Lana Del Rey
knows perfectly well her
Lust for Life
sounds sleepy in comparison to
Iggy Pop
's full-blooded roar, but that doesn't mean the title of her fourth album is ironic. Compared to her previous albums, especially its somnolent 2015 predecessor,
Honeymoon
,
is positively ebullient in tone, if not in tempo.
may sing about a "Summer Bummer" but the song isn't in sway to a narcotic undertow; it simmers, offering a cool bit of seduction for muggy August nights.
LDR
retains this delicate balance throughout the lengthy
(at 71 minutes, this is an album as playlist, designed to be looped over and over as mood music), never quite succumbing to either despair or ecstasy but rather finding a place where there's no separation between the two emotions. That said,
does lean toward pleasure on
, luxuriating in her slow rhythms and shimmering surfaces. What once seemed icy -- the glassy gloss, the sighing melodies, her persistent murmur -- now exudes warmth, where even
the Weeknd
's spectral falsetto on the title track feels alluring.
manages to sustain this mood over the course of 16 songs, every one of which is a gentle variation of her supple signature. Sometimes, the tracks are graced by a guest -- in addition to
A$AP Rocky
shows up on two songs,
Sean Ono Lennon
on another, while
Stevie Nicks
stops by for "Beautiful People Beautiful Problems" -- but usually what sticks is an escalating chorus or a hook that echoes in the distance. If
starts to slow down toward its conclusion -- "Tomorrow Never Came" seems like the logical conclusion, but there's a three-track coda afterward -- it nevertheless delivers upon its promise of a sunnier
, and the very fact that she can find so many textures in a deliberately limited palette is impressive. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine