red cassette version - Arriving a mere seven months after “Chemtrails Over the Country Club,” all signs pointed to Lana Del Rey’s “Blue Banisters” being a companion piece. Proximity, it turns out, is all they have in common. While “Chemtrails” found Del Rey channeling singer-songwriters of yesteryear with dreamy Laurel Canyon musings, her latest is imbued with an urgency to reclaim her own narrative, anchoring it in the here and now. She does this by piecing together a musical autobiography that documents family ties, friendships, love affairs, her connection with Los Angeles and even the interpretation of her art.
Del Rey made her intentions clear from the outset. “I’m writing my own story,” she tweeted, while first teasing “Blue Banisters” in April. “And no one can tell it but me.” Her need to set the record straight stems from a spate of negative articles that attacked everything from her brand of feminism to her choice in face masks. Feeling the need to explain herself has resulted in a transparency that makes the album an outlier in Del Rey’s discography. She has always been an expert world-builder, but never has one of them felt as lived-in and true.
| A1 | Text Book |
| A2 | Blue Banisters |
| A3 | Arcadia |
| A4 | Interlude - The Trio |
| A5 | Black Bathing Suit |
| A6 | If You Lie Down With Me |
| A7 | Beautiful |
| A8 | Violets For Roses |
| A9 | Dealer |
| B1 | Thunder |
| B2 | Wildflower Wildfire |
| B3 | Nectar Of The Gods |
| B4 | Living Legend |
| B5 | Cherry Blossom |
| B6 | Sweet Carolina |
