the death and re-birth of Lana Del Rey : Ultraviolence

Say goodbye to flower crowns, old Hollywood curls and heart shaped glasses - the things we thought defined Lana Del Rey and her debut album, Born To Die.  Elizabeth Grant's 1950s Lolita persona is dead and laid to rest in her white dress with red roses in her hair. We should have seen this coming as the title, Born To Die, was an obvious-yet-subtle hint at the death of this character that launched her into stardom. Elizabeth struggled getting recognition for her acoustic music under her name, 'Lizzy Grant', but her luck turned around fast when she transformed into Lana Del Rey and sang upon heavy hip hop beats.

There is a conspiracy theory depicting "Lana Del Rey" as simply a product of Interscope's marketing team who were supposedly motivated by her "millionaire daddy's" investment. As the media amplified the affluence of her family, people questioned if Interscope signed Lizzy due to her talent or her father's money and connections.  Maybe she was getting desperate for her big break and Interscope intentionally took advantage of her thirst for fame as they moulded her into "Lana Del Rey".  Despite the possibility Born To Die was a false representation of Lana, we are now able to relish in Lana's authenticity in Ultraviolence. 

With an album title inspired by A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess, Ultraviolence is Lizzy's next chapter in her music career as Lana Del Rey.  Lana has ditched the artificial hip hop production and opted for a more authentic approach with "cheap microphones from the drugstore" and live instruments creating painfully raw and honest rock music. While Born To Die was a representation of modern day music, Ultraviolence transports us back into the 20th century with a nostalgic sound mirroring the likes of Nina Simone, Bob Dylan, Nirvana and also Lizzy Grant. If you listen to Lana's previous work (pre-Born To Die), you will notice Ultraviolence embodies a similar acoustic vibe. Lana's ability to create imagery and atmosphere allows Ultraviolence to take us on a dark cinematic journey through a black and white TV screen;  we sing along to Brooklyn Baby with a community of folk-rock musicians and beat poets in Greenwich Village, we drive a 1970s Ford Mustang convertible under the UV rays and Californian palm trees with West Coast on the radio,  and then we observe a 1950s housewife leaning against the windowsill as she stares outside reminiscing about a former lover while Old Money plays on her record player.

Since Lana has achieved fame and recognition, Lana has taken this opportunity to return to her roots and her true sound with Ultraviolence showcasing a similar style to her works as Lizzy Grant. Lana's record label originally refused to release Ultraviolence because it isn't commercially attractive and is 'unsuitable' for radio, which means less earnings for the already-affluent major label. Ultraviolence is a refreshing album amongst the obnoxious dance music we are surrounded by today.  The album is less manufactured and more 'hand-crafted' and that's the beauty of Ultraviolence.

- freak out

Grimes is on the Go

After months of Grimes on a music hiatus, she has finally released some new music which has been long over due. I wouldn't be surprised if Grimes' lengthy silence convinced people she had quit music.  I was genuinely upset when I read her tumblr post about her experience with the music industry, which I misinterpreted and thought she was hinting at ending her musical efforts.  Exactly 13 days ago I was scrolling through my Facebook newsfeed and saw she had released Go - I was ecstatic until I listened to it. I was disappointed because I expected her trademark incomprehensible vocals that were present in her previous albums but she's actually singing conventionally in Go. I expected more emphasis on the melodic and percussive production, which is a characteristic of Grimes' music, but her vocals are in the foreground this time. However I did not expect the prominent dance aspect of the production.  I was disappointed because it wasn't "Grimes" (or how I viewed her). 

I know I'm a bit late with this blogpost since Go was released two weeks ago but I'm posting it now because my mind has changed and I LOVE it.  Despite my initial bitter reaction, Go is literally on repeat as I'm writing this. Grimes has a talent for making bizarre-yet-catchy songs therefore I could not suppress my love for Go by the third listen. I also learned Grimes wrote this song for Rihanna so I now understand why Go doesn't seem like a typical Grimes song. Most people hate change but Grimes demonstrates change is good and beneficial as she develops her musical artistry with Go, which I fully support. I predict Go will give her more commercial success as I can imagine people dancing and singing "When I go, can I go with you?" in the car or at a party.  Go may become a popular request at parties... well I'll be definitely be putting it on.  

- freak out 

media defines beauty, obviously

It gets on my nerves when people insult a person's appearance because they don't fit into their perception of "beauty". Beauty is an ambiguous, abstract term while the media has enforced in our brains a definite image of female beauty as skinny, big breasts, long hair etc. We are all guilty of judging a person's appearance without realising the superficiality and shallowness embedded in ourselves.

I've become more aware of the media's wicked influence on our views on beauty ever since  I watched Miss Representation. I've definitely become sensitive to the consequences of our distorted perception of beauty in my daily life. I heard a fellow classmate say, "Ew, I don't know why she posted that instagram photo because she's got rolls. That's so not attractive."  I also know a group of boys that have a rating system on whether or not a girl "ticks all the boxes" and I'm sure most boys (and girls) do this but it is just wrong and disgusting. I hate seeing people liking instagram photos of people's flat abs, perky butts and thigh gaps because I think thats unhealthy to see those images constantly. I agree they are beautiful but why are we dismissive of the girls who aren't skinny or fit? I want to see more photos of girls who aren't skinny or fit yet they gleam with confidence and self-love. If you call someone 'fat' its an insult whereas calling someone skinny is a compliment instead of being plain observations and statements. Why don't we ever use 'fat' as a compliment?

Fortunately, the past couple of years has revitalised a small wave of feminism through media as actresses, musicians, artists have been provoking the public to question the ideals of beauty. Lorde and Beyonce definitely know the power of their celebrity status. Beyonce's Pretty Hurts video addresses this issue in a way female audiences can identify with as it shows how women torture themselves in order to look "beautiful". I respect Lorde since she opposes media customs and intends to challenge the universal image of beauty as she endorses that "flaws are ok". She accepts she is not "conventionally pretty" and continues to be confident in her skin as she does her trademark epileptic-gollum dance moves. I've encountered girls around school saying, "I hate Lorde. She is so ugly, like what the hell." and its unsettling because I think, as girls, we need to be supportive of each other and stop criticising how "ugly" or even how "slutty" a girl looks. 

It's not only women that are affected by media's portrayal of beauty as men are victims too. Theres also pressure for men to look fit and muscly to convey power and 'manliness'. Girls are guilty too as most girls judge a guy's attractiveness on whether he has chiseled abs, a defined jawline and a tall figure. Personally, I couldn't care less about a guy's physique since it does not influence my liking towards him but I'm still guilty of occasionally judging boys on their clothing choices. I do try my best to judge whether I like a person or not based on their personality although its difficult when we live in a society obsessed with image.

- freak out

awakened by myself

I saw several people from my school posting this personality chart on Facebook and of course I was intrigued by the idea that your "personality" can be visually translated for yours and everyone else's knowledge. (I put quotation marks around "personality" because my friend once said personalities don't exist and in reality we are a mixture other people's traits, opinions, preferences etc.) The personality chart is developed from a strenuous quiz with simple questions and answers, which you obviously have to answer as honest as possible. After a long hour of answering these questions, I viewed my results and it was pretty much what I expected. 

I bet my friends would have expected the 'self-confidence' to be insanely high. I expected it to be high but not at THIS high at the maximum rating. Although I was prepared for these results, the extreme 'self-confidence' and 'determination' truly scared me and made me question myself and my motives. 

Am I so determined that I would be willing to be corrupt/dishonest/unethical in order to succeed?

Does that make me a selfish person that I would prioritise achieving my own ambitions? 

What if I have "too much" self- confidence? 

Almost a year ago I made a conscious change to fake my 'self-confidence' because I realised the importance of believing in yourself and your ideas, visions, decisions and ambitions in order to succeed in life and be happy. If you are confident in yourself then you become less reliant on other people's approval of you while other people will also have faith and confidence in you.  (I shall save 'the importance of self-confidence and self-love' for a later post.) Over the months, I've become more and more self-assured in my decisions for the future but I still have doubts about certain things.

I know I am a highly ambitious, determined person but I worry that these traits would lead to my downfall just like Macbeth. Shakespeare warns us "security is mortal's chiefest enemy", which makes me think about the dangers of having 'security' in oneself.  I often think about this quote/advice because it simply makes sense to me as I relate my excessive self-confidence to the type of 'security' Shakespeare is referring to - Macbeth's false sense of invincibility. 

Even before I did this quiz, I had been thinking about the possibility of my ambitiousness and confidence creating a monster within me. 

But screw it. I'll use these attributes to my advantage and become successful. 

- freak out

widen your musical horizons: with friends

I love it when friends introduce me to new music because it saves me the effort to search for good, new music upon the vast internet. Theres an abundance of musicians putting themselves online through soundcloud, youtube etc. but only a minority of them are actually worth listening to and  downloading to your iTunes. Music blogs or online magazines, like Hypetrak, are helpful to an extent but they practically post any music of any new artist so there is a mixture of good, average and awful musicians. I always read the description/overview of the music and artist and the writer always makes the musician sound great  but I'm often disappointed when I press play. Whereas, friends know your music taste and have relatively good judgements on what or what not to 'link' you.

Here is a list of  upcoming and established musicians my lovely friends have introduced to me / or I've discovered through various outlets (since I also want to return the favour) :

Logic

If Frank Sinatra was reincarnated as a rapper, he would be re-living his fame and glory as 23-year-old Logic (whose real name is actually Sir Robert Bryson Hall III – I’m not kidding). Logic embodies the Sinatra charm and confidence while he blows our mind with his wordplay and the speed of his rhymes. Although his raps are complex and quick, he manages to maintain a certain smoothness and an effortless flow.  He has a clear vision of achieving mainstream success while staying loyal to hip hop and we shall see if he remains true to his word. Logic will be propelled into the spotlight since his debut album is set to be released this year with the support of major record label, Def Jam. 

source of discovery: www.xxlmag.com

King Krule

There is a Punk renaissance infused with Jazz, Blues and Hip Hop  and 19-year-old King Krule (aka Archy Marshall) is leading the way.  Don't let his red hair fool you into believing he is an 'Ed Sheeran' type instead I'd say he is more like 'Johnny Rotten' if we were to be generalising gingers (which we shouldn't do). He brings angst to the foreground with his rough, tortured moans and groans while he tells us, "In my head I'm getting dead tired of this shit you've caused/ You fucking bitch." (check out those internal rhymes - he is obviously an avid listener of rap). King Krule freely moves between these indistinct states of singing and rapping (basically punk-rap) against the smoothness of his Fender guitar.  Amongst the underground hip hop scene, King Krule has also gained respect with his collaboration with Ratking, a NYC hip hop collective, in So Sick Stories so don't feel your "street cred" is at jeopardy for listening to him. 

source of discovery: don't actually remember

FKA Twigs

Although FKA Twigs' music lacks excitement, there is something enchanting and eerie about FKA Twigs and her ethereal electronic production. FKA Twigs deceives the audience with her innocent-Bambi-look while she expresses her sexuality through her lyrics, "That feels good in my/ That feels good/ so so amazing/ I want you in my", - why won't she finish her sentence? To be honest, I think her lyrics are too basic and boring but her use of sound is reasonably intriguing. And If I'm going to be fully honest with you, I think it was her "cool" image rather than her music that convinced me to like her. 

source of discovery: Pitchfork... I think? 

Glass Animals

I don't know much about Glass Animals except they're a London band consisting of four guys that make great music and understand the effectiveness of minimalism. When my friend tagged me in the Glass Animals' Facebook post of their song, Gooey,  I assumed they were some kind of "alty" band. Therefore I was hesitant and wary because I have stigmatised "alternative" music in my mind but I can't always trust my judgements. Glass Animals' repertoire is a delicious mixture of psychedelic, whimsical, electro-pop flavours that I'm obsessed with now, like holy shit.

source of discovery: friend 

Grimes

Two years ago, my friend sent me Grimes' Oblivion music video and my initial reaction was, "What the hell is this? Like oh my gosh, this is so weird that I'm slightly creeped out by her." I hated her but yet I could not stop watching her videos and interviews and slowly I became a fan. I truly admire her and her clear vision of herself as an artist (but I'll save my fangirling for another blog post). Visions is a bizarre, phenomenal album with music I thought I wouldn't ever enjoy but Grimes surprised me.  Her innovative, futuristic production creates a hypnotic trance amongst listeners and transports them to the Fifth Element. Grimes definitely knows how to take advantage of  the influence of pop music as she lures people into the catchiness of her synths. Thank goodness Grimes is currently working on her fourth album otherwise I would have started a riot because I've been anticipating for her to release more music for far too long. 

source of discovery: friend - Emma

Arctic Monkeys

I know they've been around for a long time that they are practically veterans of British indie-rock music. I had disregarded the Arctic Monkeys over the years until my friend played AM on vinyl. The opening of the kick drums and moody guitar line (Do I Wanna Know?) instantly opened my eyes to the potency of the Arctic Monkeys.  The booming sound system projected the domineering vibrations of the bass amongst the walls, windows, furniture and bodies. It was a stranger, wonderful sensation. If I had listened to their music on the internet, I highly doubt it would have had any influence over me.

source of discovery: friend - Gabbi

Hope this has expanded your music preferences.

- freak out

thoughts of the week: March 30th- April 5th

The Pah Homestead 5/04/14

This is going to be a random blogpost of my rambling thoughts. Sorry. Usually these types of posts are exclusive to my tumblr but I thought I would try a different stance on my blog.

Thought #1
I am over-joyed with the absence of pressure and stress as I handed in my Media and History assignments. I am proud of the work I produced in both these subjects and I felt I had learned new things and challenged my thinking. For History, I did a research folder on the influence of religion in Kororareka/Russell in regards to the building of the British Empire in New Zealand. This strenuous research had developed my appreciation for New Zealand history and Maori culture as well as making me aware of the early missionaries' legacy today. (Gosh, it sounds like I'm hoping my history teacher would read this and give me a good grade). I also had to write two Media essays on the Ghostwriter by Roman Polanski each consisting of 2500-3000 words. Polanski is highly regarded amongst Hollywood but despite his talents as a director, he is a dirty bastard. I don't support oppressors/rapists and therefore I felt conflicted and uncomfortable praising Polanski's "use of film techniques". I bullshitted just to please my teacher (and also I was on a shortage of ideas) and I wrote, "contemporary audiences may appreciate Polanski's portrayal of Ruth Lang as a femme fatale since he does not introduce her as an object of a man's desire, unlike classic film noir." - Ironically, he obviously views females as objects of his sexual pleasure as he raped and took advantage of a 13-year-old girl.

Thought #2
On the 4th of April, my friend said to me, "Today is suppose to be bad luck because of all the 'fours' in the date." I replied, "What are you talking about? That's not true."

I didn't believe it was 4/04/14 and instead I thought it was 4/04/12 as I genuinely thought it was 2012 for that moment. It was a strange feeling when I realised it was 2014. I had an epiphany and felt as if I was in Donnie Darko or something. Its beyond deja vu but I'm sure I've read about this freak occurrence somewhere. Is it something to do with another universe/dimension or what?

Thought #3
It's unsettling when you notice how much your friends care about their popularity and reputation. I realised this last night at a "gig" organised by people my age, which was a weird experience. My friends and I went with reasonable expectations but we arrived and realised it wasn't "our scene/crowd". With everyone being like "oh my gosh, this is embarrassing... I don't want to be seen here...", it was easy to agree and be swayed by their reactions. I was secretly quite jealous of this "crowd" as they were being creative together and supportive of each other. They looked like they were having heaps of fun as they were dancing to their friend's band. They seemed like they didn't care at all about what people thought. I wish I had more friends who I could be creative, spontaneous and "non-conformist" with. Agh, I need to get some friends like Tavi Gevinson/ Lorde/ M.I.A/ Grimes/ Sky Ferreira. However I love my close friends and its great because recently they have been delving into feminism too!! We hate on shallow boys (especially those St Peter's boys - I'm not afraid to 'name and shame').


- freak out

'what's been up?'

Goodness me, its been awhile since I last posted on here. I need to get back into the habit but its difficult with the extensive school work thrown at me. I've been prioritising school assignments over my own outlets of enjoyment. 'Freak' has been nagging me at the back of my mind as it moves down on my 'to do' list. I've written pieces for it and soon they will become irrelevant therefore I'll need to publish something. I don't know how Tavi Gevinson does it or even got started. Maybe I'll take advantage of my 2 week holiday approaching in 5 or so weeks. I haven't even seen Gabbi (my partner-in-crime) at all this year. I want to do something about it though.  ahhh

I've also been lacking inspiration and interesting ideas to write about. I feel my intelligence and writing ability has declined, not due to minimal blogging, but because of alcohol consumption (I know that sounds paranoid and silly). I don't drink much but I do feel its affected me in some way. Recently I've decided to just stop drinking alcohol and not aim to get drunk when I go to parties. People ask me, "Why aren't you drinking?", as I drink from my trusty water bottle and answer, "Got to stay hydrated." Imagine how pretentious I would sound if I say, "I don't want to kill my brain cells since I want to remain smart." I'll probably drink again when I feel I've reached my intellectual acme. I'm working to regain and expand my knowledge through various tactics including reading the dictionary and deleting 'very' from my vocabulary.

As of today, I've decided I will aim for an AUT (Auckland University of Technology) scholarship so I can get a Bachelor of Communications degree. Media is a powerful tool in planting ideas and ideals in our minds and I plan to use media to change the attitude of society and challenge people's thinking. I want to form a forward-thinking, innovative magazine that not only focuses on the usual 'music, fashion, art, culture' combo but also addresses world issues such as sexism and racism. Once the magazine is popular and successful, I will start a record label because music artists and magazines are inter-dependent. Despite the abundance of online magazines,  I know my creations will appeal to the masses and I will still become a media mogul. I will build a fucking empire.

- freak out