Media Diary

Lana Del Rey- High By The Beach

A year after the release of her album Ultra Violence, Lana Del Rey releases her newest video, of the second single lifted from her upcoming album called Honeymoon. Del Rey in her newest song sticks to her recognizable mystical sound, while reinventing it with this more edgy track.

I thought the song was okay, with a mix of a lot of musical components, starting with a delicate blending of harmonies to create an almost eerie feeling, going on to to create an enticing chorus that leads you to quite a haunting outro. As a singer that rose to fame fast and with a lot of criticism for her unusual sound and brutally honest lyrics this could seem like a safe bet for the singer, falling back on a classic Lana Del Rey song about love not working out. However while seeming familiar it has a feeling of progression.

In the video Del Rey is seen moping around a sparse empty beach house while being relentlessly followed by a helicopter, the helicopter has a man inside taking pictures of the singer. The singer occasionally entertains the photographer by posing for some photos, after that the video ends with a big bang!

Del Rey is seen wearing a white flowing dress, that catches in the wind created by the helicopter, this could be shown to symbolize innocence, purity and kindness making the viewer see the singer as a positive, almost god- like person. Del Rey sings about resentment about how her man can never be enough for her and how she needs to escape, this could link to the idea of her being this spiritual, whole person by not needing another person to complete her, and only allowing certain people to be a part of her life. This also could show how she does not want this photographer to be a part of her life. From the beginning Del Rey is painted as a complete, pure and innocent person, this gives added shock half way through the video when the singers actions change, creating a bigger impact at what she does. This idealization is destroyed, creating a feeling of shock, but almost pity when you realize the stress she must have been put through by the photographer to go through with what she does.

This video also represents how the media makes an impact on stars. While she is seen wondering  around an empty house, the pictures she poses for show her beauty, the helicopter does not see it all. It does not see her restlessly wondering around the house alone, it does not see her tiresomely flicking through the magazine. This shows that what the media captures and what goes on behind close doors are two completely different things. At the start of the video you see the outside of the magnificent beach house from the helicopters perspective (you know this due to the propeller sounds), standing beside a road, something impressive (the mansion) placed next to something that is only seen as ordinary (a road). When you go into the house you see that it is not all that glamorous, the walls are plain, and the house remains fairly empty. This could represent what the media sees in celebrities, as all the photographer can capture is what is of the outside;something/someone amazing compared to something/someone ordinary, however when you look inside although its different its not as amazing as pictured, the photographer can never see inside of the home, the photographer can never see what truly lies inside of a person.

The video also helps show how lonely celebrities are. Del Rey is not seen with another person, in fact even the magazine that is shown, shows pictures of the singer. Showing again how she is consumed by the media. The big house sits in front of a very busy road, which you see a lot of people driving by on. Del Rey is alone in a a huge house but so close to a lot of different people making a brief appearance, but they can never see the inside, and will never know how bare the inside of the house is. This could represent the loneliness the singer feels, she is part of many peoples lives but no one can ever really tell whats going on inside of her.

The end scene is very dramatic, the rest of the video is very calm, Del Rey is painted as a pure character, and the house is clean and simple. This contradicts the striking ending, creating a bigger impact on the viewer. You also see tabloids fluttering down, showing how the media again is still a part of the singers life, but in this scene Del Rey seems to finally have the upper hand as the tabloids are now pretty much destroyed.

The video is mostly shot in a shaky camera technique.The footage has little edits and gives the impression that it is shot by the camera being hand-held. So when the camera is following the singer you feel that this footage is unprepared and you almost see the true Lana Del Rey, unlike the photographer, creating a connection between the viewer and her.

The song ultimately, shows Del Rey being shrunken by life and love, while she looks desperately for a sweet escape. The song wont be everyone's cup of tea, it's oddly paced, with electronics in the background, and very wispy singing, that may even be considered as whispering. Although the video doesn't fail to shock you, and the song can be seen as hazy and magical.