Born To Die - The Paradise Edition

The sexiest album of 2012 just got an upgrade. The Paradise Edition of Lana Del Rey’s debut LP, Born to Die, includes all 12 original tracks, plus the deluxe edition’s three bonus cuts. Add to this a generous nine extra songs that were previously unreleased. The opening single, “Ride,” plays like an orchestral continuation of her debut. Over lush string arrangements and ether-soaked backing vocals, Del Rey coos in her languorous tenor with a regal sleepiness—as if she tracked her vocals from a fainting couch. Even when hitting a falsetto during the closing chorus, Del Rey sounds medicated and aloof. This seeps into “Body Electric,” where she sings like a film noir starlet on her deathbed. Her intentionally demure vocal style fits the haunting cover of “Blue Velvet” like an elegantly tailored prom dress from the '50s. With an eerie period-correct mix, this arresting version of the song begs for David Lynch to direct either a prequel or sequel to his 1986 mystery film of the same name. Del Rey's weakness for bad boys extends to the sultry closer, “Burning Desire.”