In the first line of her new single “Lust For Life” (featuring The Weeknd, not that he adds much to it) the perpetually stoned and in love Goddess of California, Lana Del Rey, sings about climbing up the H of the Hollywood sign with someone who is so absurdly hot that when they’re together it always feels like July. The very first line! She truly wastes no time reminding listeners of her go-to themes (aka love, Los Angeles, and hot guys who are down to trespass), and the track—which sounds like a ’60s girl group hit on quaaludes—is a rousing success because of it.
A departure from “Love,” her upcoming album’s first single, “Lust For Life” feels like it was meant to be on Born to Die: Paradise Edition—the extended re-release of her debut that contained some of her best music. While “Love” was as stirring and conventionally romantic as Lana is capable of getting, this song (like “Without You,” “Lucky Ones,” and “American”) is about a more ominous kind of passion. It’s not just love vs. loveless, it’s about life vs. death.
Lana’s new album, also titled Lust for Life, will be released later this year.