one that places BA and G&M last!

[YUNGATA 14,955]

I'm glad I'm not the only one that places BA and G&M last!

 

BA is pretty, it just doesn't do much for me. And G&M sounds like background music to me~

[Hundred Dollar Bill 21,809]

Can we please post our awesome reviews of each song in the Rate Paradise thread? That's kind of why it was made. No one seems to be actually discussing TPE in a different way than it's been done somewhere else in here, so I may end up merging the two threads together. I don't want to seem mean but the lack of efficient organization is killing me!

 

Also, Monicker, where do you hear the vocal take coming in on BE? I hate the studio version, so any opportunities to point out its flaws are more than welcome. :3

[Sitar 22,218]

Oh, Namira, there is a Paradise discussion thread. Well, it's "Rate Paradise", but I could merge the two and give the Frankenthread a more apt name.

[Monicker 3,035]

The two threads should be merged. I was going to suggest it earlier but i didn't want to seem [square].

 

OH, and DELETE that canada goose thread, banish it to hell, OUT with that obvious spamming. :imbeingsarcasticbitch2:

 

Can we please post our awesome reviews of each song in the Rate Paradise thread? That's kind of why it was made. No one seems to be actually discussing TPE in a different way than it's been done somewhere else in here, so I may end up merging the two threads together. I don't want to seem mean but the lack of efficient organization is killing me!

 

Also, Monicker, where do you hear the vocal take coming in on BE? I hate the studio version, so any opportunities to point out its flaws are more than welcome. :3

 

Just to be clear what i'm talking about are the points at which the vocal track changes to another take. I'm not talking about the vocal track coming in and out as it is being muted and unmuted in between vocal phrases, something that is very audible all throughout the album, and most prominently in Bel Air, where it happens consistently throughout the song.

 

Anyway, as for what you asked in Body Electric:

 

1:37 in between “night” and “dancing”

2:32 in between “fun” and “we”

2:45 in between “alright” and “Mary” (but i’m not sure about this one)

 

EDIT: Saying that i'm not sure about the last one implies that i am sure about the others and, well, i can't possibly be 100% certain, but that is what my ears tell me. I'd say i'm about 98% sure.

[Auto-Tuned Loon 650]

OH, and DELETE that canada goose thread, banish it to hell, OUT with that obvious spamming. :imbeingsarcasticbitch2:

Loons, geese... what do you have against waterfowl, SLUT?

[Coney Island King 26,122]

Gods and Monsters has grown on me a lot, i like it a lot now.

[Monicker 3,035]

Loons, geese... what do you have against waterfowl, SLUT?

 

[Sitar 22,218]

 

Will you review the album already, Maurice?!

[Monicker 3,035]

Will you review the album already, Maurice?!

 

Shit's long, dawg, like, too long. I need to calm the fuck down. BRB.

[NamiraWilhelm 5,050]

Oh, Namira, there is a Paradise discussion thread. Well, it's "Rate Paradise", but I could merge the two and give the Frankenthread a more apt name.

 

i asked where the official discussion thread was, people said there was only a rate paradise thread and not a true discussion thread and agreed we should make one! So poo, quite frankly!