Lana Del Rey – “Black Beauty”
Remember Lana Del Rey? Hard to believe it’s been a little more than two years now since the former Lizzie Grant first emerged oh-so-innocuously with “Video Games.” Sometimes, it seems like only yesterday. Others, it seems like she’s been an inescapable presence for generations. But La Lana is still basically a rookie; she hasn’t even released her second album yet! “Black Beauty” is one of the tracks that will allegedly appear on that second album, and today, a demo (a rather polished-sounding demo, incidentally) of the song has made its way to the web. Presumably named after the timeless children’s novel, the song is sultry, ethereal pop not too far removed from “Video Games,” if lacking some of the verve that made that song so great. Kinda reminds me of Sarah McLachlan, if I’m being honest. But hey, Sarah McLachlan has sold like 40 million albums, so why not? On that note, Black Beauty, the novel, has apparently sold 50 million copies. Go big, right? Give it a listen.