Did you know that there's a tunnel under Ocean Blvd - Post-Release Discussion Thread + Poll

[fl0r1dakil0s 21,427]

Girl ur even crazier than me w these ideas

 

Serve  

[Make me your Dream Life 87,812]

6 minutes ago, fl0r1dakil0s said:

Girl ur even crazier than me w these ideas

 

Serve  

[Ultraviolencez 2,609]

the way we got 3 MVs for BB and only 1 for oceanblvd is sending me

[Ultraviolencez 2,609]

Honestly this album gets better and better every listen, its really beautiful and its giving early summer vibes, which I love. Its still top3 for me

 

[love deluxe 8,861]

and what if i said sweet has become my favorite song on the album

[love deluxe 8,861]

okay one of my favorites

[niandra lades 2,454]

I loved this album so so much. I actually was thinking of coming here the day it dropped but I didn't! But I was here during the pre-release and was actually so excited because I am always excited about her upcoming projects even if I don't end up liking them that much. It happened to me with NFR, COCC and BB, and I do appreciate many things about those albums - The Greatest might be one of her best songs ever, and there are many beautiful songs in all of those three projects, but I didn't like them that much. But I was super excited about this one since she dropped that first interview, and I love love love love it. It's such an special album. It's so like her old stuff but it remains fresh and new and it seems like she's blended everything in one album. Anyways I'm back! Loved the MITA show so so much. She really outdid herself.

[PARADIXO 32,940]

March was such a terrible, terrible month for me, it even ruined my first listening experience with this album.

I feel better now and Ocean Blvd has become the highlight of my year.

 

The Grants - Ocean Blvd - Sweet are some of her best ever vocals, lyrics and performance

A&W - Candy Necklace - Kintsugi - Fingertips - Paris Texas has to be her darkest run ever, and not only that but A&W and Fingertips are career peaks

Grandfather - Let the Light In - Margaret  These songs are epic

And Peppers and Taco Truck are absolute bops. Taco Truck is one of her best ever songs to smoke to...

 

The lyrics are fantastic through the whole thing, so many iconic lines and interesting stories. Fingertips is definitely my favorite.

 

Also it's incredible how the release of this album kinda officially cemented her as a totally MAIN global artist. Selling out big shows, headlining festivals all over the world, awards, critical acclaim, record-breaking streaming numbers... ugh. I knew 2023 was going to be huge for her. 2024 will be bigger!

 

Thank you Lana.

[ivory almond 15,639]

After yet another month with the album, i realize that it actually is one of my top 4 albums, but i believe that the way the album was arranged has thrown me off and made me believe that there is only a limited selection of songs that are actually good. The arrangement also makes the album feel much shorter than 16 tracks; let me visualise my thought process

 

Ok, below is the tracklist divided into sections based on changes in sound/concept/vibe that I have noticed. I put a heart next to my top 5 tracks just to give you an idea of any bias that I may have when writing my in-depth analysis on the effect of the tracklist.

 

1. The Grants

2. Did you know there’s a tunnel under Ocean Blvd

3. Sweet ❤️

4. A&W

5. Judah Smith Interlude

6. Candy Necklace

7. Jon Batiste Interlude

8. Kintsugi

9. Fingertips

10. Paris, Texas

11. Grandfather Please Stand on the Shoulders of My Father While He's Deep Sea Fishing ❤️
12. Let The Light In ❤️

13. Margaret

14. Fishtail ❤️

15. Peppers ❤️

16. Taco Truck x VB

Okay, so the blue section contains one of my top 5: Sweet. However, all other songs in this section were released as singles and I had already listened to them plenty of times before the album release, so I don't listen to them as much anymore. In addition, A&W's length doesn't make it an easy song to listen to, unlike Venice Bitch (another long song), which is easier to listen to because of its instrumental and much lighter lyrics. A&W is heavy in its first part and repetitive in its second part, so even though it is a great song and shorter than Venice Bitch, it's harder to sit through.

Next, we have the purple section. This section is not only limited to two interludes and a dark piano ballad, but it also acts as a divider for the album as a whole. After Jon Batiste Interlude, it feels like a new album with (based on popular opinion) better songs in general. Judah Smith Interlude is just shouting and piano. Jon Batiste Interlude is instead happy shouting with more uplifting piano. Both are still skips on the album because they are simply interludes. Interludes are meant to be connections between songs or a transition from one part of an album to the next, but with Candy Necklace stuck right in between the two, the section as a whole feels like a skip.

Now we have our grey section; perhaps the heaviest section of the whole album, regardless of its two track length. Kintsugi and Fingertips are lyrical masterpieces and both top songs from Lana. As for their flaws: Kintsugi goes on for too long with the same piano melody over and over again. Her voice is also very quiet and mumbly, and overall, this song has the weakest production out of all the tracks. Fingertips does a better job with production: Lana's voice is clearer, there are more instruments, very orchestral, but where it falls short is its structure (or lack of). This song has no chorus, it is just verse after verse. This doesn't really matter, simply because of its amazing lyrics, but having it be right next to Kintsugi, which is RIGHT next to our interludes, the album feels too drawn out at this point and stripped of any warmth/energy. 

These last two sections are my favorites because 1) they have the best songs imo, and 2) they are a breath of fresh air from what Lana just put us through in the first three sections. Out of the four orange section songs, Margaret is the weakest and Paris, Texas is a close second. Nevertheless, these are still some of my favorites from the album and there are no bad songs from the last 8 tracks. Paris, Texas, though yet ANOTHER piano-based song, is simple and structured nicely with a catchy melody and pickup in energy from Kintsugi/Fingertips. This is by far the easiest listen on the album, which is why it is a favorite among many casual listeners. GPSOTSOMFWHDSF has one of the best instrumentals on the album, with an amazing buildup that we haven't heard since track 2, DYKTTATUOB. Let The Light In is my #1 song on the entire album; it has warmth, it has amazing lyrics, it has the best featured artist, etc. My only problem with it is that it has NO buildup. The song starts with all the instruments and ends the same way, consistently loud throughout the song. Margaret's a cute song, but I don't find anything special in it that I can't find in other songs other than its Bleachers-like sounds, which take a while to come in and a while to go out. 

Last but not least, we have the green section. Each song iconic and a bop in its own way. Fishtail starts as what we think is going to be ANOTHER piano ballad, and then hits us with one of the best beat drops in musical history. Where does this song fail to be perfect? The random autotune on parts that don't need it and lack of autotune on parts that do need it. Also, Lana sings so off-key with the instrumental toward the end that it's somewhat painful to hear. But none of that really matters because it's so good as a whole, which earns it a heart from me. Peppers is the sister song to Fishtail, using parallel lyrics and also being another bop. This bop feels less electronic though, and more authentic with an amazing bass line and jaw-dropping surf-rock section. The song gradually gets more chaotic, yet still composed in a way to where it isn't all over the place. This leads us to our last song on the album, which is a little disheartening, given that it feels like the album just recently peaked. The entire first half of this song is perfect, lyrics are good, guitar is good, vibe is good, and then we transition. The transition does throw you for a loop because it does sound a bit like a fan-made mashup, but nonetheless, the trap version of Venice Bitch comes in to sweep us off our feet. Lana even adds iconic adlibs to an already iconic song: "Get high, drop acid, never die, not tonight, Lake Placid!" The album ends with the lyrics: "Signing off, bang bang, kiss kiss." With an album full of samples from past songs and lyrical references to unreleased ones like Serene Queen and Jump, this closer sums up the whole "full-circle" aspect that Lana has given us and continued to give us with references to her old looks in the Candy Necklace MV. 

In conclusion, even though the album's individual songs are some of Lana's best work, the arrangement and structure makes the album feel slightly more insignificant than it is. If she had cut out the interludes and switched a few tracks around, the album would probably feel longer and more enjoyable even with fewer tracks. However, on the narrative side of things, the tracklist makes sense. No album is perfect (except for Ultraviolence), and this album is just an example of how composition makes a big difference. Also, shout out to whichever member said this (I forgot), but a lot of the songs on this album have long intros and outros, where Lana only sings for a short part in the middle, which contributes to it feeling shorter than some of her other records. Thank you for your time, LB!

[bluechemtrails 26,742]

I don't understand why some people don't get what a masterpiece Kintsugi is.

[CinnamonGay 10,527]

1 minute ago, Good Intentions said:

I don't understand why some people don't get what a masterpiece Kintsugi is.

Most worthy song for SOTY.

 

Hope she submits it instead of the title track for SOTY.

 

[domandapiano 12,099]

On 5/31/2023 at 6:25 AM, love deluxe said:

and what if i said sweet has become my favorite song on the album

Those with any semblance of critical thinking would congratulate you on having immaculate taste. Sweet is wonderful. 

[13beachess 7,614]

this album is truly soooooooo good. I can't get enough.to think LANA FUCKING DID THAT!  feeling blessed tbh

[ivory almond 15,639]

fingertips > kintsugi
i hope my mind changes soon bc ik im wrong

[13beachess 7,614]

Just now, ivory almond said:

fingertips > kintsugi
i hope my mind changes soon bc ik im wrong

no youre actually right!

[Eugene 26,669]

1. Kintsugi

2. Did you know that there's a tunnel under Ocean Blvd

3. A&W

4. Let The Light In

5. The Grants

6. Candy Necklace

7. Grandfather please stand on the shoulders of my father while he's deep-sea fishing

 

[rocknrollgroupie 4,496]

I could be in the happiest mood possible but as soon as fingertips starts playing I’m a sad bitch

[taco truck 32,991]

1. A&W

2. Peppers

3. Taco Truck x VB

4. Let the Light In

5. Kintsugi 

 

Honestly #5 could be the grants depending on my mood

[cj1995 331]

Fishtail has grown on me extremely. I'd say my previous favorites have been replaced by Fishtail. The eerie vibe, her vocals, the instrumental. When the first beat drops. I'm in love. How did I not hear the magnificence on the first listen? ...you wanted me sadder. 

[PARADIXO 32,940]

My sister is a huge huge Lana fan since Born to Die like me (we actually grew up listening to Lana together lol) but she kinda stopped keeping track of her during Chemtrails - Blue Banisters (she still played all her older stuff though, including Norman which is her favorite). I was kinda sad bc I couldn't discuss those albums with her since she didn't even give them a try  Now she's 100% back with Ocean Blvd which she loved and now she fell in love with Chemtrails 

 

The power of Ocean Blvd