Blue Banisters

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Blue Banisters
A picture of woman in a yellow dress sitting with two dogs by her sides on a wooden porch in front of the banisters. The picture is surrounded by a white outline with the text "Lana Del Rey" and "Blue Banisters" written in black.
Studio album by Lana Del Rey
Released October 22, 2021 (October 22, 2021)
Recorded 2013, 2017,[1] 2020–2021
Studio
  • Conway Recording Studios (Los Angeles)
  • Dean's List House of Hits (Texas)
  • Punto Rec Studios (Turin)
  • TaP Studios (London)
Genre
Length 61:54
Label
Producer
Lana Del Rey chronology
Chemtrails over the Country Club
(2021)		 Blue Banisters
(2021)
Singles from Blue Banisters

Blue Banisters is the eighth studio album by American singer-songwriter Lana Del Rey. It was released on October 15, 2021 in Canada and October 22 worldwide, by Interscope and Polydor Records, seven months after her previous record, Chemtrails over the Country Club. The album was produced by Del Rey, Zachary Dawes, Loren Humphrey, Mike Dean, Barrie-James O'Neill, Rick Nowels, and several others.

Two singles preceded the album: the title track "Blue Banisters", and "Arcadia". "Text Book" and "Wildflower Wildfire" were also released before the album as its promotional singles. Commercially, Blue Banisters peaked at number eight in the US,[2] and reached number one in Argentina and the Netherlands.[3] The album received positive reviews from music critics, most of whom complimented Del Rey's introspective lyrics.

Background

On March 19, 2021, Del Rey released her seventh studio album Chemtrails over the Country Club.[4] Only a day later, she announced that her next album titled Rock Candy Sweet would be released in June.[5] On April 11, 2021, Del Rey uploaded a short teaser with the caption Blue Banisters to her Instagram.[6] The teaser shows a picture of Del Rey looking up to the sky.[7] On April 28, she took to social media to announce the album, which was slated for release on July 4.[8] Later the same day, Del Rey posted a trailer for the title track and its accompanying music video to Instagram with the caption: "Sometimes life makes you change just in time for the next chapter",[9] and to Twitter with the caption: "I'm writing my own story. And no one can tell it but me".[10] The title track, "Text Book" and "Wildflower Wildfire" were released as singles on May 20, 2021.[11]

On July 3, 2021, Del Rey revealed the album cover on her Instagram along with a teaser for an upcoming single, captioned "Album out later later... Single out soonish. Have a good fourth x". The album artwork shows Del Rey sitting on a wooden deck with her dogs Tex and Mex.[12] On September 3, 2021, Del Rey posted the cover for the single "Arcadia" on her Instagram account and revealed that the song would be released the following Wednesday, on September 8. A day before the release of the song, Del Rey shared an additional snippet, captioning it with a small written teaser of the album's general themes, mentioning that she's never felt the need to explain her story "but if you’re interested this album does tell it- and does pretty much nothing more."[13][non-primary source needed] On September 8, 2021, the album's pre-order was released along with "Arcadia", revealing the album would be released October 22, 2021.[14]

Composition

Musically, Blue Banisters has been described as a folk, pop,[15] jazz,[16][17] and Americana record.[18] It has been described by The A.V. Club lyrically as her "breakup record",[19] while Spin regards it as not being a breakup album but rather an "observational project".[18]

Release and promotion

The promotion for Blue Banisters was minimal compared to Del Rey's previous releases, mainly due to Del Rey deactivating her social media accounts in September 2021.[20]

The official album artwork was revealed on July 4, 2021, the album's original release date. Del Rey addressed this, captioning the post "Happy fourth, Album out later". The cover depicts Del Rey sitting on a porch between her dogs, Tex and Mex (who are mentioned in the album's title track). The artwork references Tracy Nelson's album cover for Poor Man's Paradise (1973).[21]

Alternate covers for the album were released on September 8, 2021, alongside the album's track listing and digital and physical pre-orders. Retail chains Target,[22] HMV,[23] and Urban Outfitters[24] revealed their exclusive editions of the record featuring more alternate covers, all photographed by Neil Krug.

Blue Banisters was released on October 22, 2021, by Interscope and Polydor Records.[25][26] The same day, in promotion of the album, Del Rey appeared on the American late-night talk show, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, and performed "Arcadia".[27]

Critical reception

Template:Album rating Upon release, Blue Banisters received positive reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from professional publications, the album received an average score of 80, based on 21 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[28] Aggregator AnyDecentMusic? gave it 7.4 out of 10, based on their assessment of the critical consensus.[29]

The A.V Club's Tatiana Tenreyo stated that "[Blue] Banisters is a reminder that when the singer-songwriter is in charge of her vision and fully taps into her emotions, she's still capable of crafting breathtaking beauty."[19] Mike Wass of Variety wrote the album "offers a rare glimpse of an artist securing her legacy, one song at a time."[30] For The Independent, Ben Bryant wrote a positive review, call it "one revelation colours the singer's entire body of work", noted that "it is far more elliptical and mysterious than it first appears".[31] Giving the album four out of five stars, Sarah Grant of Rolling Stone commented that "Her second album of the year is dense and abstract, turning inward and finding solace in sisterhood."[32] Sam Sodomsky for Pitchfork praised Del Rey's songwriting, noted that the record "is a sweeping survey of her talent as a songwriter, stripped of the aesthetic borders she often places around her work."[15] Rhian Daly of NME called Blue Banisters "a defiant and delicate return."[33] In their mixed reviews, The Guardian and The Observer critics felt the album struggles from "samey-ness", wavering quality, and familiar but confusing themes.[34][35]

Year-end lists

The album was placed in numerous year-end lists of 2021.

Select year-end rankings of Blue Banisters
Publication List Rank Ref.
Slant The 50 Best Albums of 2021
3
[36]
Exclaim! Exclaim!'s 50 Best Albums of 2021
35
[37]
NME The 50 Best Albums of 2021
17
[38]
The Sunday Times 25 Best Albums of 2021
9
[39]
Indie Hoy (Latin America) The 50 best albums of 2021
10
[40]

Commercial performance

Blue Banisters debuted at number eight on the Billboard 200 with 33,000 album-equivalent units which consisted of 19,000 pure sales and 14,000 streaming units (calculated from 18.6 million on-demand streams of the album).[41] It was Del Rey's eighth consecutive record to reach the top 10 in the U.S, but her first to miss the top-three since her debut studio album, Lana Del Ray (2010). However, Blue Banisters debuted at number one on the Billboard Alternative Album chart, becoming her sixth consecutive number one on that chart and her second of the year, after March's Chemtrails over the Country Club, setting a record, with Del Rey being the artist with the most number ones on the Alternative Album charts since its inception.[42]

Track listing

Blue Banisters track listing
No. Title Producer(s) Length
1. "Text Book"  
5:04
2. "Blue Banisters"  
  • Del Rey
  • Simon
 4:52
3. "Arcadia"  
  • Del Rey
  • Erickson
 4:24
4. "Interlude - The Trio"  
  • Clayton Johnson[a]
  • Chantry Johnson[a]
 1:16
5. "Black Bathing Suit"  
  • Del Rey
  • Dawes
  • Reid
 5:18
6. "If You Lie Down with Me"  
  • Del Rey
  • Erickson
  • O'Neill[a]
 4:25
7. "Beautiful"  
  • Del Rey
  • Erickson
 3:36
8. "Violets for Roses"  
  • Del Rey
  • Erickson
 4:15
9. "Dealer"  
  • Del Rey
  • Humphrey
  • Dawes
 4:34
10. "Thunder"  
  • Del Rey
  • Dawes
  • Reid[a]
  • Kieron Menzies[a]
 4:19
11. "Wildflower Wildfire"  
  • Del Rey
  • Dean
 4:46
12. "Nectar of the Gods"  
  • Del Rey
  • O'Neill
 4:20
13. "Living Legend"  
  • Del Rey
  • O'Neill
 4:00
14. "Cherry Blossom"  
  • Del Rey
  • O'Neill
  • Nowels
 3:18
15. "Sweet Carolina"  
  • Del Rey
  • Erickson
 3:22
Total length:
 61:54

Personnel

Musicians

<templatestyles src="Div col/styles.css"/>

  • Lana Del Rey – vocals (all tracks), horn arrangement (3, 6), string arrangement (3)
  • Gabe Simon – piano (1, 2), acoustic guitar, background vocals, bass, drum programming, guitar, keyboards, percussion, sound effects, synth bass (1); organ (2)
  • Melodye Perry – background vocals (1, 10)
  • Greg Leisz – baritone guitar, pedal steel (1)
  • Griffin Goldsmith – drums (1, 5)
  • Darren Weiss – drums (1, 10), percussion (10)
  • Jacob Braun – cello (3, 8)
  • Drew Erickson – horn arrangement (3, 6), organ (3), piano (3, 6–8, 15), string arrangement, synthesizer (3, 8); drum programming (4, 6), keyboards (5), bass, drums, Mellotron (6); Moog bass (6, 8), conductor (8), Rhodes (14, 15)
  • Dan Fornero – trumpet (3, 6)
  • Wayne Bergeron – trumpet (3, 6)
  • Dan Rosenboom – trumpet (3, 6)
  • Blake Cooper – tuba (3, 6)
  • Zach Dellinger – viola (3, 8)
  • Andrew Bulbrook – violin (3, 8)
  • Wynton Grant – violin (3, 8)
  • Zachary Dawes – bass (5, 9), synth bass (5), keyboards (9), Höfner bass, piano (10)
  • Dean Reid – drum programming (5), acoustic guitar (6, 10)
  • Benji Lysaght – electric guitar (5, 10)
  • Cian Riordan – synth bass (5)
  • Loren Humphrey – drums (6, 9, 10), percussion (10)
  • Tyler Parkford – keyboards (9)
  • Miles Kane – vocals (9)
  • Evan Weiss – acoustic guitar, electric guitar (10)
  • Lisa Stone – background vocals (10)
  • Táta Vega – background vocals (10)
  • Owen Pallett – string arrangement, viola, violin (10)
  • Mike Dean – keyboards (11)
  • Barrie-James O'Neill – guitar (12, 13), piano (12–14)
  • Rick Nowels – piano (14)
  • Robert Grant Jr. – piano (15)

Technical

<templatestyles src="Div col/styles.css"/>

  • Adam Ayan – mastering engineer (1–10, 12–15)
  • MIke Dean – mastering engineer, mixer (11)
  • Dean Reid – mixer (1, 3–8, 10, 15), engineer (1, 4–8, 10, 15)
  • Gabe Simon – mixer (2), engineer (1, 2)
  • Drew Erickson – mixer (3, 6–8, 15)
  • Michael Harris – mixer (3–8, 15), engineer (4–8, 15)
  • Cian Riordan – mixer (5)
  • Jason Wormer – mixer (9)
  • Lana Del Rey – mixer (12–14), recording arranger (4)
  • Barrie-James O'Neill – mixer (12–14)
  • John Congleton – engineer (1, 10)
  • Jon Sher – engineer (1), assistant recording engineer (3, 5–8, 15)
  • Mai Leisz – engineer (1)
  • Loren Humphrey – engineer (9)
  • Kieron Menzies – engineer (10)
  • Sage Skolfield – engineer, assistant mixer (11)
  • Sean Solymar – engineer, assistant mixer (11)
  • Ben Fletcher – assistant recording engineer (1, 3, 5–8, 15)
  • Alex Tomkins – assistant recording engineer (1)
  • Brian Rajaratnam – assistant recording engineer (1)

Charts

Release history

Release dates and formats for Blue Banisters
Region Date Format(s) Label Ref.
Various October 22, 2021
[74][75][76]
October 29, 2021 LP [77][23]
Japan CD Universal Music Japan [78]
United States November 12, 2021 LP (Target exclusive red) Interscope [22]
Brazil December 10, 2021 CD Universal Music Brasil [79]

References

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  34. ↑ Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named Aroesti
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