Is it really better than ‘Norman fucking Rockwell!’?
Yesterday, Blue Banisters came out and I’ve seen a lot of people talk about how this album is probably better than Norman fucking Rockwell!.

As someone who loves NFR to death, there’s no way I’m going to just casually listen to this album if it’s really that good.
So I thought, why not listen to this album alone in bed, crying, rambling to myself & write a little review for the blog? And that, folks, is the reason why you’re here.
Am I emotionally ready for this? Maybe not. NFR wrecked me. But I also can’t wait to dive in to this. I’ll just grab the Kleenex and let’s do this. π€§
Text Book
Oh gosh, Lana’s lyricisim is immaculate. Thirty seconds in and I was already making the face you do when you’re about to cry. You know how much you understand the hurt of someone else’s story through a song? I felt that in this track. I know that I’ll love this song the more I listen to it. We’re certainly off to a really great and heart-shattering start!
Blue Banisters
This is not the first time I’ve listened to this song but this is the first time that I’ve really listened to it. I already know that this is going to be one of my favorite songs of Lana. The storytelling – argh – it’s so beautiful. I never associated banisters to anything sad nor have I ever thought that banisters could be such a sad, poetic masterpiece. This song is truly astounding and is affecting me in a way that is both really painful and satisfying.
Arcadia
This has got to be my favorite. This is the kind of the song that when it plays, I stop whatever it is that I’m doing and I just stare out the window and appreciate every single word. The melody – I feel like it touched a soft spot in my heart. The moment I heard the first line, I knew this was gonna be my favorite. I haven’t listened to the rest of the album yet, but there’s no way I cannot call this song my favorite. I’m gonna cry – this song is divine.
Interlude – The Trio
Okayβ¦ This is the first time I’ve ever encountered an interlude in an album. I had to look up what it’s for. Apparently, it’s the little song placed between the βrealβ songs on an album, the short morsels of sound that bridge the gap from one theme or mood to the next (Oracle).
Black Bathing Suit
Contrary to what I thought that I’m gonna be crying during the fifth song, I actually laughed out loud. The first verse is so frigging relatable. We never really have an original thought, huh? It’s like she turned my own thoughts into the first verse of this song. The melody is very familiar, too. It’s so much like the songs she had made before. However, the lyrics though is very now. It has this whole pandemic phrases in it. This is definitely one of those songs that encapsulates what our thoughts were like during the pandemic, especially on the first verse. The rest of the song, impossible not liking because it’s just like Lana’s old songs.
If You Lie Down with Me
Another one of my favorites from this album! It’s just so easy to listen to. I can picture myself listening to this song a lot of time because this is exactly the vibe of the songs I always listen to. This would also be the first songs in this album that I might do a cover of. I LOVE THIS.
Beautiful
This song feels like it came out of NFR. I have to be honest, this album is getting better and better. It’s just amusing how Lana couldn’t make a bad album or even a bad song, isn’t it? I’m already halfway through the album and I’ve never disliked any song that I heard.
Violets for Roses
Okay, I have a new favorite. This song feels like a breath of fresh air. The words I can associate with this song would be freedom, self-worth, and peace. This song is perfect for those people who finally got out of a toxic and emotionally abusive relationship whom now are realizing how so much more of a person they are than what their exes made them believe. Being one of those people, this song fills me with so much excitement and happiness.
Dealer
This song has a totally different vibe from the other tracks. It has wrath and anguish in it. A lot of screaming too. This is not really my usual cup of tea but I also can’t say that I hate it. I may have a mood that I’d want to vibe to this song. Maybe when I’m really mad at someone. You’ll surely want to listen to this when you despise someone so much. Which I hope does not occur to you very often lol.
Thunder
The quick silences on the first chorus has me gripping. I love love the buildup to the second verse. The song came together with added accompaniments and backing vocals as the song ended. I love that it just kept adding elements up to the very end and it ended powerfully in a way I definitely didn’t anticipate in the beginning of the song. Definitely one of my favorites too.
Wildflower Wildfire
I love the honesty and simplicity of this track. It’s a typical Lana song – honest, melodious, and majestic. The beat drop on the last chorus is a really good component of the song. It added β¨spiceβ¨ to it. I love songs that you feel like you can listen to anytime. This song is definitely one of them.
Nectar of the Gods
I love the acoustic guitar – I did not expect that! The moment I heard the intro, I already knew that this is gonna be a good one. It’s very calming, soft, and sweet. The feeling that this song makes me feel is my favorite kind of feeling. I hope this track doesn’t get underrated because I definitely think it’s one of the best ones from this album.
Living Legend
I don’t know what it is about Lana’s voice being accompanied by an acoustic guitar that makes me feel things I can’t explain. This is yet another great song for casual listening. God knows how many times I’m going to listen to this song. Probably late at night while contemplating or reminiscing. Or weeping mostly.
Cherry Blossom
I started listening to Lana Del Rey when I was 17 and this was actually one of her first songs that I have heard. I even had it downloaded on my YouTube account before & I had no idea it was unreleased. I loved it before & I still love it just as much today. I’ve always pictured myself singing this to my daughter someday. This is such a precious, timeless lullaby.
Sweet Carolina
What a great way to end an album! It’s almost like Lana’s singing you to sleep. This has such a sweet melody that makes you sleepy because of how comforting it sounds. I’m a really big fan of the second verse – I had a good laugh at how clever Lana was in her rhyming. This is far and away the perfect song to conclude this album.
Surprisingly, I didn’t cry. It actually made me feel good, especially the song Violets for Roses. NFR is filled with heartbreaking lyrics and really romantic ones that are so good it makes you want to bawl so hard. But in this album, it’s different. I actually felt a lot of different emotions depending on the songs I was listening to. I laughed, *almost* cried, felt at peace, felt the opposite of peace in Dealer, but in general, I loved every song with every beat of my heart. I mean, it’s Lana, how could I not love it? I love everything about her music.
But now, back to the big question: Is Blue Banisters really better than Norman fucking Rockwell!?
Final Verdict

I don’t think that Blue Banisters should be compared to Norman fucking Rockwell altogether. They are both exceptional albums by a phenomenal artist. They have different feel and flavor. NFR is an outstanding album on its own. So is Blue Banisters in its own beautiful way.
At the end of the day, I am so over the moon that Lana has given us a set of new songs we could devour and cry our hearts to. I still personally think that NFR is her best album, although I have a lot of tracks on this album that I like better than some of the tracks on NFR. Maybe I like NFR better because it’s more coherent, unlike on this album that some tracks have different vibe than the others. Although I could listen to this album with a very slim chance of skipping. I’ll definitely listen to this some more and I don’t know how I’ll feel about it in months or years. One things for sure, I’ll love Blue Banisters just like how I love all my favorite albums.