"The affectless tone of Lana Del Rey’s voice and the airlessness of her undateable vintage sound, combined with her lyrical and videogenic embrace of the victim role, drain her music of the vital ingredients that made rock and roll, for example, so much fun: youth, sexiness, laugh-out-loud humor, blessed impropriety. (I guess she showed some deadpan wit in going with the headsmackingly obvious “Born To Die” as her second single.) Instead, there’s the draw of necrophilia, the frisson of going deep with someone who’s surrendered her own free will. It’s not a surprise in the least that such a figure would be compelling in an era ruled by vampires and zombies. Lana Del Rey’s closest peer might be the Kristen Stewart of the Twilight movies, a heroine who’s really a sacrifice."
