Lana Del Ray AKA Lizzy Grant - Post-Release Discussion Thread + Poll

[cheaptrailertrashglm 3,568]

her voice in the beginning of Brite Lites tho is heaven

 

"I'm taking of my wedding ring..."

[sparklrtrailrheaven 9,073]

- Brite Lites demo, Trash Magic Edit and You Make Me Wanna (Let My Hair Down) came from the sessions with Steven Mertens.

- Final AKA masters were done on 25 February 2008 between 6 and 7 PM, with the exceptions of Gramma (26 Feb) and Raise Me Up (28 Feb).

- The tracklist order of AKA was different in 2008, starting with For K Part 2 and finishing with Mermaid Motel.*

- The acapella demos she recorded in 2008 (Diet Mt. Dew Baby, My Song 57...) are titled under Lana Rey

- Bounce, Jimmy Gnecco, Lemonade Motorcycle Heaven, White Pontiac Heaven, Ben, Coconut and Key Lime Pie and a lot more* are produced by David Kahne.

 

I'm a little late to the game here, but @Eclipse posted some very interesting information that pertains to AKA in his info post. I've also included a couple facts pertaining to Steven Mertens, David Kahne, and a fact about a possible stage name of Lana's at the time of recording. Info like this (especially like the tracklist info, imo) reveals that this period in Lana's life still has so much left to uncover and enjoy! Thank you @Eclipse

[VioletsnRoses 50]

So I found a website of someone who worked with Lana Del Rey in her Lizzy Grant days and he had a wrote an article during the SNL debacle defending her in a way. I'm new here so I don't know if this was posted yet but I thought it was cool.

 

https://phatfriend.com/tag/lizzy-grant/

 

There is another link in the article where he discusses the Lana in her Lizzy days and how he liked her but was afraid she would not take off

 

"Finally, the singer arrived, she was adorable. I think all three of us guys (who had never met her before) we all taken back. She was sweet and cute in a way that you would think
anyone could make her a star. Since I’m an honest wifed up guy, my first thought when seeing her (which would normally be, ‘I would like to have sex with this person.’) was ‘This girl is insanely marketable.’ And, after I heard her sing, that thought only intensified. She was flawless on her takes and precise, her lyrics were even interesting.

I began to feel like we may be on to something and this chance I took was a great idea. Fast forward one hour and my mood had changed. Within that time period, the beat I had given them had been turned on it’s ass and sounded like a completely different genre. The only thing left from my original piece was a quiet sample of a guitar floating in the background (seemingly to appease me) and half of a horn loop being used completely differently then I had intended. The original drums had been mostly kicked to the curb in favor of live drums that sounded like lounge music played by a bar band. The majority of the samples had been replaced by soft guitars and rhodes progressions. Any edge I could have possibly brought to the table had been eradicated. All this was going on while the two guys working on the music were frequently turning back at me saying shit like, ‘Dude, awesome track..’ , as if my beat was even a part of what was going on in the song at this point.

As the singer laid her vocals down perfectly and all the sequences started coming together, my initial disgust with what had gone down started to wane because I could see what was happening. My beat was just a template, she simply used it as a means to write a new song and the music itself was unimportant. These two engineer/musican guys were there to bring the pop feel to the table. As much as I didn’t like the music that came out of it, their musicianship could not be denied. They knew what they were doing and they executed it perfectly, I just wasn’t in on it. But, right then, I got it; this was the creation of pop music. I honestly had never given it much thought, it was taking something rough and shining it down to a dull glow. Finding a happy shmedium is key to making pop music; It has to be simple but not too simple, predictable but not too predictable, catchy is the most bland way possible, and, most of all, play towards the lowest common denominator.

Here was a girl with a great voice, style, and mind for what she’s doing and two highly skilled musicians with endless knowledge of music and music theory. And there you have me, a hip hop producer who plays no instruments, can’t read music and is completely removed from anything that’s been played on the radio in the last 5 years. Yet, if she and I had just recorded a song over my beat it would be more compelling then the song that came to be. Sure, the final product was amazingly produced and arranged. The attention to detail was immaculate; chord changes, breaks and layers of instrumentation unlike anything I’d ever worked on. Had the singer and I made the song, it would have been pretty simple, basic sequencing and song structure, but it would have sounded unlike anything else out right now.

For better or for worse.

In reality, the actual final product was not bad, it was just typical and it wouldn’t stand out. For as well as it was made and good as she could sing, it just seemed like it was coming off the assembly line. The bottom line is that the song was corny and no matter how good the ingredients are, if dinner tastes like shit, it tastes like shit."

[cheaptrailertrashglm 3,568]

So I found a website of someone who worked with Lana Del Rey in her Lizzy Grant days and he had a wrote an article during the SNL debacle defending her in a way. I'm new here so I don't know if this was posted yet but I thought it was cool.

 

https://phatfriend.com/tag/lizzy-grant/

 

There is another link in the article where he discusses the Lana in her Lizzy days and how he liked her but was afraid she would not take off

 

"Finally, the singer arrived, she was adorable. I think all three of us guys (who had never met her before) we all taken back. She was sweet and cute in a way that you would think

anyone could make her a star. Since I’m an honest wifed up guy, my first thought when seeing her (which would normally be, ‘I would like to have sex with this person.’) was ‘This girl is insanely marketable.’ And, after I heard her sing, that thought only intensified. She was flawless on her takes and precise, her lyrics were even interesting.

I began to feel like we may be on to something and this chance I took was a great idea. Fast forward one hour and my mood had changed. Within that time period, the beat I had given them had been turned on it’s ass and sounded like a completely different genre. The only thing left from my original piece was a quiet sample of a guitar floating in the background (seemingly to appease me) and half of a horn loop being used completely differently then I had intended. The original drums had been mostly kicked to the curb in favor of live drums that sounded like lounge music played by a bar band. The majority of the samples had been replaced by soft guitars and rhodes progressions. Any edge I could have possibly brought to the table had been eradicated. All this was going on while the two guys working on the music were frequently turning back at me saying shit like, ‘Dude, awesome track..’ , as if my beat was even a part of what was going on in the song at this point.

As the singer laid her vocals down perfectly and all the sequences started coming together, my initial disgust with what had gone down started to wane because I could see what was happening. My beat was just a template, she simply used it as a means to write a new song and the music itself was unimportant. These two engineer/musican guys were there to bring the pop feel to the table. As much as I didn’t like the music that came out of it, their musicianship could not be denied. They knew what they were doing and they executed it perfectly, I just wasn’t in on it. But, right then, I got it; this was the creation of pop music. I honestly had never given it much thought, it was taking something rough and shining it down to a dull glow. Finding a happy shmedium is key to making pop music; It has to be simple but not too simple, predictable but not too predictable, catchy is the most bland way possible, and, most of all, play towards the lowest common denominator.

Here was a girl with a great voice, style, and mind for what she’s doing and two highly skilled musicians with endless knowledge of music and music theory. And there you have me, a hip hop producer who plays no instruments, can’t read music and is completely removed from anything that’s been played on the radio in the last 5 years. Yet, if she and I had just recorded a song over my beat it would be more compelling then the song that came to be. Sure, the final product was amazingly produced and arranged. The attention to detail was immaculate; chord changes, breaks and layers of instrumentation unlike anything I’d ever worked on. Had the singer and I made the song, it would have been pretty simple, basic sequencing and song structure, but it would have sounded unlike anything else out right now.

For better or for worse.

In reality, the actual final product was not bad, it was just typical and it wouldn’t stand out. For as well as it was made and good as she could sing, it just seemed like it was coming off the assembly line. The bottom line is that the song was corny and no matter how good the ingredients are, if dinner tastes like shit, it tastes like shit."

interesting read.....what song is he talking about tho? nvm

[VioletsnRoses 50]

It isn't much but it made me happy to see this. I was doing some sleuthing and found an old music blog, where he lists her performances in December 2008. Sadly no videos!

 

Lizzy Grant New Yawk Performances

 

Jazzy Jersey girl Lizzy Grant will be performing a few shows in New Yawk and New Joisey this December.

Dec 2 2008 |The National Underground | NY
Dec 5 2008 | Jersey City Kevin Spyker + Railroad Studio | NJ
Dec 16 2008 | The Living Room | NY
Dec 18 2008 | NY SIRENS | NY

 

And a fun little bonus: I found an old Lizzy Grant profile on eventful.com, which is a concert site where you can request the artist to tour in your area!

Here's the bio I found for her

 

 

" MORE INFO ABOUT Lizzy Grant

Bio

Lizzy Grant is one of the most unusual and interesting young artists emerging from the NYC scene. Disregarding genre, she mixes elements of pop and avant-garde, complex jazz chords with unexpected electronic flourishes, and narcotic blues with chilling lyrics that sharply contrast with the warm sound of her voice.

Even a casual listener to her new EP Kill Kill immediately hears a formidable musical talent with an exquisite, captivating voice. The attentive listener notices much more. Kill Kill opens up a world that feels simultaneously dark but still hopeful, musically polished without losing the simple beauty and elegance of a well-written melody. Lizzy Grant captures a musical vibe that will appeal to fans of Cat Power, Amy Winehouse or Antony and the Johnsons, with colorings and shadings of Billie Holliday and Nina Simone mixed in. She adores Nirvana, The Beach Boys and Elvis Presley and cites them as major influences.

A recent resident of a New Jersey trailer park and long time lover of the great city of New York, Grant says about her new EP, “Coney Island and America are the touchstones of these songs. I feel at home in Coney Island. I used to go there every day.” The collaboration between producer David Kahne (Paul McCartney, Regina Spektor, Sublime, Fishbone) and Grant succeeded in recreating the carnival organs and arcade sounds reminiscent of the musical experience of Coney Island while still referencing the dark underside that has always fascinated its visitors.

Before settling in New York, Lizzy Grant’s nomadic tendencies had her moving about from state to state and town to town, all the while listening, singing and developing her musical chops. She eventually landed in NYC, and, armed with her considerable talent and eclectic taste, began playing clubs around the city. This is usually a recipe for obscurity, but instead of disappearing into the throngs of pretty faces with pretty voices, she showed up with her guitar and blew the judges away at a songwriting contest, got invited onto some impressive shows with notable headliners The Blow, Mirah and Moby, posted some homemade music videos online and before long, had assembled a following that included everyone from teens on MySpace to major music industry heavyweights.

Lizzy Grant’s emergence from small town USA onto the stages of New York City and the ipods of the music industry may seem like a young girl’s fairy tale, but while you’re being dazzled by that pretty smile and glittering blond hair, remember - it’s her intricate songs and incredible voice that got her where she is now, ready for takeoff.

Lizzy Grant’s debut EP, entitled Kill Kill, is on iTunes now.

Categories: Music | Heavy Metal "

[cheaptrailertrashglm 3,568]

lol at her calling her music heavy metal

[Kommando 3,264]

I still can't believe Trash Magic didn't make the cut on A.K.A. , this song is auditive morphine

[forkpt1 831]

This thread is everything

[VioletsnRoses 50]

lol at her calling her music heavy metal

 You know I read somewhere that the reason why she labels it heavy metal is because those songs were about the men she loved and how they loved heavy metal in which they introduced the music to and was influenced by that. I can't remember where, sadly.

[cheaptrailertrashglm 3,568]

 You know I read somewhere that the reason why she labels it heavy metal is because those songs were about the men she loved and how they loved heavy metal in which they introduced the music to and was influenced by that. I can't remember where, sadly.

could be, but it still makes me giggle what she considers her music on her old myspace pages and such

[Kommando 3,264]

 You know I read somewhere that the reason why she labels it heavy metal is because those songs were about the men she loved and how they loved heavy metal in which they introduced the music to and was influenced by that. I can't remember where, sadly.

 

I think she said it in the Index Magazine interview

[reputation 6,321]

Trash Magic isn't really AKA worthy. But would have had that than that mess called 'Yayo'

[PARADIXO 32,976]

[cheaptrailertrashglm 3,568]

Trash Magic isn't really AKA worthy. But would have had that than that mess called 'Yayo'

what's with the yayo hate!?

[reputation 6,321]

what's with the yayo hate!?

I find it to be her most overrated song. The lyrics are so unoriginal and the instrumental is just another guitar line. Really don't see any abundance of things that are in good songs

[VioletsnRoses 50]

I find it to be her most overrated song. The lyrics are so unoriginal and the instrumental is just another guitar line. Really don't see any abundance of things that are in good songs

Yeah it is honestly one of the few songs I am not a fan of from her!

[reputation 6,321]

Yeah it is honestly one of the few songs I am not a fan of from her!

Someone finally agrees with me

[sparklrtrailrheaven 9,073]

I find it to be her most overrated song. The lyrics are so unoriginal and the instrumental is just another guitar line. Really don't see any abundance of things that are in good songs

 

i think what makes yayo so great is the authenticity of it-- you can tell it means a lot to lana, and it doesn't need anything else than the guitar. i find the lyrics to be absolutely wonderful, too. but of course you're free to your opinion! 

[reputation 6,321]

i think what makes yayo so great is the authenticity of it-- you can tell it means a lot to lana, and it doesn't need anything else than the guitar. i find the lyrics to be absolutely wonderful, too. but of course you're free to your opinion!

 

As if a song about drugs, motorcycles and putting on shows for men is authentic?

[sparklrtrailrheaven 9,073]

As if a song about drugs, motorcycles and putting on shows for men is authentic?

 

you ought to know good and well that symbols like these mean a lot to lana. to assume that yayo is just a song about "drugs, motorcycles, and putting on shows for men" is to simplify things too much. it's a song, at least it seems to me, about escaping from the darkness in her life, really feeling happiness for once, and being with someone she loves very much-- i think it's so melancholy, though, because she doesn't believe she'll really get that