A review of Lana Del Rey’s ‘First Light’ Bond theme

”For every light, there’s always a shadow” - Ian Fleming

Already at over one million views a week after its release date, Lana Del Rey’s ‘First Light’

has made a powerful gunbarrel style entrance for the 007 game. This is a major comeback

after her song ‘24’ which had been written for Spectre, but was rejected in favour of Sam

Smith’s Oscar winning ‘Writing’s on the Wall’. Despite this, at the Ivor Novello Awards she remained optimistic that she would one day be featured and she was right.

She didn't miss her shot with ‘First Light’ which David Arnold returned after 18 years to co-write. It was her “timeless” music that caught his attention, making her song unforgettable. However, Arnold said he doesn’t know what it is that makes a Bond song but the “spirit of them is the same”.

The plot of Del Rey’s ‘First Light’ matches the game’s story as she too clearly is a rogue

“bullet without a target”. Her song is an asset to the release of this game as it has supported

the promotion of it immensely. She came prepared with this as the melody from ‘Violets for

Roses’ is featured. This game tells James Bonds’ origin story which ‘First Light’ perfectly

captures with its reference to Bond being a “moth to a flame” which is a brilliant illustration of how Bond is drawn to danger from the start.

Goldfinger set the standards for the following James Bond films and features the sound

‘Goldfinger’ by Shirley Bassey which is a near impossible competition to beat. Similarly,

Sean Connery was also not the first pick for the film Goldfinger just like Lana Del Rey for

Spectre, but he is viewed as one of the most iconic Bonds of them all. Who knows, maybe

Lana will follow in his footsteps and match his legendary status.

References to the original Bond theme has been an ongoing feature in the Bond songs as

Skyfall’s piano notes perfectly captured Monty Norman’s Bond theme. Billie Eilish also

tactfully included the classic Bond opening in the second verse of ‘No Time to Die’. Lana emulates this tradition by intertwining orchestral notes into ‘First Light’ which is essential for the success of a Bond song as orchestral grandeur has often been associated with the

James Bond theme songs.

Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson have often sought songs for the Bond series that

capture the “adrenaline, tension, joy and, and anxiety” within the character. Lana

successfully achieves this with the chorus’ constant references to light and its post-chorus

which ignites tension and anxiety by questioning “Will you play?”

The first light game has begun with a bang.

Edited by daisy coombs