On “Coachella – Woodstock in My Mind,” the 3rd single from ‘Lust for Life,’ Lana Del Rey is feeling emotional, seeking that “Stairway to Heaven”…we think…

All told, Lana Del Rey released five singles ahead of her fourth proper studio album, Lust for Life.  Out of the five singles, the ‘odd man out’ is definitely “Coachella – Woodstock in My Mind.” The title alone is starkly different from “Love,” “Lust for Life,” “Groupie Love,” or “Summer Bummer.”  While the rest of the singles focus on love to an extent, “Coachella” is more socially and politically driven.  Read some of the background, and you’ll hear about Del Rey attending Coachella, dancing, being troubled by North Korea, and writing a song… Or, listen and check out the song lyrics.

What better way to commence “Coachella” than to be at Coachella, right?

“I was at Coachella / Leaning on your shoulder / Watching your husband swing in time / I guess I was in it / ‘Cause baby, for a minute / It was Woodstock in my mind.”

Who is Lana referencing? Father John Misty and his wife.  She goes beyond the Tillman family and focuses on politics:

“In the next morning / They put out the warning / Tensions were rising over country line / I turned off the music / Tried to sit and use it / All of the love that I saw that night.”

Basically, Lana is emotional, inspired, and all over the place.  On the pre-chorus, she worries about “these children…” On the following chorus, she desires a “Stairway to heaven.” Interesting… that’s about all you can say.  The second verse, successive pre-chorus, and chorus are in the same vein.  In other words, they encompass Father John Misty, the children, and that stairway to heaven.

On the outro, the listener hears once more about the stairway – actually about nine more times.

“A stairway, stairway to heaven / A stairway / Got a million things I wanna say / Like what is it all for? Will it be okay…/ Stairway, stairway to heaven / Stairway.”

Hmm.

Final Thoughts

Ultimately, Lana Del Rey has something with “Coachella.” The question is, what exactly does she want to happen? She touches upon it and references “Stairway to Heaven,” but what’s the next step to ascend to the next level? Regardless, “Coachella – Woodstock in My Mind” is worthy of additional spins by all means.

Lana Del Rey • Lust for Life • Interscope • Release: 7.21.17 

Photo Credit: Interscope