Lana Del Rey - Ultraviolence (Album Review)

You know many people often have a hard time just listening to an album without making a point to have the image of the artist, the back story, and the album artwork swirling in their minds while listening to it. It all goes hand in hand, but with Lana Del Ray's new album I just wanted to focus on the music. I've heard all the details surrounding her past such as the change in her image from early indie releases, the name change, her father’s role in how she became famous, and random odd things she's said during interviews. Was she the product of a marketing scheme? Is her music authentic? The list of questions goes on and on. Keeping up with Lana Del Ray rumors takes more time than it should. I can't deny all of those things play into interest, hype, skepticism, etc. These things influence how listeners perceive the music. Like I said it goes hand in hand. With Ultraviolence I just decided to not think about those things and focus on the simple. I asked myself: Do you like this album? Do you enjoy the musical content? I did that because honestly I don't care much about the quasi-hipster image Lana Del Rey has. I don't care about how authentic she is. I just know I think Born To Die is a pretty good album.

Ultraviolence isn't quite as initially interesting as Born To Die. This is mainly because that album was the first big introduction to this sound she had been cultivating (yes I know she had recorded another indie album AKA Lizzy Grant but let's face it most people were introduced to her with her major label debut Born To Die - Born To Die is her first big statement album). Hearing "Video Games" and how great it is and how interesting it sounds for the first time is kind of something that causes you to just stop and listen. I had a “wow that's pretty good” moment with that song. With Ultraviolence you go into it hoping it's as good as Born To Die but knowing the style so there isn't quite the same early excitement. Moreover it's almost a nervous interest as a listener in wondering if she's a one album wonder or could Ultraviolence really live up to the lofty expectations that listeners now have.

Ultraviolence is similar in a lot of ways to Born To Die. It has the haunting vocals laid over these really interesting dreamy, whimsical, gloomy, kind of classic feeling musical backdrops. What's impressive about the album is that the album as a whole has a much stronger set of songs. There is nothing quite as instantly catching as a song like "Video Games" but as a complete set of songs Ultraviolence has a great flow. It has brooding intensity and really well thought out musical compositions. Almost everything on the album compliments itself perfectly. I really enjoy the pacing. It's definitely not the most upbeat album, but it does at times have an uplifting feel due to Lana Del Rey's impressive vocal ability. The way her vocals soar over some of these instrumentals is pretty impressive. I can't help but feel like Dan Auerbach (The Black Keys), who produced the album, was the perfect person for the job. The album from start to finish just feels complete and well rounded. I think this is probably a better album or just as good as Born To Die as a whole. There's no denying in my mind that this album cements Lana Del Rey as more than a fad or a one album wonder. This album is pretty impressive.

I think "West Coast" is kind of a nice standout song. It has that gloomy vibe you've come to expect from Lana Del Rey, but it also has kind of an upbeat tone musically. I guess the song comes closest to catching that "Video Games" magic, just in a slightly different way, because of the sort of upbeat tone of some of the musical elements of the song. For new listeners this might be a good gateway for her sound. The title track is great. "Pretty When You Cry" is great lyrically, vocally, and musically. I love the pacing of the song. Honestly the whole album is chocked full of pretty high quality songs and you could easily pick any song off the record and say it's a good song.

I wouldn't be surprised if this album didn't land somewhere in my top 30 favorite albums this year. It's hard to determine if this will have the same lasting value as Born To Die did though. Only time can tell with that. On first listen, though, I can see myself returning to this album a lot. I think as a whole it's a fantastic album that really doesn't have a lot of weak points. It's jammed packed full of well written, well produced, and well executed songs. I really enjoy the tone and vibe of the album a lot. It's a big homerun for Lana Del Rey. With this album she's starting to cement her status and show that she's more than a one album wonder. This is an album for people who love albums, while still having those singles for people who only want to hear singles. I think there's more than enough quality songwriting on the album for most music listeners to find something they enjoy.