Lana Del Rey: Did you know there’s a tunnel under Ocean Blvd

Sami Conley, Echo Editor-In-Chief

   On March 24th, Lana Del Rey dropped her new album called “Did you know that there’s a tunnel under Ocean Blvd” and people are raving about it. This is Lana Del Rey’s 9th studio album and she did not disappoint. Lana gave the fans what they wanted with moody vocals, upbeat tracks, and emotional ballads. She discusses her past in the album and hardships she has been through throughout her music career. The album has a common theme of aging and Lana often talks about growing up and overcoming events from her past. Her new album is truly an experience and something people can relate too and cherish. 

   Lana Del Rey starts out the album with “The Grants”, a sentimental slow song about the memories of her loved ones. An artist named Melodye Perry can be heard in the beginning harmonizing with other women, setting the mood for the album and creating a topic that is further discussed throughout the song and album. She also includes other featured artists on the album, such as The Bleachers on “Margaret”, Tommy Genesis on “Peppers” and Jon Batiste on “Candy Necklace” and “Jon Batiste Interlude”. Lana made her album more than her own by featuring other artists on Interludes and giving them a whole song to display something really beautiful and new for this album. 

   Lana ends the album with a “bang” with the song “Taco Truck x VB”, which displays Lana’s music diversity, with the song starting soft then slowly building to a fun upbeat energetic piece. Throughout the album she quotes songs from her past albums which symbolizes the maturing of Lana as a person but also how ageless and youthful Lana Del Rey’s discography is. She quotes songs like Cinnamon Girl and highlights a time before the pandemic and has her fans look back at one of her most iconic albums, Norman Rockwell. 

   Lana Del Rey truly blew her fans away with this album and took them through a musical journey with this graceful and lively album. This album takes her audience through all of her eras including several different genres and emotions. Fans can even get splashes of Lizzy Grant in songs like “A&W” and a flashback to Norman Rockwell with “Candy Necklaces”. Overall “Did you know there is a tunnel under Ocean Blvd” is one of Lana’s most vulnerable works and can be gut wrenching with its intense themes. Lana Del Rey truly proved herself to be such a great artist as she seems to have brought all of her eras to a close.