Blue Banisters - Post-Release Discussion Thread + Poll

[Fingertips 72,105]

Just now, drugmunny said:

THIS. This is why I want to have words with the fucking MIXERS. LIKE I DO NOT UNDERSTAND.

why are the vocals on arcadia placed so far forward in the mix

why is the quality so shit on BBS

why does the wacky metal sounding literally drown out her vocal on BBS outro

dont even get me started on WW crunch ass drums

 

I love this record and i love her unhinged production choices but theres a difference between production quirks and production errors

ok rant over

The mixing on Arcadia and Black Bathing Suit is just bad. I have to turn both songs all the way up to even hear her. 

I agree with everything here except for WW. I understand not liking it, but it fits the thematic elements of the song and it sounds AMAZING on a car ride imo 

[drugmunny 8,743]

5 minutes ago, Jessica Apple Bottom Jean said:

Because as per Lana's request, arcadia and bbs were recorded on one of these bad boys 

she stays using this karaoke microphone w no control or filter

[Honeyyoung 16,973]

did it debut out of the top 10?

[Um Chile Anyways So 7,083]

Just now, drugmunny said:

THIS. This is why I want to have words with the fucking MIXERS. LIKE I DO NOT UNDERSTAND.

why are the vocals on arcadia placed so far forward in the mix

why is the quality so shit on BBS

why does the wacky metal sounding literally drown out her vocal on BBS outro

dont even get me started on WW crunch ass drums

 

I love this record and i love her unhinged production choices but theres a difference between production quirks and production errors

ok rant over

The mixing errors are quite common in Lana's discography, dating back to L4L. If you listen to the beginning of Heroin carefully, you can hear where the voice track starts. Not to mention White Dress "it was such a scee|eeene and I felt seeen... " 

[Honeyyoung 16,973]

oh nvm it's kinda good with no promo

 

[Super Movie 50,274]

I think Lana mixes her songs the way she does on purpose on this album, maybe to give them a bit of a more "raw" feel since the lyrics are that way as well. But my ears are garbage so to me, it all sounds fine 

[Umaniac 1,793]

I feel like the BLM line in Text Book gets unnecessary hate, what I see from that line is she was at the protest, screaming pride, something she didn’t want for her father. In the line  “All the things I could want for him I screamed for them” she is more focused on that she doesn’t want pride for her father, and not that she screamed at the protest. Also I was genuinely upset that she was so late to post about the incident last year and wasn’t really using her platform for it but I’m glad that she used that lyric in the song, thousands of people will listen it and remember the tragedy.

[lover 2,203]

4 hours ago, Ziegfeld Follies said:

anyone have any ideas what the "thanks for the shoes" line means in black bathing suit ? lol 

I always thought that she hints at how her older clothes don't fit but her shoes still do. "thanks for the shoes" as in she's very happy about the shoes she owns but not that much about the clothes since she can't wear them anymore

[Fingertips 72,105]

Just now, Super Movie said:

I think Lana mixes her songs the way she does on purpose on this album, maybe to give them a bit of a more "raw" feel since the lyrics are that way as well. But my ears are garbage so to me, it all sounds fine 

Yeah, and I think they're mixed based on how you hear the songs when you had headphones on, because the mixing sounds fine to me, or at least better in the case of Arcadia and BBS, than it does when I play the record through speakers or in my car

[Let the Light In 15,163]

25 minutes ago, Nectar said:

 

Do we have proof that these songs are not in lossless quality on Apple Music and Tidal? If we do, someone could email them and they would have to get the lossless files since they are promising that quality. I honestly don’t notice a difference though. 

 

Even if the songs are in lossless quality on those streaming services, since they are remastered from the YouTube rips there's not so much change. I think somebody here looked at the spectrum of the CD rips and those three songs were cut off at certain kbps.

[Make me your Dream Life 83,103]

Text Book: the interweaving of needing an actual father, a partner and how things change with time and are ushered out with time, poignant. which hits harder with the upbeat of the chorus reminiscent of the 60s. the motive overall is wanting some kind of stability that the world doesn't have and can't provide at least on a sociocultural viewpoint. the treachery highlighting the second verse makes the second chorus sound a bit more combative. intuitively, i think what she's trying to capture with the song is that society needs some kind of stable father figure 
atmosphere's closest to like BTD imo, with the faint western atmosphere that fades into what could sound like a desert mirage / Paradise 

Blue Banisters: the melody starts as if it's being sung as steps of a set of stairs. u could easily waltz to the rhythm  to the prechoruses  but then its like  
the piano does a great job at pacing what intuitively sounds like a delicate, apprehensive heart beat. 

Arcadia: she's got an entire world(s) around and within her, and with that, love and a curiosity for exploration, but she realizes that layers of the map won't welcome her and she banishes herself to where she can still be herself. the anthemic sounding chorus only highlights her despair and wanting to be accepted as a citizen after working so hard for so long, but realizing that the ideals that she raised herself on have dimmed and were mishandled. 

The Trio - Interlude: highlights the faint Kill Bill atmosphere that text book faintly touches on. it's comedic and also foreboding. 

Black Bathing Suit - the piano reminds me of something spiteful sprouting from embittered sadness. the melody shifts from uncaring to the chorus' assured ultimatum that if you couldn't look in between the lines from before, then u surely won't ever "get her" at all. someone can have the face of an angel but stench of a foul decaying soul and its effects on the inside, she emphasizes the need for a genuine beauty of the soul, but the world chooses to attempt to diminish her bc she doesn't look like a social media bratz model / isn't fulfilling the norm's vision of their fantasies 

IFYLDNTM - somehow can be exaggerated but also rings true for an unhealthy dance between herself and the limelight, which her romantic relationships and even perhaps lesser reflect which makes the outro sound even more genius, something reminiscent of an oldtime movie. she wants to be seen for who she really is as a mere person, past the fame 

Beautiful - the intro sounds like tired glass falling, that could parallel her patience for being what she thinks would be best/ caters to the other. sometimes u lose the essences of yourself doing that, but she reclaims herself in the saddest but most pleasantly sounding pleas. how she sings "like you", makes me immediately think, I could see the little things where your inner child/ innocence of soul (ref to like when we were kids under chemtrails over the country club) and beauty shine, why can't you see me the way I do you? it's heartbreaking. 

Violets For Roses - there's a natural uplift to the song's tempo that could remind one of playing ring around the rosy, the musical sounding chorus reminds her past love that he (collectively/personally/symbolically) couldn't appreciate her in the least, and only saw what they could take from her (ref to bbs). she feels a lot freer where she can start feeling like herself again bc the emphasis, spotlight of the relationship fades out and turns into sunshine. 

Dealer - the beauty of this song is the interwoven perspectives put into it, supplemented by another person singing in the song as well. the push and pull, and blowback are balanced and calmed by it's overall trippy production, as if being lulled to afterward-ed staying feelings of guilt and remorse

Thunder - the strings play an important role in conveying suspense. regattas in the wind that's why you're visiting, the party's lit and you have cut when it begins. there's an emptiness to the song that can be alluded to the differences of motives in their meeting. it can be forlorn as as glamorous as the circumstances are in at least the song are, both parties are left with nothing from the other, perhaps even more with tiredness than what they started with. 

Wildflower Wildfire - most sim to Million Dollar Man, except she's the main player of the track, control is hers to have, and she turns all the wrong's she's experienced into lessons to not do the same as she's lived. restraint can be difficult when forgiveness seems so far away, but somehow, she centers herself and focuses all of that anguish into loving. 

Nectar of the Gods - the nectar was just a glorified farce. the journey's end was anticlimactic and her soul sounds like it's singing, all confused what the fuck? all betrayed after everything she's done. as if the treasure she was looking for was actually just an ideal but said as something else. 

Living Legend - right off the bat, the offering of something to someone you feel is living life the way you think is admirable. someone to look up to in this decaying world. she forgot about herself and followed them thinking that she could have that same level, but in doing so, she must've wiled and rushed things with the lack of thought. she betrayed herself in wanting to be better. she can't have them, but she's learned to do things her own way, honorably. 

Cherry Blossom - powerful in how even if the song started as her singing to herself, it takes on more meaning in how she's softly compelled to pass on motherly love, knowing it's absence can really destroy someone. she gives love even if she was running on empty, and wants her child to be safe, bc she knows the dead ends in the maze. Angelina sim meaning to Angel; asking, guiding them not to lose their way. 

Sweet Carolina - symbolic for actually being able to love new life, despite all the wrong that might've been painted on her. in a way, she's also gained a new kind of metaphoric sister. one of the most beautiful things I think we can do as humans is obtaining new information etc. and pass it to newer generations for the sake of care and advancement, and instead of her gatekeeping the lessons, she decides to take care of the future generation, bc she knows how much of a cruel world the world can still be. 

The record coincides with how she said that if you do the work within yourself, you'll be better for it. and that, in turn, with how the world only chooses parts of her to nitpick, they're not seeing the larger picture of not just herself, but that priorities and higher perspectives are very much still very necessary in this hungering world. 
 

and I’m almost certain that a part of her is referring to herself in Angelina as a messenger, to remind us not to forget the lessons we’ve learned. Start the album over after finishing it, and we get the first line of Text Book that parallels the motives of banisters as a way of support, safety and security. when you think about it, the banisters themselves need to be painted on again and again and that can be reflective of perspective, and learning amidst the changes that we go through in this life. 

[drugmunny 8,743]

4 minutes ago, Jessica Apple Bottom Jean said:

The mixing errors are quite common in Lana's discography, dating back to L4L. If you listen to the beginning of Heroin carefully, you can hear where the voice track starts. Not to mention White Dress "it was such a scee|eeene and I felt seeen... " 

true. it's just really apparent on this record in particular. something i forgot to mention is the audible white noise that goes on when her vocal is being played and stops when it's just the instrumental. that happens on arcadia and blue banisters and it's happened in her discography before but ITS SO LOUD on BB

[Um Chile Anyways So 7,083]

10 minutes ago, Umaniac said:

I feel like the BLM line in Text Book gets unnecessary hate, what I see from that line is she was at the protest, screaming pride, something she didn’t want for her father. In the line  “All the things I could want for him I screamed for them” she is more focused on that she doesn’t want pride for her father, and not that she screamed at the protest. Also I was genuinely upset that she was so late to post about the incident last year and wasn’t really using her platform for it but I’m glad that she used that lyric in the song, thousands of people will listen it and remember the tragedy.

People that are looking for things to hate about Lana are the same people who will find an excuse for other artists' faults. Dua Lipa being miss worldwide during the first covid wave or Nicki not getting the vaccine and talking nonsense on the Internet.... Yet, if lana did any of these things, she'd be under the headlines for days 

[shadesofloveduthenandnow 20,588]

Manifesting BBS single and video 

[Jon Batiste Interlude 412]

6 minutes ago, drugmunny said:

true. it's just really apparent on this record in particular. something i forgot to mention is the audible white noise that goes on when her vocal is being played and stops when it's just the instrumental. that happens on arcadia and blue banisters and it's happened in her discography before but ITS SO LOUD on BB

 

imo hearing white noise come in with her vocals isn't an error in mixing and also something i always notice with her vocals. to EQ it all out, you'd sacrifice a lot of beauty in her voice.  better to have the white noise come in and out than muddy her vocals 

[SalvaWHORE 32,733]

The way that Beautiful, Violets for Roses & Cherry Blossom slowly taking the top 3 spots as my most favourite from the album sending me-

I mean, my favorite songs from Blue Banisters has to change like every single day. That's how good this album is 

[Um Chile Anyways So 7,083]

1 minute ago, Ziegfeld Follies said:

 

imo hearing white noise come in with her vocals isn't an error in mixing and also something i always notice with her vocals. to EQ it all out, you'd sacrifice a lot of beauty in her voice.  better to have the white noise come in and out than muddy her vocals 

It's possible to have both high quality vocals and filter white noise. For example, Listen to Adele's Easy on me... 

[American Whore 47,531]

Here's the deal 

cause i know you wanna talk about it

i saw a girl and her dad at target

they were buying the album and digging through all of em

to find one that wasn't cracked

the cd cases were broken on the shelf and i

bought 2 copies

of the cd

i took the album home and they said

hello

collection

i wouldnt know how valuable they'd be

$1?

$5? 

20 cents

theyre better with the neil photo

it's strange but it's true

[Blackestday x CN 5,001]

the holy trinity 

 

WW, iylntm, thunder

 

outstanding songs

 

bbs, trio, dealer, living legend, violets for roses

 

good songs:

 

arcadia, text book, nectar of the gods, cherry blossom

 

 

[Surf Noir 188,590]

my holy trinity: black bathing suit, wildflower wildfire, & text book