back_in_nj_again

This album captures the Los Angeles that exists in our imaginations. It's not real but Lana knows this as she's singing, making it even more powerful. She strikes back at her critics ("I f*cked up I know that but Jesus, can't a girl just do the best she can"), admits to letting a friend down but half-heartedly promises them a party ("I wanted to reach out but I never said a thing"), expresses vulnerability ("is it safe to just be who we are"), and throws some humor in just for the hell of it ("Kanye West is blond and gone"). Then there's Venice Bitch which is the perfect summer song. Everything about this album is good: the songwriting, the production, the subject matter, the feelings it evokes. This may well be Lana's magnum opus.

Musically and lyrically, this album is amazing. I took one star off, though, because the mixing and engineering is a muddy mess, even on the remaster.

The first (and best) of his Berlin trilogy (though "Heroes" was the best song from the three). Side one has some of Bowie's most emotionally detached songs, a lot of which feel incomplete, but it works. I call this the "almost" side: almost danceable, almost funky, almost complete songs. Very unsettling and interesting. For awhile "Always Crashing in the Same Car" was the theme of my life. The second side is more ambient, longer pieces heavily influenced by Brian Eno.