The last and only girl to cling to that era of the U.S. when the term Americana was at its finest, Lana Del Rey, has not disappointed in consistency with her latest album artwork for the highly anticipated Lust for Life (the promise of which was only further added to by her witchy promo set in the “H” of the Hollywood sign). And, lo and behold, like Honeymoon before it, Lust for Life finds LDR tied staunchly to a car.
Except, in this case, there’s actually a smile on her face about it. In the past, conversely, her proximity to a car, whether riding in a Starline tour bus or standing morosely in front of one (as she did for Born to Die), has exhibited a sense of reluctance on her part. Like maybe she feels guilty about carbon dioxide emissions polluting the ozone or something. With her fifth record, however, Del Rey appears super comfortable with her love of the piece of machinery that once made America the foremost economic power in the world.
Offering the same exact look she did for her “Love” video, Del Rey’s daisy-adorned middle parted hair is in keeping with the 60s aesthetic of the truck behind her. And its presence begs many a question, like: is she driving cross-country herself to troll for male Lana acolytes? Is she waiting for the guy she always talks about in her songs to give her a lift back to Lake Placid? Or is this simply a great Instagram opportunity?
Whatever your imagined backstory of Lana smiling in front of this car is, the one aspect we can be sure of is that the only thing she adores more than homages to the past is a good “Ride.”
