Lana Del Rey - Norman Fucking Rockwell (2019)

the ann powers review really articulates basically everything i feel about the album, except i like it less than she does. it reads like a rave, this is not a good look.

What LDR did was monstrous.

send out the Twitter hordes!

It amazes me that in 2019 artists regard a persona as inauthentic.

She should name her next album "Persona Non Grata."

i guess she took offense to her lyrics being described as 'uncooked' in comparison to joni mitchell's because that's the part of the review she most directly singles out, but the next paragraph then goes on to basically say "these lyrics are still good though, just in a different way to mitchell's" so it's less unfavourable to her than it initially reads

― ufo, Thursday, September 5, 2019 10:37 AM (eighteen minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

sure, but they also are uncooked in comparison to joni mitchell's. most lyrics are! any songwriter, besides maybe fifteen people, who has a reasonable sense of one's skills, if someone said "this isn't as good as joni mitchell," should think "yeah, it probably isn't."

maybe she knows that Persona is a video game & that gives her mixed feelings

yeah i agree katherine, i wasn't saying that powers was wrong, just trying to figure out what ldr's issue with it was

I'd guess just the fact that another person was mentioned at all -- at some point it became accepted wisdom that comparisons to other artists were bad, rather than a sign that you've engaged enough with a record to contextualize it within your inner world

If that were the case she should be tweeting about the Pitchfork name-drop-a-rama review.

Seems like a powers-conducted interview would defuse this p quick, assuming anyone cares 24 hours from now

it's also especially strange that she's taking such offense to that review when she really should be no stranger to critics saying much worse (actually negative) and weirder things about her, you'd think she'd have learned not to take the things reviewers say too personally with the sort of treatment she's gotten before

didn't LDR describe herself as a "gangster Nancy Sinatra"? I guess she has actual mob ties

there are some cases where artists get upset over a review where I can see how they have the tiniest kernel of a point, in that the article could have used a redraft to address certain things [I include some things I've written in that], but the npr review was best-of-the-decade material

― like, I’m eating an elephant head (katherine), Thursday, September 5, 2019 4:26 PM (one hour ago) bookmarkflaglink

Yeah, exactly this. Baffled by why she felt the need to lash out after this.

beyond the Trumpian "anything short of worship renders you an enemy" mindset, which is really beneath her, or anyone with a functioning frontal lobe

Baffled by why she felt the need to lash out after this.

Combining these two points because it occurs to me that there's potentially another Trumpian connection -- the need of an enemy. ANY enemy. And if she has to go find one, she will.

Tbh i find this level of self sabotage and needlessly getting in yer own way pretty relatable

I don’t agree with LDR’s tweet and think it’s very short-sighted, but I agree even less with calling her Trumpian or “monstrous”.

I said this before, but “all that musicians need in order to create a rich body of work for their entire lifetime is endless praise, what is so hard to understand about that?”

how many reviews did she read before she pounced on that nothingness?? reading reviews of your art seems like a very bad not good idea but what do I know

Tbh i find this level of self sabotage and needlessly getting in yer own way pretty relatable

― Simon H., Thursday, September 5, 2019 6:10 PM (seven minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

So do I! But I'm not sure this is what this is.

I don’t agree with LDR’s tweet and think it’s very short-sighted, but I agree even less with calling her Trumpian or “monstrous”.

Inciting your fans to attack a writer is monstrous behavior.

man, Twitter is worse than usual today

As an old Suede lover, this long instrumental jam part in "VB" reminds me of the long version of "Let's Stay Together"...
And to stay on Britpop references, there's a part in "Love Song" that reminds me of... Oasis' "Wonderwall"
― AlXTC from Paris

Haven't done a direct comparison so it may be faulty memory, but I can't play "Mariners Apartment Complex" without hearing Verve's "Lucky Man."

Also, if LDR is catcalling writers who are doing nothing but heaping praise upon her work, then there’s another point of common ground wrt Joni

i don't think she's deliberately inciting fans to harass the writer, like i'm not sure how aware artists really are of ridiculous twitter stan dynamics except when they end up harassed themselves by fans of someone else due to something stupid but i'd hesitate to attribute that sort of maliciousness to her replying to a critic to disagree with the review

I suppose it's wrong to say she did this intentionally, but she has to be aware of power dynamics. Directly responding to a writer's tweet will incite fans.

she has to be aware of power dynamics

You sure? If you still think you're the underdog...

I understand the “hey if you can’t handle criticism don’t make music etc” argument but at the same time I figure there are tiny straws that break artists’ backs when they read their own reviews.

Her stans are awful, she should know better than to trigger her vicious tumblrina hordes to attack a reviewer. It’s not a fair fight.

Down on the West Coast they got a saying

now let's play big bank take little bank?

That said, her directly addressing that review above other reviews means more people will read it. Even bad publicity is good no?

Often these days it leads publications to pursue more timid options for future coverage.

NPR's already too timid to print the 2nd word in the album title (ha ha).

Norman Public Rockwell

National F****** Radio

why is Johnny Knoxville's younger bro on the album cover

NPR's too timid to report that eradicating environmental protections is bad.

Inciting your fans to attack a writer is monstrous behavior.

At least it was a good week of enjoying this album before she made me feel gross for thinking about playing it again.

The whole internet loves Pepsi-Cola Duck

At least it was a good week of enjoying this album before she made me feel gross for thinking about playing it again.

― quelle sprocket damage (sic), Thursday, September 5, 2019 3

goddamn manchild imo

it was a dumb move but pretty minor as far as musician trespasses go. I suspect Ann Powers will be fine

I suspect Ann Powers will be fine

Yeah, as I said on Twitter, having one of the industry's biggest artists come gunning for you after a review isn't as damaging to an NPR music writer's career as being open about your political beliefs and acting on them.

also I imagine most of the ppl pestering her about it are young women rather than men so at least the tone of the backlash should be less awful than it could have been with some other acts. maybe.

have you been around catty gay men in your life

goddamn manchild imo

she really pwned me in the next line :(

have you been around catty gay men in your life

I can think of worse demos.

About 40 percent of LDR's fan base consists of CGM.

I had forgotten how this all happene before:

https://www.theguardian.com/music/musicblog/2014/jun/20/lana-del-rey-problem-interview-but-why

with the same language, too: "Alexis (sic) was masked as a fan but was hiding sinister ambitions and angles. Maybe he's actually the boring one looking for something interesting to write about."

https://homeofmetal.com/wp-content/uploads/pre/201205091354527153/201205091354527153.jpg

"Problem interview, but why?"

Hmm I like Lana del rey more now ... saying she doesn’t have a persona is a rick Ross level boss move