As with just about everything Lana Del Rey does, the reaction to her Paradise EP has been all over the map. However, the debate surrounding Paradise has a decidedly more reasonable tone than previous LDR spats, since we’re months removed from her “Video Games” hype and the disastrous SNL performance and the backlash to the backlash and the think-pieces. In other words, people were able to sit back and just listen to the damn thing this time around. We happened to love the unapologetically melodramatic and gleefully morose release, but here’s our roundup of what everyone is saying about Lana’s latest.
:: We gave Paradise a 4.5/5, calling it ”a cohesive, moving record” that represented ”a major step forward” for the singer. Part of the success came from her voice, which was ”suddenly richer and more acrobatic, going from smoky to silky, sad to snotty, all without resorting to the schizoid vocal gimmickry of her debut.”
:: Rolling Stone handed Lana a 3/5, saying that the new tracks “bring her strengths into focus – chiefly, a sense of humor for which she’s not given enough credit.” They weren’t as impressed with her voice, though: “Del Rey is far from a great singer, and her songs tend to drag. But her shtick – 1950s torch balladry spiced with sexed-up 21st-century provocation – is at least conceptually sharp.”
:: The AP‘s reviewer said Lana “delivers” this time, noting that her “entrancing vocals make it almost hypnotic to listen to anything she sings.” However, the reviewer called two songs that we adored — “Yayo” and “Bel Air” — “just fillers.”
:: Slant magazine rated her squarely in the middle with a 2.5/5, saying that “nothing here is on the same level as Born To Die.” They described it as “icily referential robo-pop that’s teasing but always reticent, with songs that demand attention while refusing to be anything but somnolent.” The reviewer concluded that “the EP is a mixed bag.”
:: Tiny Mix Tapes handed out the same score as Slant, calling it “the best attempt (yet) to cohere a deeply incoherent artist,” and saying the album displays “a deeper, consistent, and often flattering vocal range…[and] a refined, consistent vision.”
:: All Music also gave the middling 2.5/5 score, but dished out several compliments: “Strings move at a glacial pace, drums crash like waves in slow motion, and most of the additional textures in these songs (usually electric guitar or piano) are cinematic in their sound and references…Del Rey is in perfect control of her voice, much more assured than she was even one year ago, and frequently capable of astonishing her listeners with a very convincing act, even while playing nearly the same character in each song.” The critic’s issue, then, was that “for all the progress and growth Del Rey shows in the vocal realm, her songwriting appears to be in stasis and the productions behind her have actually regressed.”
:: We know the Brits love Lana, and the UK’s Digital Spy awarded the album a 4/5. “There’s more talk of bad boys, cherry pie and other old fashioned glamourisms much like its parent album, but there’s still progression to be found,” wrote the reviewer. “Lana proves there’s plenty more to be excited for on album two.”
:: And in case you were wondering how much of a player Lana has become in the fashion world, Cosmo even did a track-by-track review of Paradise. “Body Electric” is described as “hypnotic and moody,” “Blue Velvet” is “dreamy,” “Gods And Monsters” is “dark and eerie” and “Bel Air” is “whimsical.”
What’s your take on Paradise? Let us know in the comments, or on Facebook and Twitter.
RS is such a joke. Paradise got 3/5 and then Taylor Swift got 4/5.
RS has never been great with rating albums. I tend to always check them out, but I continually disagree with them. I know it’s movie, not music, but you only have to look at their movie reviews to notice they only have ONE reviewer, for a magazine of their size/popularity.
I really liked Born To Die – but I can see where some people don’t find the appeal. RS make a good point saying it ‘can’ drag. I personally don’t find it to – but for the Top 40 junkies it does. They look at LDR and think she is this big popstar (where the heck did those Gaga references come from last year) – but she isn’t. She has created her own nostalgic theme that no one else is doing and people rant on about it and criticise it cause for some stupid reason expect a WOMP WOMP track.
Horses for courses I suppose.
For me, BTD (the original release) is the album of 2012; sumptious, moving, perfect, filled with dark & light, lyrically fascinating, musically stunning, and when listened to properly, isn’t as repititive as it appears upon first listen. It’s like a ‘journey’ (hate that term – but it is), and the deluxe version was essential.
Now with the amazing ‘Paradise Edition’ (which includes the deluxe version on cd1), she has created a masterpiece!! The new tracks are sexier, dirtier and in the most part, perfect.
Whats even more amazing is that since BTD was released, about 60 unreleased songs have leaked, most of which are great (some pretty bloody fantastic), but would not be appropriate for this release aurally, but are worth seeking out.
Interestingly, Yayo (my least fave of the new tracks unfortunately) now appears on all 3 of her studio albums in reworked versions.