NFR Ranked: The Least Beautiful to the Tear-Jerkingly Stunning

Friday was the day we've all been waiting for! And when I say "all", I mean the crazed and obsessive fans of pop music's resident sad girl, Lana del Rey - which includes me. Her new album, Norman F---ing Rockwell (here on referred to as NFR), has been in my life for about a day and a half as I write this, and I can already pretty much guarantee it'll be my favourite album of the year. 

A few notes on the album before we get started on ranking the songs (which is probably the hardest thing I've had to do since quadratic equations in GCSE maths). While I absolutely love this album, I don't think it's my favourite Lana record to date. I think previous albums - especially her last one, Lust for Life - had more variety in terms of genre and sound. NFR, for the most part, follows a strategic formula, of songs driven by piano, letting Lana's elegant vocals take centre stage. On occasion this does mean the album can become a little repetitive, but upon each listen you find a lyric, or a harmony, or a lovely bit of texture that distinguishes each track from the next and makes each listen unique and exciting. The understated instrumentals does allow Lana to play with her vocals a lot more on this album - in many songs, her voice sounds so fragile it could shatter.  Having said all of that, NFR is still in many ways typically Lana - from the touches of Hollywood nostalgia laced throughout, to the lurking grit and edge prickling what would otherwise be any other soft, poetic piano ballads. Simple, yet raw and vulnerable and memorable. Now, let's get on with the ranking...

14. BARTENDER 

When thinking about how to order this ranking, what should be at the top of the list popped into mind straight away - it was picking my least favourite ones that was the trickiest part. So, I based my choices on whether I could remember how it goes or not. Lana has done a great job in making what some may see as just sad ballads catchy and unforgettable. But, Bartender came through as the one I remembered the least. Instrumentally, this track is one of the most basic songs on the album - pretty much just keys and vocals - but as with many Lana songs, the lyrics are the crucial part. It's just with this track, I don't quite understand them. Full of cultural callbacks sung in smooth harmonies, it certainly isn't a bad one, but not a standout.

13. VENICE B-TCH

Released as a single in September last year, Venice B-tch was the second sneak peak into what album number 6 was going to be all about. Following the same soft instrumentals as it's predecessor Mariners Apartment Complex, the 10-minute tour de force is minimalist and moody. The wonderfully rhyming lyrics melt into the gorgeous acoustic backing track, the echoic vocals sung during the instrumental portion of the song giving it a very dream-like quality. While it's not hard to get sucked into listening to the whole song, 10 minutes is a bit too much to ask of the listeners. That being said, the catchy rhyme scheme does provide some of my favourite lyrical moments on NFR. 

12. HOPE IS A DANGEROUS THING FOR A WOMAN LIKE ME TO HAVE - BUT I HAVE IT

hope is a dangerous thing for a woman like me to have - but I have it deliberates the difficulty of fame through poetic lyrics, discussing expectations to be the perfect pop star and to find happiness in the public eye. Again, lyrics play the leading role here, with the swelling piano adding fervour to the already-impassioned chorus. Amongst tracks both on this record and in her back catalogue surrounding the romance of Hollywood glamour and the beauty of money, this track serves as a stark contrast, peeking into the reality of fame.

11. LOVE SONG 

Love song is the foil to hope is a dangerous thing. A delicate love ballad with twinkling piano, the song reaches into Lana's admiration for the lush life, while she is publicly and beautifully in love. Any fan of songs like National Anthem, Diet Mountain Dew and Carmen will appreciate the starry-eyed lyrics - "In your car, I'm a star and I'm burning through you" - but the beauty of this song is it's vulnerability - "Would like to think that you would stick around/You know that I'd just die to make you proud." It's a lovely track both typically and atypically Lana. 

10. NORMAN F---ING ROCKWELL 

The opening and eponymous track has nothing to hide. A brooding, orchestral beginning paves way for some of the boldest lyrics NFR has to offer - both cheeky and topical, all about a failing poet. Lana reaches some of her most wonderful notes during this song, with the orchestra swelling to support the courageous choruses, turning the song into something quite cinematic. This - alongside the amusingly brazen lyrics - makes it one of the more lighthearted songs on the album, and is a wonderful opener, laying down some of NFR's key qualities: cinema, audacity and an underscore of chaos.

9. MARINERS APARTMENT COMPLEX

As the first song to be released from NFR, Mariners Apartment Complex will always have a special place in my heart. The song is about guiding someone through as tough time, having been in the same situation. The kind-hearted lyrics match kind-hearted instrumentals; the song is built on soft piano and guitar, with percussion coming into chorus to punctuate her message of help and hope. The song builds and builds throughout, with Lana's vocals transforming from barely a whisper to confident declarations, layered beautifully with harmonies. This song is the first to introduce Lana as a guiding light in this album, in contrast to other tracks that strongly suggest she is the one needing the help. That pretty much sums up what I love about this album: the songs sound simple enough, but the messages are deeply layered, and a very real reflection of what it's like to try and keep up appearances and be there for everyone while trying to keep yourself together at the same time.

8. HOW TO DISAPPEAR 

I absolutely love the instrumentals in this song. It has the most intriguing opening, with gentle strings reminiscent of sad black and white movie scores - I could imagine Lana solemnly slow dancing with this song's love interest while it plays on a rusty record in the background. This is one of the sadder songs on NFR, with Lana mourning a man she loves who doesn't seem to feel the same way about her. I'm sure many of us can relate to the feeling of being insignificant in the life of someone who means the world to you - this is one probably more relatable to the average Joe, over songs about flashy cars and the like. While the lyrics are lovely - as with every song on this album, and every Lana album that has come before - the nostalgic and pensive atmosphere the instrumentalism creates is the star of the show in How to disappear.  

7. CALIFORNIA 

California is a continuation of the theme depicted in Mariners Apartment Complex: being a shoulder to cry on. The regret and guilt is very obvious in Lana's voice throughout this track, but never as prominent as it is in the pre-chorus. I think that fragility is what makes this track so special. As the swooping orchestral instrumentalism builds, so does the desperation in her voice as she promises to make everything better for this person by "throw[ing] a party." Her vocals are particularly unique when it comes to the chorus, her deep voice and brilliant harmonies both full of texture. In essence, this song highlights the huge determination of trying to help a friend through a rough time - something, I reckon, we can all relate to.

6. F--- IT I LOVE YOU 

I think F--- it I love you is so high up this list because it reminds me so much of Lana's album, Born to Die. It's brazen, it's sultry, it's moody. A finger-picked acoustic is the foundation for this track, until percussion introduces itself at the chorus. The pre-chorus is my favourite element of this song; each line almost tripping over the next as if she is trying to justify or understand something, before throwing all her turmoil aside and brashly admitting she loves this person. But, essentially, this is a selfish almsot-top-5 track for me, just because it's so reminiscent of the sexy side of Lana that's not explored as much in NFR.

5. THE NEXT BEST AMERICAN RECORD 

From here on, I think it will become quite apparent that I prefer Lana's more gritty, rock-rooted tracks. As soon as she hit the word "architecture" in that minor key - ooooh, I knew I'd love this song. The Next Best American Record is a dreamy trip through culture's past, with 70s and 80s references scattered about here and there, while the instrumental journey in the song is quite the trip itself - starting with earthy, guitar-based verses, before erupting into climactic chorus. This is an unpredictable labyrinth of a track, while always staying hazy and smooth. The fact this is only number five is a real testament to how brilliant this album really is.

4. THE GREATEST 

The general mood around the internet seems to be that The greatest is the best song on the record, with some going as far to say it's the best song Lana's ever written. And, to be fair, it does have the makings of a classic: it has typical Lana written all over it, while also being lifted by very mature and clever lyrics. This song is a swim in an ocean of nostalgia - nostalgia for relationships, for music, for New York City. Lyrically, this song is probably the most enticing on the album - there's a lot to analyse here. Lines like "the culture is lit" could both mean the slang term 'lit', or the fact the world is literally on fire; "Life on Mars ain't just a song" could both be referencing the recent idea of living on Mars to escape climate change, or Lana's own desperation to escape reality just like the girl in the original Bowie song. It could be the ex-Literature student reading way too far into this, but I see the array of meanings and vague lyrics in this song to reflect the wishy-washy confrontation of our planet's issues, with the statement lyric closing the song - "I hope the live stream's almost on" - representing the way we favour entertainment and the unimportant, ignoring very real problems and prioritising celebrity and technology. Well played Lana, well played.

3. HAPPINESS IS A BUTTERFLY 

Choosing a top 3 has been so so difficult, and by tomorrow this order may well have all changed, but I'm going to write it all down now before I change my mind. Happiness is a butterfly follows the formula many others on the album do; it's a rock piano ballad with lyrics grounded in longing, poetry, and driving into the sunset. The chorus of this song is what really caught my attention though - I love the passion she throws into shouting those lyrics, the frustration that so subtly underpins the yearning verses erupting all at once, making the quiet declaration of "I just wanna dance" all the more heartbreaking. This is the best of the piano ballads on NFR - it just drips with emotion. 

2. DOIN' TIME 

I almost feel bad putting a cover so close to the top spot because obviously it's not Lana's own (it's a cover of Sublime's Doin' Time - a song about a relationship in which the girlfriend treats the boyfriend poorly), but she does a very good job of making it her own. This song suits her voice so well, and it's very different from the rest of the tracks on NFR without being out of place. I do appreciate how much she stuck to the original, just so we could see a different side to Lana that we hadn't really before. Reggae-rock is completely new to her. As the most up-beat song on the album, it comes at a brilliant time, picking up pace following the gloomy F--- it I love you, and just serves as an all-round, radio-ready track that even those who don't like her 'sad girl' songs will enjoy. 

1. CINNAMON GIRL 

After much deliberation, I've come to the conclusion that Cinnamon Girl is my favourite song on NFR. It may not be the most lyrically hard-hitting, but it fizzes with excellent yet subtle instrumentalism, and utterly luscious vocals. Both lyrically and instrumentally, the song borrows from the themes we've seen elsewhere on NFR; she wants to help her drug-abusing love interest, exhibiting that shoulder-to-cry-on trope, but shows her own frailty - "If you hold me without hurting me, you'll be the first man who ever did." Essentially, the song is another piano ballad, but elevated. It becomes more pop-like in the almost-anthemic chorus chant, and orchestral touches caress the chorus alongside a drum machine, evoking the R&B flecks found in Born to Die and Lust for Life. Some electronic buzzes make an entrance later on, providing an interesting contrast between the classic orchestral strokes and the new, modern sound. The gorgeously light vocals in the chorus are glass-like. Cinnamon Girl is dainty and defiant, scared and stirring, pulling together every part of what Lana - and this album - are all about. It's a masterpiece.

And there we have it! Congrats if you made it all the way to the end - and if you did, you may enjoy a similar post I did about twenty one pilots' most recent album Trench, linked here if you fancy a gander. With Trench my order has stayed pretty much put since it came out as I had definite favourites, but I'm not so sure about NFR - each song is song is so similar but so different at the same time, and all bloomin' wonderful. Right, it's taken me 5 hours to write this - bed time.