The wonderful Lana Del Rey has opened up about the forces that shaped Lust for Life, her forthcoming LP. Speaking to her “witchy sister” Stevie Nicks for V, Lana discussed the impact of turbulent political climates on her songwriting, and her day-to-day life.
Reminiscing on her most politically-charged song to date, Lana told Stevie, “Coachella—Woodstock in My Mind, I wrote on my way home from Coachella when things were getting hostile between North Korea and the U.S., and all those failed missile launches, which happened the day after the first night of the festival. I feel lucky to be able to speak my mind through music right in the present moment.”
Her earlier catalogue, she reflected, was more much to do with her past; as she worked through memories in song. Now, she says, she’s caught up to the present moment, propelled by a sense of international unrest. “This record is really different. When there were the women’s marches, I was writing about that.” She continued, “Regardless of where someone is at personally, the current landscape jolts you into being present, if you’re not crazy. If you’re a normal person, you’re suddenly aware and watching everything.”
None of this is to say these forces, and this newfound attentiveness, will deliver us a particularly gloomy record. The title alone, Lust for Life, promises a degree of hope. “That’s been the theme of my record: being in touch with what it takes to do things for the right reasons…which is about what we’ve been talking about,” Lana told Stevie, “trying to stay positive, and just believing that things are going to be okay. And if it feels like they’re not going to be okay, we’ll try and make them okay individually and then together.”
Lust for Life is due July 21st, 2017
Credits
Photography Scott Trindle [The Winter Warm Up Issue, no. 316, 2011.]
Styling Caroline Newell