Keven's Music Review: LANA DEL REY – Born to Die

After one of the most controversial Saturday Night Live performances in recent memory and a horde of online chatter surrounding her inflated lips, how does Lana Del Rey's major label debut actually stack up? [Disclaimer: I was one of those who absolutely hated Del Rey's SNL appearance – she looked like she wandered out of a spaceship filled with purple smoke.]

After listening to the audio playback on Howard Stern I started to re-think my furious internet rage towards this artist. She wasn't 'that bad' and I'm not sure why the hell people, myself included, were so quick to jump on the hate train. After listening to album cuts 'Blue Jeans' and 'Videogames' I not only changed my tune completely but I became a fan. Lana Del Rey is an intriguing, unique and fantastic talent that can transcend both musical genres and eras with her style.

The tone in 'Born to Die' is hard to compare to other female artists, but if I had to I'd say it has touches of Amy Winehouse mixed up with a bit of less depressed Adele. There's a very inherent 'old-school' vibe throughout the record but her unique touches add just enough flavor to wash away gimmicks. Del Rey's 'low-singing' is a nice change of pace and the music reminds me of something off a Tarantino film. There's this epic Sergio Leone vibe (if he had made skankier classical music) throughout, and that's what resonates with me the most.

Album highlights for me are the aforementioned ones: the title track 'Blue Jeans' and, of course, the first single 'Videogames'. The later is the standout song here by leaps and bounds. The rest of the record may bog the listener down at times. There isn't much head bopping to be found on 'Born to Die' – more like low head swaying. 'Off to The Races' and 'National Anthem' are the most upbeat tracks and show that Del Rey doesn't just stick to that sleaze-ass low register she's now known for.

Disregard the hate from those who think Del Rey is a manufactured pop star. I've listened to her first indie record and it has very much the same feel as 'Born to Die' – sans the lower vocals and less 'lips'. So she's got puffier lips than Madonna after her 3000th face lift, get over it. Welcome to Hollywood. 'Born to Die' may not be perfect but it's an absolutely mesmerizing record that entrances those willing to give it a shot.

1. "Born to Die"
2. "Off to the Races"
3. "Blue Jeans"
4. "Video Games"
5. "Diet Mountain Dew"
6. "National Anthem"
7. "Dark Paradise"
8. "Radio"
9. "Carmen"
10. "Million Dollar Man"
11. "Summertime Sadness"
12. "This Is What Makes Us Girls"