I wrote and talked about the new albums by Lana Del Rey and Taylor Swift for Consequence of Sound.
Two powerful white female pop stars with complicated reputations released anticipated albums one week apart: Taylor Swift with Lover (Aug 23) and Lana Del Rey with the incredibly titled Norman Fucking Rockwell! (Aug 30).
I hopped on CoS’s Relevant Content to discuss predictions and wishes in advance of Swift’s album. We all agreed “The Archer” was our favorite single so far, and lead single “ME!” should be banned from airwaves everywhere.
Then I spent time with LDR’s new one, which has been a long time coming. I loved it — though my opinions on the musician’s agency/perspective/behavior have shifted since she hastily and hostile-y came after NPR critic Ann Powers’ thoughtful deep-dive on her career. Here’s an excerpt from my review of NFR!:
“On NFR!, one can hear the connective tissue to past collaborators Stevie Nicks and Cat Power, as well as spiritual links to artists like Laura Nyro, SZA, and H.E.R. The most comparisons, however, will likely be between NFR! and the other pop juggernaut released a week earlier: Taylor Swift’s Lover. Del Rey and Swift both deal in repeated tropes of Hollywood romance and highly feminized figures and have devoted fan bases that value the songwriters’ vulnerability. Both artists worked primarily with Jack Antonoff, but while you can hear the producer’s high-energy synth-pop flourishes all over Lover, he lends an invisible hand in building Del Rey’s world. NFR! offers more gently picked acoustic guitar, steady piano, and tasteful strings in arrangements that are lush as ever, yet less muddled. In that space, Del Rey’s perspective is heard clearly — shot through with a gallows humor that rings like a kind of hope.”