Ultraviolence is the second studio album by singer-songwriter Lana Del Rey (real name Elizabeth Grant), and was released on June 13th, 2014. The sound of the album incorporates a mix of dream pop and psychedelic rock, giving it a different sound than her major label debut, Born to Die. The record was positively reviewed by critics, and is widely considered by hardcore Lana stans to be one of the best albums in her entire discography. Since this album is approaching its 10 year anniversary, how does it hold up in my opinion?
We open the album with the track, “Cruel World,” featuring the beautiful, reverb-soaked electric guitar of Black Keys frontman, Dan Auerbach, who produced the majority of this record as well. The track is a farewell to the person or vice that’s been hurting her, and it’s very well-written. “Share my body and my life with you, that’s way over now. There’s not more I can do. You’re so famous now.” Lana’s voice sounds amazing over the beachy guitar chords of Auerbach, and portrays the realities of the dark sides of the LA party lifestyle. This is one of the tracks with a psychedelic sound that I’m a massive fan of. Psychedelic rock is one of my favorite genres because it’s truly a surreal experience for the listener.
Following that, we’ve got the title track, with a beautiful string symphony of violins, as well as emotional piano chords. In the track, Lana is suspected to be singing about a cult leader of Atlantic Group, which was a cultish sect of Alcoholics Anonymous, naming a man named Jim. However, the song could also be talking about the infamous Peoples Temple cult leader, Jim Jones, who led a mass suicide of himself and his followers in Guyana. “I can hear sirens, sirens. He hit me and it felt like a kiss,” to me, portrays an abusive relationship very well. This is because the victims of the abuse in the relationship desperately want to believe that their abuser loves them deep down.
Next, we’ve got the track, “Shades of Cool,” portrays a glamorous California lifestyle, but along with that comes a flawed relationship. “My baby lives in shades of blue, blue eyes and jazz and attitude.” In the pre-chorus she goes on to add, “But I can’t fix him, can’t make him better, and I can’t do nothing about his strange weather.” I especially like the analogy of describing the emotions in the relationship as extreme weather. Lana’s vocal range is showcased incredibly well in this track, and I enjoy the soft rock elements of this track. The subject of the song is incredibly relatable, because she desperately wishes that she could fix her boyfriend’s flaws, but there’s nothing she can do. That frenetic guitar solo at the end builds up to a beautiful climactic chorus, as well. A favorite off the record.
After that, we get “Brooklyn Baby,” which is another one of my favorite tracks on this LP. The wobbly mellotron, paired with the laidback guitar of Auerbach gives the track a beautiful backdrop that puts us in Lana’s nostalgic world of Americana. I love the chorus with Lana’s angelic vocal melodies, where she not so subtly brags about her man. “Well my boyfriend’s in a band, he plays guitar while I sing Lou Reed.” Lana has a unique skill of writing incredibly visually attention-grabbing lyrics. I like the simile where she’s comparing her relationship to being “like fire and water,” meaning that the drastic differences between her and her boyfriend is what makes the relationship so exciting. An absolutely phenomenal track that showcases Lana’s amazing vocal range, as well as her lyricism.
Another highlight for me off the album, is the following single, “West Coast,” which has elements of surf rock, which is another great genre being brought into a modern pop album. Lana’s producers incorporated a fascinating variety of different genres into this album, and her ability to work with those different musical styles is a massive strength of hers. I like how the melody and tempo changes from the verses to the chorus. I love the California sound of this track as well as the lyrics that talk about rock stars and celebrity culture. “Down on the West coast, they got their icons. Their silver starlets, their Queens of Saigons.” The guitar riffs are memorable and I like how in the chorus she references Stevie Nicks’ “Edge of Seventeen.” Not only is this one of the best tracks on the album, it’s one of the best songs in her discography. Following that we get, “Sad Girl,” which has an incredibly bluesy vibe, with that fuzzy guitar in the distance. In this song, she idolizes her man, but being second to his wife, makes her a “sad girl.” Understandably she doesn’t wanna share him with somebody else. It’s a solid track, but it’s not one of my favorites on the record. I do think it’s funny that she cheats on the guy who’s having an affair with her to begin with. Lana clearly understands the irony of it, which is why she incorporated into “Sad Girl.” I admire her for being self-aware, where others might not be.
Next, we have another favorite of mine off the record, “Pretty When You Cry,” which has a beautiful electric guitar chord progression, but this time it features Blake Stranathan on guitar. She seems heartbroken on this track, “All those times you said that I’m your girl, you make me feel like your whole world,” she adds that she waits for him, but he never comes through for her. Another thing I’ve noticed, having listened to this album a few times, is that a lot of the guys she seems to have a interest in, are those that live the rockstar lifestyle with lots of alcohol and drugs. I really love how depressing this song is, and how much emotion she puts into her singing. I also love that guitar solo from Stranathan near the end.
“Money Power Glory,” is a downtempo ballad where the holy trinity of money, power, and glory are the three most important things to Lana. The heavily distorted guitar backing the “dope and diamonds” refrain is a nice addition to the track. Not a super deep track, but enjoyable nonetheless. “Fucked My Way Up to the Top,” is actually a diss track towards a female singer who criticized Lana’s musical style as inauthentic, but then copied her, and is now successful. The name of the singer is unknown, people thought it was directed at Lady Gaga, but Gaga’s music sounds way different compared to Lana’s. Gaga’s sound is a lot more electronic. Maybe it’s better that the person who copied Lana remains nameless, because it gives the song more mystery. The line “I’m a dragon, you’re a whore. Don’t even know what you’re good for, mimicking me’s a fucking bore,” is an incredibly harsh diss, it sounds like something I’d hear on a hip hop record, not a dream pop album.
“Old Money,” has Lana singing at a deeper pitch, once again showcasing her fantastic vocal range. I like this song, because it sounds like it would fit perfectly in the soundtrack for the 2013 film iteration of The Great Gatsby. The minimalist production allows Lana to shine with her illustrating lyrics, “Blue hydrangea, cold cash divine. Cashmere, cologne, and white sunshine.” It’s a soft piano ballad that features a serenade of violins in the chorus. I like how this track talks about loneliness, and how if her lover called for her she’d be there in a heartbeat. Lana has said that it’s one of her favorite songs off the LP, and I can see why.
We finish the album off with the track, “The Other Woman,” which is a cover of the popuralized Nina Simone version, and is also produced by the versatile Dan Auerbach. The track talks about being the odd one out in a three sided relationship. Lana’s version is dark and emotional , and I like the downtempo drum pattern paired with the piano and violins. The saxophone near the end adds a jazzy element to the track which I appreciate. The album ends on a high note with this track.
In my opinion, Ultraviolence, is one of Lana Del Rey’s best albums. The sound and production has aged phenomenally and the different elements of soft rock, dream pop, and psychedelic rock, provide variety to the album while also meshing together well, which can be difficult to do at times. Lana’s vocals fit perfectly with these genres, and her ability of singing with versatility is a massive strength of this album. The guitar chord progressions and riffs on this album are drenched in reverb and help give the album a nostalgic, romantic quality. The first half of the album is stronger than the second half, in my opinion, but as a whole it is still a beautifully orchestrated and memorable album that I would highly recommend to anyone.
Overall Score: 9/10
Favorite Tracks: “West Coast,” “Brooklyn Baby,” “Shades of Cool,” “Pretty When You Cry,” “Old Money.”
Least Favorite Tracks: “Sad Girl”
Listen: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o3SqUUoJjW8
Genres: Psychedelic Rock/Dream Pop