Lana Del Rey made what should have been an ill-advised move this week, releasing a cover of one of the most heartbreaking songs ever put to tape: Leonard Cohen’s “Chelsea Hotel No. 2.” She mostly stays true to Cohen’s meandering original, replicating the slowly majestic guitar and half-sung, half-muttered vocals, but adds huge, cavernous reverb to the proceedings. It doesn’t show us anything new about the song (how could it, really?), and I could have done without the echo, but it sure sounds nice as hell. This is exactly the kind of thing Rey’s smoky mezzo soprano is perfect for. There’s hope yet!
