Dionte Berry
News Editor
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The themes in “Blue Banisters” progress from the roots of Lana Del Rey’s career: the romanticization of America, the longing or absence of a lover and lovesick ballads.
A decade since “Born To Die” rocked the alternative music scene, Elizabeth Grant, professionally known as Lana Del Rey released her eighth studio album and second album of 2021, “Blue Banisters” on Oct. 22.
The album also creates breaks from the polish that Del Rey’s most recent projects such as “Chemtrails Over the Country Club” and “Norman F******* Rockwell” has had. Many of the songs feel as though the vocals were not touched up.
The lack of polish does not take away from the music, but it creates a sense of vulnerability and intimacy, as if Del Rey has pulled back the curtain.
The 15-track album starts with the song “Text Book,” which is not one of the high points of the album. The beginning lyrics, “I guess you could call it textbook” feel corny.
The opening is slow, but picks up at the chorus, where she includes a line about Black Lives Matter, which feels odd and maybe even a little performative. Throughout the album Del Rey talks about the modern American Culture concerning the wearing of masks during the pandemic.
“Text Book” is not a high moment on the album, but it’s chorus instrumental change makes it far better.
“Blue Banisters” sits at the intersection of song and poetry with the way Del Rey is telling a story with her lyrics. This is also one of many songs to see piano as the main source of instrumentation.
In “Blue Banisters” Del Rey talks about an emptiness in her heart from a man who said he would come back, but has decided not to.
“Arcadia” is another beautiful ballad where Del Rey compares her body and love to a map. Compared to “Blue Banisters” this song is much more lyrical than poetic, but there are still some poetic elements apparent in lyrics, such as “All roads that lead to you are as integral to me as arteries that get the blood flowing straight to the heart of me.”
In “Arcadia,” Del Rey creates a scene where she wants to be explored like the locations on a map.
“Interlude – The Trio” may be the shortest track and has no lyrics, but it still pulls me in. The track starts with brass horns and at the 25-second mark a bass heavy trap beat bursts through.
The track feels reminiscent of something from “Lust for Life” where we first saw Del Rey play around with trap beats.
“Black Bathing Suit” starts with the cawing of birds and then goes into a piano led ballad. This track is about growth and how with this change nothing else fits her except her black bathing suit.
Similar to “Text Book,” at the end of the chorus we see a change in the tempo with the usage of drums.
Toward the end of the track, Del Rey’s singing is accompanied by talking and yelling. This is a space where we see that unpolishedness and I understand why it could be perceived as messy or unprofessional, but it creates an avenue of expression that is new to Del Rey’s music.
“If You Lie Down With Me” starts as the basic ballad with piano and lyrics about some man. But similar to “Black Bathing Suit,” we hear a change towards the end.The song finishes with brass horns, which makes the song feel a lot less basic.
“Beautiful” is, unsurprisingly, another ballad that starts with light piano keys. Del Rey is almost whispering in parts and it breaks from her singing. I don’t feel as though much can be said about this song. It’s light, simple and kind of boring. This is definitely a song that could have been left off the album.
“Violets for Roses” is another song where Del Rey talks about change, and how it seems like her partner wants her to change. After she leaves this man, Del Rey falls back in love with herself which is exemplified in the line, “Ever since I fell out of love with you, I fell back in love with me.”This specific lyric is reused, but Del Rey talks about how she falls back in love with the city and the streets.
Overall, Del Rey creates a feeling of visible freedom, which is in the lyric she uses to start and end the song, “The girls are running ‘round in summer dresses, with their masks off, and it makes me so happy.”
“Dealer” creates a break in the piano heavy ballad album and an overall different sound compared to the rest of the album. The track is led with drums and lyrics by Miles Kane. The track creates a dark, moody and slow scene. After Kane begins the song, Del Rey follows with poignant strong vocals and she belts, “I don’t wanna live.” This is one of the darkest and raw Del Rey songs I have ever seen.
“Dealer” adds to the album’s tracks that are not polished. In parts it feels like Del Rey is screaming and singing through tears and it just bleeds sorrow. The track is beautiful in how it evokes so much emotion. “Dealer” also shows that less can be more.
“Thunder” creates a return to the traditional ballad, starting with a violin introduction and steering towards the beloved piano. The piano breaks towards the one minute mark when drums, guitar and a tambourine burst through.
Del Rey sings about a man and uses thunder to explain his nature and how he acts. Toward the end of the song, “Just do it, don’t wait” can be heard in the background and Del Rey singing comes down to more of a talking tone.
“Wildflower Wildfire” is not an overtly powerful song. Del Rey is back to her whispery singing voice. The track does not offer much of anything new or different, but the best part of the song comes at the end.
The song picks up with a clear beat, and Del Rey’s vocals become more powerful. It would have been nice to have seen more of that power throughout.
“Nectar of the Gods” starts with a guitar and Del Rey humming. The guitar is the only instrument in the song where it seems as though Del Rey is trying to once again show less is more. It does not work in this song the same way it works in “Dealer.”
“Living Legend” starts with the familiar slow and lovesick lyrics that many of the other tracks start with. Similar to “Nectar of the Gods,” this track is composed of guitar instrumentals. The ending of the song sees a change in vocals and instrumentals.
Del Rey’s vocals pick up and feel less polished and more frantic. Her vocals then become more augmented and the song ends with her voice becoming a guitar. Before the finale and the vocal pick up the rest of the song is kind of forgettable, and blends in with the rest of the album the finale makes it great.
“Cherry Blossom” is another song that is reminiscent of Del Rey’s signature sounds with the piano, whispery soft vocals, lovesick lyrics and a slight pick up at the end.
There is not much else to be said about “Cherry Blossom.” If the song was not included on the album, it would not really make a difference.
“Sweet Carolina” is a beautiful and dreamy ballad that does a great job of closing out the album. Only composed with piano and Del Rey’s voice, the song is very stripped back.
Del Rey’s voice is showing more vocal range than her traditional low whispy tone. Her lyrics also feel peculiar and colorful. The line, “You name your babe lilac heaven after your iPhone 11, ‘crypto forever’ screams your stupid boyfriend, f*** you Kevin,” stands out because of how odd it is, but it feels sweet and personal.
Do I know what the line means? No. But, do I like it? Yes.
Overall, “Blue Banisters” is another beautiful Del Rey album, where she sticks with much of what we expect from her while also delivering something new.
My favorite tracks are “Dealer” and “Sweet Carolina.” I enjoy how stripped down and raw they are. Despite being simple, Del Rey’s vocals really communicate emotion. Both of these tracks are also standouts because of how they deviate from the formulaic fashion of some of the other tracks.
A lot of the other tracks are less memorable, and feel repetitive, but they are still solid tracks, just seem to lack significance.
After listening to “Blue Banisters” I think it deserves a 7.5/10. For her next project, I hope Del Rey makes something more vocally expressive, while remaining with the stripped back style of “Dealer.”
Del Rey’s and Kane’s vocals work great together in “Dealer.” In the future, Del Rey should collaborate with other alternative artists which is something we have seen from her in the past, but they have never been an integral part of her career.
After her creative push in 2021, I am excited to see what Del Rey has to offer in the future.
