Album Review: Did You Know There's A Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd
On Mar. 24, 2023, Lana Del Rey released her new album Did you know that there’s a tunnel under Ocean Blvd. This album continues the dreamy love-struck vibes that she is known for providing within most of her music.
This album features 16 songs that are all very well written and performed with various guest features like Jon Batiste, SYML, RIOPY, Father John Misty, Bleachers and Tommy Genesis.
Lana Del Rey experiments with different sounds that have almost a gospel feel to them throughout the album as well as two interludes that have an eerie and unique sound to them. The “Judah Smith Interlude” and “Jon Batiste Interlude” are both important to the storytelling aspect of Lana’s album, but not songs I expect to be cycling through many playlists.
“Did you know there’s a tunnel under Ocean Blvd” is the second track on this album as well as the title of the album. This four-and-a-half-minute hit has the slow dramatic melodies that are expected from Lana accompanied by her beautiful and angelic voice. The Chorus to this song is beautiful and explores the want to be loved and not forgotten.
“Let The Light In (feat. Father John Misty)” is one of my favorite songs on this album. Father John Misty and Lana create a beautiful melody with their voices throughout the chorus of this song. The dissonance they create within the chorus creates the haunting and mysterious sound that Lana is well known for.
“Ooh, let the light in. At your back door yelling ‘cause I wanna come in’ Ooh, turn your light on. Look at us, you and I, back at it again”
Another song I enjoy on this album is “Margaret (feat. Bleachers)”. This song explores love and trouble within love. The feature on this song accompanies Lana’s voice beautifully. The sound of this song is slow, emotional and enchanting.
“Words to all my friends with their red flags, their white knights, their black eyes and their blue lies. If you’re askin’ yourself, ‘How do you know?’ Then that’s your answer, the answer is ‘No’. you gotta run”.
The only song I do not fully enjoy on this album is “Peppers (feat. Tommy Genesis). The overall sound of the song is great and has a bit of a faster beat than the rest of the album. I enjoy most of the song, but the chorus is a bit strange with the repetition of
“Hands on your knees, I’m Angeline Jolie”
Overall, this album is amazing. If you are a Lana Del Rey fan, then I expect you will love this album as much as I do. If you have not listened to her, then I highly recommend giving this album a listen! Lana has a beautiful voice and most of her songs are very slow and relaxing.
