Unpopular Lana Opinions

[Harlem 1,942]

Am I the only one that thinks Born To Die is more of an iconic song than Video Games.

 

idk to me it's Lana's song

 

like

 

the pinnacle

[Hundred Dollar Bill 21,805]

I find Video Games very overrated. It's a nice song, yes, and it's very beautiful, but it's just so boring to me. Compared to the rest of the album-although I skip much of the other songs too, so that isn't saying much-it just feels like the lowest point of the album. All I really listen to from BTD anymore is Lucky Ones and BTD.

 

"What?! HDB doesn't like Video Games?! Stone him."

 

ready for your stones tbh

[Mommy's Mercedes 63]

*Throws Hoards Of Stones*

 

i find Million Dollar Man the most boring track on the album to be honest. I skip it a lot.

[SugarVenom 464]

I find Video Games very overrated. It's a nice song, yes, and it's very beautiful, but it's just so boring to me. Compared to the rest of the album-although I skip much of the other songs too, so that isn't saying much-it just feels like the lowest point of the album. All I really listen to from BTD anymore is Lucky Ones and BTD.

 

"What?! HDB doesn't like Video Games?! Stone him."

 

ready for your stones tbh

 

*walks over to where HDB is standing, waiting to be stoned for having the exact same opinion about video games*

[Hellion 993]

Diet Mountain Dew, Million Dollar Man and Video Games are my trinity of "don't use," honestly.

 

If they come on shuffle, fine, but I don't actively seek them out.

[Matt 984]

If I put Video Games on repeat I fall asleep very quickly.

[NamiraWilhelm 5,043]

I might like Video Games more if it wasn't overplayed to the point of me wanting to tear my eyes out each time.

[Monicker 3,035]

 

I think you misunderstand me. "Be more like a real model"? -- I expect someone that was once professionally a model to not consistently shoot so poorly. I am not expecting Kate Moss or Giselle type shots here. I just expect to see her move naturally and comfortably in front of the camera, having clear knowledge of what looks good and have that translate well in print.

 

A good amount of modelling is not "stiff and rather lifeless". Let's break this part: The vast majority of the modelling industry is commercial modelling, in simple terms: accessible, relatable (yet still unattainable enough, obviously). It's impossible to be accessible and relatable to potential buyers you are trying to ~connect with~ when you are "stiff and lifeless". This already rules out the possibility that "a good amount" of modelling is stiff. Onto high-fashion: the particular "stiff and lifeless" look is found here, particularly within the advertising for major fashion houses... which have obviously influenced newer houses and brands (see: Jil Sander -- I really, really hate this brand btw, random fact about me no one wanted to know). In magazine editorials (think Vogue, V, Harper's Bazaar, etc), the particular look you're referring to (if done) is often highly exaggerated, but done with intent and purpose. There's a difference between the stiffness of a Jil Sander model and the stiffness of Lana modelling -- one is intentional and meant to set off the clothing, the other is a person that appears to be unable to translate the image they'd like to project with their body to the camera.

 

(The other half of editorials is the absurd/surreal/off-kilter shoots. This, coupled with the idea of the Supermodel, pretty much refutes your notions about modelling. Find me one successful supermodel that primarily takes stiff and lifeless photos -- guarantee you you can't do it. I could get into this further, but I just wanted to show you exactly how small that particular look is in the scope of modeling; it's like saying, "Hey, don't the Beach Boys mostly sing about surfing?")

 

(It is a common misconception though, with the prevalence of those print ads and the media's exclusion of commercial modelling from the ~industry~)

 

My concern is not that Lana become more like "a real model" and be ~fierce~, it's just that she works better with the camera. From a technical POV, the shots I linked to are not good, regardless of whether you're a high-fashion or commercial model, or even a model at all. But the fact is, she did model so I am picking this out. If it were Katy Perry or Beyonce, I wouldn't expect them to deliver on good shots the majority of the time because they don't have this sort of background.

 

I don't know how much of this can be attributed to the photographers -- although they obviously do play a part. I really do think a lot of this rests on Lana though: when a former model is consistently posing in an unflattering manner and this has been published across a variety of publications, it raises the question: How well does she know her angles? How experienced is she? I have no doubt that a better photographer would draw out better photos, but how much good would they be when the subject appears to be unknowledgeable on how to pose in a flattering manner?

 

Because of the relatively small pool of photographers + photoshoots I drew from, I will wait until we have a greater variety of shoots to choose from before making my final decision. Something tells me a lot of it is Lana, but I hope to be proven wrong and blown away by a batch of photos not dependent on a prop to model with or any sort of environment to act in. :3

 

 

I knew i was going to get called out on that line. I had reservations about saying that. But that’s why i worded it as “a good amount...” That’s pretty open-ended, no? What is "a good amount”? Modeling is so, so vast (and consider all the different eras). It’s kind of like asking, “Isn’t a good amount of music disposable pop?" Well, yes it is, but it obviously also isn’t at all. It depends entirely on where you’re looking. These are both subjective assessments anyway, and with the case of “stiff and rather lifeless,” it’s not necessarily inherently negative, right? It’s an approach/specific style. What i was trying to get at was that a lot of modeling is generally associated with that quality. I guess, also, our ideas of what “stiff and lifeless” entail could be different because i feel that i can find you plenty of successful supermodels who shoot stiff and lifeless. There’s no way to objectively define that quality though--it would simply be my interpretation.

 

I don’t think you necessarily think this, but what you wrote sort of gives the impression that being a professional = being good at what you do. But, particularly in the field of entertainment, aren’t professionals not always good at what they do? I still think you’re giving Lana too much credit and overemphasizing the fact that she was a "professional" model. Are you using those old Ford shoots of hers as a measure of her professional experience? When you look at those shots, does that really seem like pro modeling to you? Also, do we know how long she did that for? Seems like it was very short-lived. And was it her career?

 

I also think you’re not giving the photographers enough credit. It’s incredible how much the way in which a photographer shoots someone can change their appearance and deameanor. I'm not talking about modeling, but photography in general. Like with movies, no matter how good an actor is, her/his performance within the context of the film is greatly affected by the director. If Lana is doing something, say, unflattering (which is subjective--as we’ve seen even in this very thread, different things look “good” to different people) it is, after all, the photographer who is behind the lens seeing the shoot as it unfolds, thus at the best vantage point to gauge the model’s look and the results of the overall shoot. I've shot people before where despite them trying to steer the shoot in a certain direction or emphasize certain things in themselves, i may have gone completely in my own direction because i had a different idea in mind and ultimately the decision was up to me. I just generally see exceptionally bad photography with Lana and that has to color the way she comes across in photos.

 

As you said originally, the editorial part has a lot to do with it too, i imagine. But, in the end, isn’t Elizabeth Grant an awkward person? All i was trying to point out in my first post was that i don’t think it matters that she doesn’t model well because she’s a recording artist. I think the problem lies with the photographers and the quality of work, that is why i think so many of her photos look bad. Imagine if (at least some) photographers just shot her “normally,” like portraiture or photo journalism. Obviously that’s never going to happen.

 

I appreciate the BB/surf music analogy. Believe it or not, i apply that very analogy when approaching many things.

[Sitar 22,213]

All I really listen to from BTD anymore is Lucky Ones and BTD.

 

Heard before

 

 

 

"Video Games" is so good. I don't even say this as an active fan of Born to Die (more than other members, icu HDB, smh), but because I prefer the style from AKA. It's the song that seems most similar to that "first" album. She had nothing to prove with it--I don't know, it just seems the most genuine. Musically and lyrically, it's simple and stands out as an individual.

 

I'll stop now, there's no converting people when they think a song is "boring". Some of the songs people consider the most boring are my favorites (Get Drunk, Disco, Fordham Road...). Lyrics and atmosphere just do it for me. I know this battle well

[Poison Ivy 1,588]

I'll just come out and sound like a crazy fanatic person, but there's really no song of hers I dislike. I've been a casual listener for a long time and every time I'd find 'new' songs of hers I was amazed that I liked them without exception. It rarely ever happens with other artists, and in a way it made me appreciate her music even more. The only ones I'm bored with a bit are the ones which have been my favorites at a time and I overplayed them a lot, but it has nothing to do with the song themselves.

[lesbian4lana 5]

her unreleased songs are so much better than the released ones.

[Hundred Dollar Bill 21,805]

I'll stop now, there's no converting people when they think a song is "boring". Some of the songs people consider the most boring are my favorites (Get Drunk, Disco, Fordham Road...). Lyrics and atmosphere just do it for me. I know this battle well

 

I love those three songs and I don't find them boring at all. Atmosphere and sound does it for me, and Video Games just doesn't deliver in those areas IMO. I get what you're saying though, yet I don't see anything even closely relating to AKA at all from BTD. Oy.

[Matt 984]

I love those three songs and I don't find them boring at all. Atmosphere and sound does it for me, and Video Games just doesn't deliver in those areas IMO. I get what you're saying though, yet I don't see anything even closely relating to AKA at all from BTD. Oy.

 

I agree with HDB. Video Games, it's a nice song, but it feels - empty. There's practically no atmosphere around it, in my opinion. Disco and Get Drunk are wonderful though. Get Drunk has such an intense buildup to it, and Disco has a creepy LA strip club & heroin vibe to it. Fordham Road also has this strong atmosphere to it. I picture a foggy New York day when I listen to it.

[NamiraWilhelm 5,043]

I really don't like the big hair Priscilla Presley look for Lana. I dunno, I think I prefer it when she looks like Lizzy Grant. Down to earth, a little scruffy, more relatable.

[Monicker 3,035]

Evidence that music is completely subjective, that there is no good or bad, right or wrong. It's all an illusion.

 

For me, Video Games is almost entirely atmosphere. And it's a quintessential L.A. sound. The very first time i heard it, within the first two bars, that was the first thought that came to mind. We all have different reality tunnels, yay.

[Madrigal 2,616]

Evidence that music is completely subjective, that there is no good or bad, right or wrong. It's all an illusion.

 

For me, Video Games is almost entirely atmosphere. And it's a quintessential L.A. sound. The very first time i heard it, within the first two bars, that was the first thought that came to mind. We all have different reality tunnels, yay.

Thanks again for helping me realize how awful it is compared to how it would sound with real strings. <|||3

[Monicker 3,035]

What is it exactly that i said that made you realize this again? And when was the first time i helped you realize this? Or is that wise-ass hyperbole?

 

Yes, the song (and entire album) could sound infinitely better from an arrangement, engineering, and production standpoint. But i don't take that to mean that it's necessarily a bad song and album though. That's just what's going on subjectively for me in this specific equation. Maybe it's because BTD is an anomaly in my record collection and i've allowed myself to embrace this and appreciate it as something out of the ordinary for me. I understand that, say, fake strings could completely ruin a song for someone. I totally get that, trust me. But, for me, as a whole, VG rises above its flaws--i see it as a great song that could've sounded even greater. And that's actually how i see the entirety of the BTD album. Its shortcomings don't ever quite pull it down all the way past the point of no return. It's this tawdry, crude yet overly polished, bloated kind of a record. I'm never quite sure just what to make of it, but i know i like it. It's real, but it's some singular, constructed hyperreality that, while being far removed from its surroundings, is still completely immersed in a larger whole. And that's in large part what Lana Del Rey is, and what i like about her. If i try to imagine the album turning out more to my tastes, it would end up sounding like a very different album. But then what fun is that? I lose what it actually is, what makes it special and unusual to me. And that spot that it would've occupied in my music collection would then seem very empty.

[Sitar 22,213]

Evidence that music is completely subjective, that there is no good or bad, right or wrong. It's all an illusion.

 

For me, Video Games is almost entirely atmosphere. And it's a quintessential L.A. sound. The very first time i heard it, within the first two bars, that was the first thought that came to mind. We all have different reality tunnels, yay.

 

Yes, Mo, convert those sinful VG-haters

[Madrigal 2,616]

What is it exactly that i said that made you realize this again? And when was the first time i helped you realize this? Or is that wise-ass hyperbole?

 

 

Yes, the song (and entire album) could sound infinitely better from an arrangement, engineering, and production standpoint. But i don't take that to mean that it's necessarily a bad song and album though. That's just what's going on subjectively for me in this specific equation. Maybe it's because BTD is an anomaly in my record collection and i've allowed myself to embrace this and appreciate it as something out of the ordinary for me. I understand that, say, fake strings could completely ruin a song for someone. I totally get that, trust me. But, for me, as a whole, VG rises above its flaws--i see it as a great song that could've sounded even greater. And that's actually how i see the entirety of the BTD album. Its shortcomings don't ever quite pull it down all the way past the point of no return. It's this tawdry, crude yet overly polished, bloated kind of a record. I'm never quite sure just what to make of it, but i know i like it. It's real, but it's some singular, constructed hyperreality that, while being far removed from its surroundings, is still completely immersed in a larger whole. And that's in large part what Lana Del Rey is, and what i like about her. If i try to imagine the album turning out more to my tastes, it would end up sounding like a very different album. But then what fun is that? I lose what it actually is, what makes it special and unusual to me. And that spot that it would've occupied in my music collection would then seem very empty.

 

 

It was towards the FM's end...I didn't want to believe you when you said it at first, but the revelation became my own shortly after.

 

I know, but it takes the appreciation of flaws to truly make a fan. And yes, BTD is, overall, a great album, but anyone who blindly sings its praises with acknowledging its flaws isn't truly understanding it.

[Sorrow 58]

The new hair sucks - it must go.