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Ever since the release of her major-label debut Born To Die in 2012, Lana Del Rey has commanded the attention of critics and fans alike from around the world. The singer’s latest album Lust For Life has been hotly anticipated for months, and after several delays, leaks and a reshuffled track list, it has finally arrived.

Del Rey has said that Lust For Life is dedicated to her fans, and the tone of the album is noticeably more optimistic than her previous releases. Sonically, Lust For Life is an evolution for Del Rey, offering a mix of orchestral, hip-hop and acoustic-based songs that address the themes of anxiety, isolation and love. Lust For Life also marks the first time Del Rey has featured other artists on one of her own albums, an interesting development that shows she is willing to explore new directions with her musical peers.

The album opens with “Love”, a pure and unadulterated celebration of youthful romance. It’s apparent from the opening line “Look at you kids with your vintage music” that she is singing directly to her loyal and adoring fans. Del Rey’s voice soars through the chorus, demonstrating impressive range and control. The title track of the album, “Lust For Life”, expresses a similar sentiment. The song features one of Del Rey’s favourite artists, The Weeknd, and together they are a formidable duo. Their effortless chemistry and the call-and-response style chorus make this the catchiest track on the album.

“13 Beaches” was written last summer, when Lana had to go to thirteen different beaches before finding one where the paparazzi wouldn’t bother her. She previously touched on her struggle to find privacy in the video for “High By The Beach”, where she quite literally shot down her paparazzi pursuers. The song opens with a stunning violin instrumental, eventually progressing to a synthesizer-driven chorus. Her vocals are raw and emotive, and her feelings of intense isolation are heartbreakingly tangible. “Cherry” feels like the older sibling to her famously explicit song “Cola”, offering a glimpse of Del Rey’s lesser-seen flirtatious side. She sings about the intense and erotic effect her lover has on her and how he makes her “fall to pieces” when they’re together. The sexually-charged song is interspersed with mutterings of “bitch” and “fuck”, giving it a distinctly NSFW vibe. “Cherry” is followed by “White Mustang”, Lust For Life’s shortest track that manages to feature one of the album’s most immediately accessible and rewarding hooks.

The album takes a sonic detour with “Summer Bummer” and “Groupie Love”, where Lana returns to her love of hip-hop, this time with the help of A$AP Rocky and Playboi Carti. “Summer Bummer” is a moody and beats-heavy track, where Lana’s subdued vocal performance perfectly compliments Rocky’s verses and Carti’s ad-libs. “Groupie Love” is a somewhat more traditional Del Rey song, where Lana expresses her attraction to other musicians and teases the object of her affection with a flirtatiously inviting chorus.

Every Lana Del Rey album needs at least one tragic romance and, on “In My Feelings”, Lana laments falling for another loser (speculated to be rapper G-Eazy). She describes how her lover managed to get inside her head and bring her down, leaving her feeling used and worthless. The song also features a sharper edge, as Lana has no qualms with splitting up from this lowlife. “Who’s tougher than this bitch? Who’s free-er than me? You wanna make the switch, be my guest baby, I’m feeling all my fucking feelings.”

The collaborations with Stevie Nicks and Sean Ono Lennon are two of the stand-out tracks from Lust For Life. Del Rey’s and Nicks’ voices blend wonderfully on “Beautiful People Beautiful Problems”, where the two women sing about the trials and tribulations of life. The song also contains a wry reference to the original hit that propelled Del Rey to stardom: “’It’s hard to live, it’s more than just a video game.” Her collaboration with Lennon is equally well-matched. “Tomorrow Never Came” is a poignant song about a young romance that never came to fruition. The track is sweet and heartfelt, providing one of the purest moments on the record.

Lust For Life provides a clear commentary on the political turmoil currently unfolding in the US. Del Rey acknowledges the anxiety and uncertainty shared by many following the election of Donald Trump as President, but also shares her optimistic vision for the future. It’s unheard of for a pop star to sing about the tensions between North Korea and the US, but that’s exactly what Lana ponders on “Coachella – Woodstock In My Mind”. She echoes the concerns felt by most Americans on “When The World Was At War We Kept Dancing”: “We just want the fucking truth…is it the end of an era? Is it the end of America?” Following in a similar vein, “Heroin” addresses an overwhelming sense of anxiety and uncertainty for the singer, as well as the need for reassurance. The track is fairly mellow until it reaches the bridge, where Del Rey’s vocals suddenly become fiery, imbued with a burning passion.

Del Rey answers her own questions and concerns with “Change”, a piano-driven ballad about remaining resilient and faithful to your beliefs. On “God Bless America And All The Beautiful Women In It”, Lana calls on her fellow women to come together and “stand proud and strong” to overcome this dark time. This is the first time we’ve ever seen Lana Del Rey become political in her music, and though it is a brand new subject for her, she’s succeeded in infusing it with her own style.

The album closes out with “Get Free”, an upbeat and catchy track where Del Rey sings about her desire to reach a point of complete happiness, ending Lust For Life on a positive note.

Lust For Life is easily Lana Del Rey’s most complex record to date. Unlike her previous albums, which have been prone to internalisation and a focus on her own issues, Del Rey seems to have turned her attention to the world around her on Lust For Life. The varied production and guest appearances have made her newest album her most modern so far. The political context of her songs couldn’t be any more current. It would be interesting to hear, having been cut from the record at the last minute, what impact songs like “Yosemite” or “Roses Bloom For You” would have made to the album, but at 16-tracks long Lust For Life is the biggest standard edition release from Del Rey so far. Once again, she has demonstrated her songwriting prowess by creating another cohesive and thought-provoking album. One can only hope that the rising tensions around the globe will have calmed down by Del Rey’s next record. Even if they don’t, we can be sure Lana will find a way to make the world still sound beautiful.

Lust For Life is now available for streaming on Spotify and Apple Music.