Long-awaited and hotly anticipated by her fans, the seventh studio album by Lana Del Rey, Chemtrails Over The Country Club, showcases the gentle vocals of the worldwide star as the record serves as a mature and ethereal moment in Del Rey’s discography.
Listening to the album in full feels like a dreamlike and otherworldly experience as the songs seem to flow effortlessly into each other. A cohesive record playing to the best of Del Rey’s vocal abilities and accurately represented by previously released singles “Let Me Love You Like A Woman” and “Chemtrails Over The Country Club” seems to have been worth the wait. Yet having said this, some sonic variation, perhaps some upbeat tracks, would have been a welcome addition to the eleven tracks, making for a varied listening experience for fans.
”Overproduction never takes away from the lyricism or the vocals”
The album is driven by piano and acoustic guitars, which seem to pair perfectly with Del Rey’s soft vocals. Poignant at times, the lyrics in “Breaking Up Slowly” and “Not All Those Who Wander Are Lost” encapsulate the melancholic tone of the record, as the album definitely seems more mature than its predecessors, namely “Lust For Life” which saw the singer experiment with trap and R&B influences.
“the team behind the record did an excellent job in making ‘real’ music that isn’t designed purely for the radio”
Whilst “Tulsa Jesus Freak” does experiment with some light autotune, this doesn’t define the record, and overproduction never takes away from the lyricism or the vocals. Moments such as “Not All Who Wander Are Lost” showcase the beauty in simplicity, a quality which I feel many records lack nowadays. With the likes of Jack Antonoff given production credits, a talented individual who also worked on the Grammy award-winning Taylor Swift record folklore, the team behind the record did an excellent job in making ‘real’ music that isn’t designed purely for the radio.
Whisper-like melodies along with piercing moments showcasing the upper limits of Del Rey’s vocal range, notably in album opener “White Dress”, are a common theme among the eleven tracks. Whilst the record may not be designed for mainstream pop commercial success, I have no doubt that it will be a success amongst alternative music fans. Del Rey also goes back to her roots and explores the sultry side of her voice in “Dark But Just A Game”, which to me seems like an evolved version of her 2015 album Honeymoon. Overall, the heavier focus on vocals and lyricism instead of production makes the album a great success.
”The lyrics speaks to the dark side of the music machine that still exists today”
A highlight of the record has to be the collaborations that appear to be the perfect fit for the old-school and folk-like tone of the album. Whilst “Breaking Up Slowly”, featuring Nikki Lane, may be one of the more forgettable tracks, the album comes to a stunning close with a cover of Joni Mitchell’s “For Free”, featuring Zella Day and Weyes Blood. Pondering on the nature of the music industry, the lyrics speak to the dark side of the music machine that still exists today. The track, and subsequently the album, ends with a gorgeous and gentle harmony between the trio, perfectly encapsulating the feeling of the record.
While melodic variation would have been welcomed and more memorable moments instead of forgettable filler tracks, Chemtrails Over The Country Club is a cohesive and stunning collection of songs that are perfect for a rainy day. And with her next release, Rock Candy Sweet, confirmed for June 1st, it’s of no doubt that Del Rey’s future output will go down a hit with fans after the success of this record.
Amrit Virdi
Featured image courtesy of Thomas Hawk via Flickr. Image license found here. No changes made to this image.
Amrit Virdi
Amrit is an English and History graduate and is currently studying for her MA in Magazine Journalism, writing about everything from music to motorsport and fashion whilst being a Music Co-Editor for LeftLion and working part-time in Marketing.