Lana Del Rey’s Chemtrails Over The Country Club: an ode to the lonely artist
Adam Fiertl reviews Del Rey’s latest album
Just over a year after the release of her critically acclaimed sixth studio album ‘Norman F*cking Rockwell,’ Lana Del Rey sits in an interview with Irish Radio Host, Annie Mac, detailing her relationship with fame and the toll it’s starting to take. Del Rey remains rather illusive amidst the chaos of threats and the fear of ‘being cancelled’ – the only true channel of voice we get is through her music. This vulnerability and critique of fame, fellowship and solidarity shines through her beautifully evocative, folk alt-pop, seventh studio album Chemtrails Over The Country Club.
Lana Del Rey’s soprano voice soars in album opener White Dress, a look back on her life as a waitress before the crash and burn of fame. She dreams in the 00’s of what is to come and perhaps questions life if she’d never given in to the temptation of being a star, ‘...look how I got this, just singin’ in the street....’ She reminisces over a stunning swell of instrumentation; a constant ebb-and-flow of music and voice almost mimic the tumultuousness of being a woman in music. She finally feels seen, but at what cost?
A distant ringing of the harp, swinging saxophone and producer Jack Antonoff’s signature horns and strings turns Dance Till We Die into an elegant dance of perseverance. Del Rey wades through the turmoils of being a female singer-songwriter in the current patriarchy of music; an ode to the past, present and future Del Rey who has no choice but to ‘keep dancing... keep it moving, baby.’
Del Rey flutters within intense harmonic layers and stripped-backed instrumentation in Dark But Just A Game. Within the strongest stretch of the album Del Rey rallies her jaded comrades and tells them (and us) it’s okay not to change, it’s okay to be different, ‘People keep changing all the time, the best ones lost their minds....’
This living freely and for yourself is what Del Rey continues to preach in the surrounding folk-inspired tracks. Wild At Heart and Not All Who Wander Are Lost, when coupled together, discard the fears and beliefs of the ‘celebrity’ and instead shine a light on stepping into one’s own. A stunning play on words, in ‘Not all those who wander are lost… it’s just wanderlust’ reveals Del Rey’s way of holding on to hope and new beginnings.
The title track, Chemtrails Over The Country Club, is simply classic Lana. Juxtaposing the contrast of the ‘American Ideal’ with the more corrupt nature of the nation, Del Rey hints at her fears about the nation’s imminent reality: a world of conspiracy theories and misguided beliefs. Chemtrails, of course, is a nod to the American conspiracy of aircrafts leaving nefarious chemicals in the air which are told to be able to modify anything from weather to the human population. (It’s fascinating, truly. Have a read).
Although it seems hope is dwindling throughout the length of the record, Del Ray offers us one last glimmer to close the album - a cover of Joni Mitchell’s 1970 hit For Free backends the album and speaks volumes to the struggles of being an artist. Culminating in a blend of Weyes Blood and Zella Day, the folk-esque piano ballad, ‘play[ing] real good on his clarinet... for free,’ had never seemed so hopeful as the three join together to end the stunning project with a stand for the art. While the ‘fortunes’ and ‘velvet curtain calls’ may seem trivial to Del Rey now, For Free enraptures listeners along her journey as a female artist and the vexing toll of her success.
The integrity, fight and whimsy of Del Rey’s music ooze sex empowerment amidst a struggle against patriarchal America. Del Rey always has something to say and Chemtrails Over the Country Club should stand proud amongst her discography. I know that through the isolation and loneliness of the pandemic, my self-image has been so roughly challenged, and that is why this record is so special to me. A collection of reflective, freeing, critical and beautifully composed tracks speaks volumes about our moving forward as lovers of art.
It can be assured that, even if she doesn’t always get it right the first time, Del Rey will continue to use her voice to incite change, rally thought and vindicate the voiceless. And it can be assured she will do it oh so beautifully.