For those of you who aren’t religious, you probably weren’t aware that Lana del Rey released a new album on March 24. Absolutely nothing on this earth could have prepared me for this album. It gets better every time I listen to it. Every single track moves me to tears even if it sounds like it should be playing in a club. Lana never fails to blow my mind with the details in her albums and their promotions. Even the Lana del Rey taco truck in London, which seemed like the most random promo ever was actually super strategic. Lana is a genius and this album was like if a DJ broke into a nunnery in the best way possible.

This album started off strong with “The Grants”. The choir singing intro was the best possible way to open an album that centers around finding happiness despite a jaded past. Ending the album with a throwback to one of Lana’s best albums in my opinion (Norman F—ing Rockwell) was also a great way to close the album with a light and nostalgic note. When I heard that one of the genre’s listed for this album was country, I was a little concerned. But after listening to it, the subtle folksy-country feel to the songs (when they don’t sound like rave music) turned out to be really beautiful and calming. So I suppose I’m an avid country fan now. Lana is pulling a reverse Taylor Swift and it is honestly 10 times more moving than the way Taylor did it. Sorry, Taylor.

One of the things I love about Lana and this album specifically is how random her lyrics are. From mentions of COVID-19 to taco trucks and Angelina Jolie, her songs have never failed to help romanticize the simple things in life that surround her listeners and everyone else. While I’ve sadly never met her and I devastatingly missed her surprise performance in Charleston, her comforting and familiar writing style makes it easy to imagine her as a very friendly and down to earth person.

There is some controversy surrounding this album, but if there wasn’t, it wouldn’t be Lana del Rey. She’s always enjoyed stirring the political pot and I love it so much. There is some contradiction specifically surrounding the interludes, the “Judah Smith Interlude” in particular. Judah Smith is a pastor who has been known to possess homophobic and anti-abortion views in the past. One of his preaching sermons are featured in Lana’s album as a five minute interlude, and a lot of fans are speculating about her intentions with including the sermon in her album. Some fans argue that the interlude includes Lana laughing in the background, making the inclusion of the sermon ironic. Some fans, however, aren’t so sure this is true since Lana has always been known to make some politically questionable creative decisions in her songs and music videos. Other fans simply argue that the interlude is just a campy artistic choice that really has no deep or political meaning. No matter what Lana meant by the two religious interludes, I love listening to both of them so I don’t really care.

Every song on this album can be put into two categories. Either it’s a song about healing and growing as a person, or it’s a song involving things that I can’t talk about in the school paper. Or it’s about both at the same time. As much as I love the old Lana, I love watching her change as a person and as an artist and become happier with herself and her music. Overall, I of course loved every single song on this album and I can’t wait to hear what Lana gives us next.