We’re swooning over Lana Del Rey’s seductive new song

By Lilian min

September 9, 2015

By Lilian min

September 9, 2015

We’re just gonna say it: We’re loving this evolution in Lana Del Rey’s sound and image. In the ramp up to third album Honeymoon, Del Rey’s perfecting and refining the wooziness that soaked previous albums Born to Die and Ultraviolence, channeling her nostalgia forward for quite possibly the first time. Instead of letting the male gaze linger purposefully on whatever femme persona she’s taking on, Del Rey is now also flipping the line of sight. It’s something she’s done before (see: “Blue Jeans“), but instead of pining hopefully for her nebulous Man, she’s taking her pop goddess fatalism to its fullest and most fruitful end. Introducing: New single “Music To Watch Boys To.”

“I love you a lot (putting on my music while I’m watching the boys) / so I do what you want (singing soft grunge just to soak up the noise)” — while in previous songs those lyrics might’ve been taken at face value, by the end of “Music To” you realize that Del Rey, like in previous Honeymoon single “High by the Beach,” has already set a deadline for this relationship. Her delivery of lines like “I knew what only the girls know / lies can buy eternity” and the inclusion of the term “soft grunge” (a term often used to describe her music and aesthetic in a derogatory way) are tongue-in-cheek, set against a lush, airy, classical soundscape (is this the year of the pop flute?), is Sunset Boulevard music: Decadent, dreamy, and doomed.

In an interview with the LA Times, Del Rey described the song as thus: “The title lends itself to a visual of shadows of men passing by, this girl’s eyes, her face. I can definitely see things.” Though Del Rey’s named “Terrence Loves You” her favorite song on the album, she’s also got a soft spot for “Music To,” which was almost the album’s first lead single.

Del Rey debuted “Music To” on Apple Music’s Beats 1 show, revealing that fans who pre-ordered the album would be able to get it a week earlier as well:

Besides “Music To” and previously released songs like “High by the Beach,” “Honeymoon,” and “Terrence Loves You,” Del Rey also included a teaser for a song titled “Freak” in an album “sampler.” The full Honeymoon tracklist, for those of you out of the loop, is here; listen to a radio rip of “Music To Watch Boys To” below.