naachoboy 7,993 Posted August 24, 2015 So after trashing her for ripping off Lana/sky/etc and listening to this what i can say is: She doesnt have a charasteristic sound, she sounds like everyone but her, and this is a try-hard album (imo). 3 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
luckyonewithoutyou 1,929 Posted August 24, 2015 am I the only one that didn't hate this album 6 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
thatsomason 1,202 Posted August 24, 2015 Overral the album is great, I really love the soundscape. Standout tracks are Ghost, Roman Holiday, Castle, Colors+Colors pt.2, and Haunting. 8.5/10 0 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
nowornever 392 Posted August 24, 2015 I really like this album, but there's a lot of room for improvement. Roman Holiday, Gasoline, Drive, Ghost, Colors, and Young God are my favorites. 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
FrankNotOcean 1,146 Posted August 24, 2015 If you wanna go to Heaven you should fuck me tonight would be my tagline in Real Housewives 2 Quote First we feel; then we fall. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KillForLove 13,361 Posted August 24, 2015 I'm listening her album now and I can't really get where the "concept album" comes from. Do you remember in which interview she explains it? The concept comes from the idea that the "Badlands" represent her mind (playing into the fact that she's bipolar and struggled with it throughout her teenage years). The concept is less apparent on the deluxe because Tracks like Hurricane, Strange Love, & I Walk the line deviate from it, but its essentially her navigating though the different mental struggles she's faced by conceptualizing them into songs. The album itself bounces through highs (Roman Holiday) and the lows (colors) much like something someone with mental illness (or really anyone just to a less drastic degree) would experience. The best example of this would be Control where the lines bounce from symptoms of mania ("I paced around for hours on empty, I jumped at the slightest of sounds") and depression ("I couldn't stand the person inside me, I turned all the mirrors around). While I'm obviously overanalyzing it, I think its a pretty solid concept album given that its the debut from a 20 year old and she wrote it with a relatively small amount of people (the tracks were done with a lot of different producers yet have common lyrical themes leading me to believe she actually did write a lot of it). I think people are trashing the album because they don't like her as a person (which I can see why) but I don't think the album is bad by any means. 14 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
drewby 9,246 Posted August 24, 2015 The concept comes from the idea that the "Badlands" represent her mind (playing into the fact that she's bipolar and struggled with it throughout her teenage years). The concept is less apparent on the deluxe because Tracks like Hurricane, Strange Love, & I Walk the line, but its essentially her navigating though the different mental struggles she's faced by conceptualizing them into songs. The album itself bounces through highs (Roman Holiday) and the lows (colors) much like something. The best example of this would be Control where the lines bounce from symptoms of mania ("I paced around for hours on empty, I jumped at the slightest of sounds") and depression ("I couldn't stand the person inside me, I turned all the mirrors around). While I'm obviously overanalyzing it, I think its a pretty solid concept album given that its the debut from a 20 year old and she wrote it with a relatively small amount of people (the tracks were done with a lot of different producers yet have common lyrical themes leading me to believe she actually did write a lot of it). I think people are trashing the album because they don't like her as a person (which I can see why) but I don't think the album is bad by any means. I actually like your analysis of it. I wasn't a huge fan of the deluxe tracks, so I'll listen to the standard tomorrow and see if that changes my feelings on the record now that I can go into it with all that in mind 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KillForLove 13,361 Posted August 24, 2015 I actually like your analysis of it. I wasn't a huge fan of the deluxe tracks, so I'll listen to the standard tomorrow and see if that changes my feelings on the record now that I can go into it with all that in mind My only issue with the concept of it is that a lot of songs are about guys (ghost, colors, young god, drive, roman holiday) so I don't really see how it plays into the concept unless she's conceptualizing them as figures that "led her though" the Badlands 0 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
renaissance 8,330 Posted August 24, 2015 i dont get colors part 2 i feel it's rlly unnecessary like is there a reason for it to be there or is it just.... there? 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
thatsomason 1,202 Posted August 24, 2015 i dont get colors part 2 i feel it's rlly unnecessary like is there a reason for it to be there or is it just.... there?This is just my opinion, but I think it's kind of an interlude into the second half of the album and also just sort of to add more sound to colors (if that makes sense) 4 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
THE1975 78 Posted August 24, 2015 loved the album overall. roman holiday & young god are the weak tracks to me. gasoline's chorus doesn't (completely) live up to it's verses, still fucking love it tho [love aggressive halsey]. i wish she would've stuck to the tour versions of colors & control. control is by far my favorite (tour version & this version, it grew on me). i walk the line is so beautiful; she's the only person to successfully cover johnny cash and do it JUSTICE. would be cool if there was a badlands movie. i like colors pt 2 [tbh i thought it was going to be a spoken word piece]. on my aoty list. also @@KillForLove i love you. 2 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Den 203 Posted August 24, 2015 My opinion about Badlands' is pretty meh, but Roman Holiday is a bop 0 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MotelHoney 306 Posted August 24, 2015 I love New Americana, Hurricane, Ghost. The whole pandering to the Tumblr crowd thing is very obvious and kinda annoying but I think the same thing with many new artists. 0 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
StarryEyed 397 Posted August 24, 2015 she wrote it with a relatively small amount of people (the tracks were done with a lot of different producers yet have common lyrical themes leading me to believe she actually did write a lot of it) She said she wrote the whole album herself. Also I think everyone should watch these two videos: 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Thunder Revenant 20,961 Posted August 24, 2015 I want her to grow her hair again. the miley Cyrus haristyle looks stupid. 1 Quote Just do it. Just do it - don't wait! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
guardian 3,558 Posted August 24, 2015 After several listens, I can say I love the majority of the album, but I would've cut Roman Holiday and Coming Down, those are the weakest tracks to me, don't really feel them a lot. So, from best to worst in my opinion: Control Gasoline Castle (God bless these three tracks, bravo) Ghost Colors (I & II) Strange Love Haunting I Walk The Line Hold Me Down New Americana Hurricane Yound God Drive Coming Down Roman Holiday My rate: 8.5/10 0 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
StarryEyed 397 Posted August 24, 2015 Where's the map? 0 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Thunder Revenant 20,961 Posted August 24, 2015 My ranking so farControl HurricaneCastleStrange Love New Americana GhostI Walk The LineThese songs are my favourite ones and the most outstanding ones in my opinion.GasolineComing DownHauntingDriveHold Me Down These songs are pretty good but all of them have their highs and lows. Colors Young GodRoman HolidayThese are the songs I like the least. All 3 of them are nice but I think they are very forgetable. 0 Quote Just do it. Just do it - don't wait! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KillForLove 13,361 Posted August 24, 2015 Where's the map? It was dropped from the description on the site and replaced with a "hand drawn image" 0 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
thatsomason 1,202 Posted August 24, 2015 Where's the map? They emailed me saying "The Badlands map is unavailable and will not be included." 0 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites