Freak (Lana Del Rey song)

"Freak"
Single by Lana Del Rey
from the album Honeymoon
Released February 9, 2016 (2016-02-09)[1]
Format
Recorded 2015
Length 4:55
Label
Writer(s)
Producer(s)
  • Del Rey
  • Nowels
  • Kieron Menzies
Lana Del Rey singles chronology
"Music to Watch Boys To"
(2015)		 "Freak"
(2016)

"Freak" is a song recorded by American singer and songwriter Lana Del Rey for her album Honeymoon (2015).[2][3] It was written by Del Rey and Rick Nowels. It was released as the third single from the album on February 9, 2016.

Background

Del Rey debuted a preview of the track along with previews of "Terrence Loves You" and "Music to Watch Boys To" in The Honeymoon Sampler, which preceded the American release of the album by ten days.

Critical reception

The song was generally acclaimed by music contemporary critics. DigitalSpy's Amy Davidson stated that Del Rey "dance[s] in slow motion with you before leaning in to convincingly whisper the argument towards being "a freak like me too" in your ear."[4] Jessica Hopper of Pitchfork stated that Del Rey branched away from the normal "pop music style" that she is known for and had begun to include California girl-lyrics into some of the songs off the album include "Freak", "High by the Beach", and "Art Deco". Hopper later went on to praise the switch in lyrical styling which is sampled in the song.[5]

Music video

On January 25, 2016, Del Rey confirmed on social media that a music video to accompany "Freak" would be coming soon,[6][7] later announcing that video would premiere on February 9, 2016.[8][9] According to Del Rey, the video would star the girls featured in "Music to Watch Boys To" and singer-songwriter Father John Misty. The music video was filmed at some point in 2015, and clips from it were featured in The Honeymoon Sampler which was released onto YouTube on September 8, 2015.[10] The video features clips of multiple girls, including Del Rey, wearing all white attire and falling down simultaneously in slow motion and later on dancing, Del Rey holding a man's hand to her neck while wearing a wedding ring, slow motion clips of her drinking a red beverage out of a plastic cup, and close-up shots of Del Rey looking mysteriously in the distance towards the end. The video's preview along with the rest of the sampler feature a vintage look with a blue and red tint, similar to the filters used in her early videos for songs such as "Summertime Sadness" and "National Anthem". The video was directed by Del Rey herself[11].

Description

The video opens with a clip of the Earth revolving and "Lana Del Rey" alongside the title of the song super imposed in a yellow font before transitioning into a scene of Father John Misty and Del Rey walking through a rocky desert landscape as the song begins. The next scene shows Del Rey listening to Misty playing the guitar as she drinks Kool-Aid from a plastic cup before placing a tab of acid on his tongue. As the chorus starts, an overexposed pink and red filter fills the screen as Misty is surrounded by a group of women in white. Del Rey sits in front of him smiling and drinking. The scene suddenly transitions at the start of the second verse to Del Rey in a dark cabin at night. This scene is interpolated with clips of Father John Misty pacing and shouting in the desert. Del Rey places the needle of a record player on a vinyl and looks around the cabin. She walks over to a pond and puts her hand in, transitioning back to Misty on acid surrounded by women. The bridge moves back to Del Rey and Misty walking around the desert landscape, she gives him another tab of acid and shortly after a filtered shot of Del Rey lying back reaching for the Kool-Aid comes into view. A close up shot sees Del Rey pouring the Kool-Aid into her mouth then wiping the excess off her lips. The final scene during the song shows Del Rey and Father John Misty dancing in fog in all white before he bends her over his arm and kisses her. The video then transitions into clips of Del Rey, Father John Misty, Chuck Grant and the girls from The Honeymoon Sampler and "Music to Watch Boys To" who featured earlier in the film in a swimming pool as Claude Debussy's "Clair de Lune" plays.

Release

Del Rey announced through Facebook that the video will premiere on February 9 in The Wiltern theater in Los Angeles, California.[12] It was on VEVO after the premiere. The tickets for the show were sold out in 15 minutes. The theater has a capacity of 1,850 persons.

Critical reception

Critics responded positively to the video, with Alex Young of Consequence of Sound describing it as a "compelling, sultry visual"[13] and Nolan Feeney of Time suggesting that the "extravagant" film could be one of the best music videos of 2016.[14]

References

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Monday, February 15, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.