Lana Del Rey: Chemtrails Over the Country Club review
鈽呪槄鈽呪槄鈽
It would be years before Elizabeth Woolridge Grant would land on the听pseudonym of Lana Del Rey. First, there was听Lizzy Grant,听Sparkle Jump Rope Queen, and Lana Rey Del Mar. For a听brief period, there was May Jailer: a folk singer-songwriter with peroxide blonde hair and a stoic expression. As May Jailer, Grant produced an acoustic-folk album, Sirens (recorded in 2006 and leaked to YouTube in 2012), consisting of only a guitar and the singular warble of a 21-year-old Grant still finding her feet.
Some 15 years later, Del Rey鈥檚 seventh album, Chemtrails Over the Country Club evokes what it was she was trying to capture as May Jailer:听a听reflection on听an America听that can be recalled in small towns, washed-up bars, pick-up trucks,听and the open road. Only now,听Del Rey isn't听dreaming about where she's going, she's听remembering where she's been.
As is the case with Del Rey鈥檚 entire discography, Chemtrails听is imbued with nostalgia, the source of which has evolved alongside Del Rey as she鈥檚 navigated different artistic eras. We鈥檝e seen her rendition听of 50s, 60s, and 70s iconography, as she's embodied the kind of femme fatale you might find in a David Lynch film; a stitched-together听blend of Jackie Onassis, Marilyn Monroe, and Priscilla Presley. Del Rey has built a legacy on reviving the听ostentation of JFK鈥檚 America and the liberation of the Beat Generation,听celebrating beloved听musical icons like Elvis Presley, Bruce Springsteen, Joan Baez, and Stevie Nicks, and literary figures like Vladimir Nabokov, Jack Kerouac, and Walt Whitman.
Del Rey鈥檚 fascination with a certain kind of Americana has often drawn criticism and accusations of , and . But whatever your interpretation might be of Del Rey鈥檚 chosen brand, she鈥檚 never been one to lose herself in empty aesthetics; her ideas are deliberate听and communicated with certainty. Indeed,听Del Rey听continues to demonstrate a commitment to narrativising her experiences鈥攍ived or imagined鈥攚ith lyrics akin to poetry. Her aestheticism, then, is perhaps best perceived as a purely creative experiment, rather than a representation of any social or political ideology.
In saying that, Del Rey does not shy away from controversy. Rather, she has a history of responding to her critics via text posts and videos on Instagram. You get the sense that Del Rey is someone who wishes to be understood and who will go to extreme ends to explain herself.听Chemtrails doesn鈥檛 feel like a response to the criticism, necessarily, but after almost a decade in the spotlight, there鈥檚 a clear听disillusionment with fame听("I'm ready to leave L.A., and I want you to come").听It鈥檚 not an apology or a cry-for-help, more a personal statement, as she reflects on the realities of existing in the public eye and harkens back to her days as a 19-year-old waitress, listening to Kings of Leon,听aspiring to be the acclaimed songwriter she now is. 鈥淸I]t made me feel like a God,鈥 she sings in 鈥榃hite Dress鈥, the album's opening track.听鈥淚t kind of makes me feel like maybe I was better off.鈥
Other songs are similarly contemplative, like 鈥楴ot All Who Wander Are Lost鈥 (鈥淭he thing about being on the road is there鈥檚 too much time to think about seasons of old鈥) and 鈥榊osemite鈥 (鈥淪easons听may change but we won鈥檛 change鈥). But unlike Del Rey's previous efforts (particularly 2017鈥檚听Lust For Life),听Chemtrails听is largely free听from highly produced,听electrified vocals.听Instead, her voice is clear and gentle,听as she surmises her vision of escapism. It's one we鈥檝e heard from Del Rey before:听travelling the open听road,听either alone or with a brooding man, as she听frequents听small towns,听motels, country clubs, and wide open spaces. This time, though, it鈥檚 Del Rey at her most introspective, both a departure from the artist we've come to know and a return to something more inherent; a woman and a girl,听without a pseudonym, staring at a future that reflects the past.听