Perhaps it was inevitable that the women behind two of the weirdest songs to be released in the past six months would be none other than Charli XCX and Lana Del Rey. After all, both LDR and Charli are accustomed to releasing music that goes against the grain of what’s trending in the moment—and then subsequently making that style “the moment.” In 2011, for example, Del Rey released her debut single, “Video Games,” a dreamy, slow ballad amidst the backdrop of the rise of EDM in mainstream music. If someone had no idea what year to ascribe this song to, 2011 certainly wouldn’t be the first choice. In fact, although the song possesses a decidedly “of the past” aura, it also seems to be “of no time” at all. Charli XCX, on the other hand, was always making music that ostensibly belonged to the future, with the Vroom Vroom EP being a prime example of that.
And so it is that both artists established themselves from an early point in their careers as sonic trailblazers who preferred to set trends rather than follow them. With their latest work on the singles front, XCX and Del Rey continue to hold fast to that principle. And yes, XCX introduced arguably one of the most “unpalatable” lead singles in recent memory to shepherd in her post-Brat era. One that was tied to Emerald Fennell’s Wuthering Heights. For not only was XCX trusted to write one song for the soundtrack, but she was also met with nothing but enthusiasm when she offered to provide the entire soundtrack itself. And yes, there are many who would argue that XCX’s music for Wuthering Heights is better than the film. However, what can’t be argued is that “House” is definitely the most bizarre and unsettling track of the album, which is why it was bold of Fennell to wield it for the intro scene to her movie.
Then again, considering that XCX had already paved the way for “weird” music to be deemed “mainstream” thanks to Brat (though all of her previous albums, apart from Sucker [which isn’t “weird”-sounding at all], also technically achieved that…albeit to a “lesser” extent), perhaps it isn’t that bold on Fennell’s part, but, once again, Charli’s. In turn, Charli has The Velvet Underground to thank for her own commitment to making music that she kept referring to as “elegant and brutal”—this being a direct quote from John Cale himself, with XCX explaining, “From the very start of [me and Finn Keane’s] process we were discussing the Todd Haynes’ documentary about The Velvet Underground and in particular this one quote from John Cale where he describes that the main sonic rule of creating songs for the band was that all things had to be both ‘elegant and brutal.’”
Cale evidently felt that XCX had succeeded, since he agreed to contribute his own very significant vocals to the beginning of the track (e.g., “Can I speak to you privately for a moment? I just want to explain. Explain the circumstances I find myself in. What and who I really am. I’m a prisoner. To live for eternity”). Indeed, he’s the one who gets to say something that isn’t merely the repetition of, “I think I’m gonna die in this house.” With its eerie, unsettling strings and often “stabbing” tone (both musically and vocally), there’s no denying that XCX took a giant risk by releasing a song that was so patently anti-Brat. And yet, it was met with near-unanimous critical praise.
For Lana Del Rey, that wasn’t entirely true with “White Feather Hawk Tail Deer Hunter” (even though one might posit that “House” is the less “listener-friendly” between the two). A song that took more time for critics and fans alike to come around to. Perhaps because, compared to the other singles Del Rey has released thus far from Stove, this one was so blatantly non sequitur/“cuckoo” (especially when compared to the downright normal-soundingness of “Henry, Come On” and “Bluebird”).
But even when not compared to Del Rey’s work of her current era, there was no denying that “White Feather Hawk Tail Deer Hunter” didn’t have any other precedent. Not even from Del Rey’s own oeuvre (though many were quick to offer up “A&W” as “similar” in tone and mood). From the moment its witchy instrumental intro (itself sampled from Ella Fitzgerald’s “Laura”—though it sounds rather The Twilight Zone-y) lulls the listener in, it’s apparent that there’s something odd, even occult-ish, about this track. Something that makes it unlike most other music that gets as much promotion and streams. And then, of course, if one thought the song itself was strange, then they’d be perhaps even more flummoxed by the video, all sepia tones and backwater vibes. Complete with Del Rey, naturally, sticking her head in the oven at one point to make yet another reference to Sylvia Plath (as she also does on “hope is a dangerous thing for a woman like me to have – but I have it”).
Toward the end of the video, Del Rey then infuses it with her usual brand of “found footage” (mainly from some très vintage Betty Boop short films), as if remembering that she ought to give her fanbase something stylistically familiar so they don’t feel totally rudderless amid this “new sound.” XCX, too, tries to inject the video for “House” with some occasional “normalcy”—that is, when she’s not peppering her legs with candle wax or having Cale stand over her prone body as if committing an act of sorcery upon her.
All of which is to say that if there’s a “reason” behind why “weird” music has become more mainstream, it isn’t just a direct consequence of XCX and Del Rey having actively worked to make it so over the past decade-plus, but also because, well, never has existence itself been or felt so utterly weird. Meaning, of course, fucked up. XCX and Del Rey just so happen to be mirroring that through their increasingly “bizarro” musical offerings.
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