For Robert, Music Isn't Something You Listen To. It's Something You Live.
From an album cover that feels like a film still to a Lana Del Rey record he'll carry forever, Robert's picks reflect a listener for whom music has always been something felt, not just heard.
Robert (@robertsvinyls) moves through the April 2 to 4 prompts like someone who has been listening with his whole self since he was four years old. The picks go deep in every direction: a cover that tells you everything before you press play, a track that makes your body move before your mind catches up, and an album he doesn't just know front to back but carries inside him.
All three prompts suit someone who never stays on the surface. One asks which album cover feels like a scene from a film, the kind of cover you stare at for a few seconds and already know what you're in for. Another goes after the track that makes you want to dance, and Robert's answer is less about the choreography and more about what happens when a song gets inside you and makes you feel free. The last one asks which album you know front to back. For Robert that's not just an album he knows, but one he identifies with so completely it stopped being Lana's a long time ago.
There's something devotional about the way Robert listens. He started singing in church at four. He spent rainy October afternoons with Blue Banisters on repeat. He chose to study music because nothing else felt close enough. None of this is casual. Whether it's the emotional weight of an underwater album cover, the physical liberation of Rush, or an album so personal it stopped feeling like someone else's, Robert doesn't just listen. He goes all the way in and stays there.
Which album cover feels like a scene from a film?
Submarine is not an album that you just listen to… you feel it. As if you were suddenly floating inside your own mind while also slowly sinking. If you stay on the surface, it sounds good, but if you go deeper, you begin to feel the real emotional weight. Submarine explores themes like heartbreak, loneliness, identity, and nostalgia. It’s a journey of someone who loved deeply, got lost in a relationship, and is trying to get out but is still tied. It’s an album that heals but can also make you relapse emotionally.
To understand its many layers, like a submarine, you need to go really deep. From the album’s soft sounds, that make you feel like being somewhere deep underwater, to the lyrics that pull you in while María reflects on different emotional states that make you explore a diversity of sensations.
Connecting with this album is something very intimate. An act that’s only possible if you’ve ever loved someone more than you’ve loved yourself, or if you’ve stayed even when you knew you shouldn’t have… or even if you’re still trapped in the memories of what it once was. It’s a dark, almost nocturnal album, that feels like going on a journey to the bottom of the ocean, where the light slowly disappears.
The album is impactful in its honesty, and when listening to the album you can perfectly associate the cover with its music and lyrics. The cover reflects hitting rock bottom, but it’s not dramatic. It’s silent, almost calming and somewhat peaceful. Like being submerged in a place where there is no way to scream… it’s just an empty space that fosters introspection. Lyrics like “I wonder what it’s like to be alone” from Echo or “Dancing inside of my mind” from Real Life really make you feel the album for what it is.
In my personal opinion, there is no album that reflects its music in its cover as well as Submarine does. If you really want to dive into this album, my highlights are “Paranoia,” “Echo,” and “Sienna.
What’s a track that makes you want to dance?
When you’re part of a community in which everyone is able to put aside 2 minutes and 36 seconds, you just dance or vibe to this song in unison… it’s the kind of freedom that I think everyone should experience at least once in their life.
Rush, simply put, is a cultural expression of the queer community, and there’s nothing more that’s needed to be said. The sexual tension and the presence of queer freedom give it an even stronger edge. It is a song that carries adrenaline within itself. Its rhythm, mixed with the sense of safety within a community that it creates, make you just want to dance, feel free, and be purest yourself.
The dance pop rhythms and catchy beats make you feel the song from the very first second to the last. Troye knew what he was doing when he was working on this track. The adrenaline rush this song can make you feel is real. If you don’t believe me, play it at full volume and try to do nothing… it’s almost impossible to listen to without feeling your body start to move.
The word “rush” can refer to many things, therefore this song can have just as many meanings as listeners. The song holds moments that I consider to be iconic, such as “So good when we slow gravity, so good” or “You got my heartbeat racing, my body blazing.” At the end of the day, you decide how to experience “Rush,” but one thing is certain, we all dance to the same beat, feeling the rush.
Which album do you know front to back?
At the time of release, I had known Lana Del Rey for several years, but it wasn’t until this album was released, that I truly immersed myself in her music. Blue Banisters came to me when everything in my life mirrored its songs and lyrics. An extremely personal album to Lana, and to me as well, became not only one of my most played albums of all time, but it is the one that made me fall in love with who is now my favorite artist, Lana Del Rey.
This album and I have been together through so many occasions, but what I love to remember the most are the rainy afternoons sitting in the back seat of a car, looking out the window and listening to this album peacefully out in the countryside. I remember the Blue Banisters era so well, and how many people didn’t believe in the project. Now, almost five years after its release, many have come to understand and appreciate this album much more.
To me, it is not just an album, it’s a story, and a journey that only those who truly understand it, can experience. It’s an album that I know from the very first note to the last one because it has been by my side for so long. I love this album, and I dare to say that it’s one of my favorite albums of all time… I consider every song to be perfect. I know them all, and each one holds a special place within me. My favorite song, and the one I most like to recommend to others, is “Sweet Carolina.” A song so soft, yet so beautiful and special that it makes you feel at peace.
Lana Del Rey has reached many people through her music but I believe Blue Banisters’ deep lyrics let you understand just how intimate it is for Lana, and how special it is to listen to and appreciate. Lyrics like “I wish you could see to my soul through this black bathing suit” and “You name your babe Lilac Heaven after your iPhone 11” make you grow attached to this album because of how deep and personal it can be, but also because of the stories it tells.
Robert's picks don't stay in one place. One pulls you underwater. One gets you on your feet. One takes you to a rainy afternoon in the back seat of a car, looking out. What connects them is someone who has never once listened from a safe distance.
A music student and vinyl collector who chose to study what he couldn't live without. Started singing in church at four. Still going.
