(Credit: Neil Krug)
Mon 9 February 2026 0:00, UK
One of the most enigmatic figures in modern pop, Lana Del Rey has never been one to give too much away, although that very rarely stops her from being at the centre of attention when it comes to the realm of American music.
It is even difficult to pin down the vocalist’s own music taste, given just how many different styles and scenes her own work has embraced over the years, but it would appear that there is at least one band she views as an utterly essential influence.
From Nina Simone to Nirvana, Del Rey has always drawn from a particular broad range of influences, which is perhaps why her sound has often been so impressively unpinnable. Her upcoming project, Stove, for instanc,e is set to expand the musical universe of the New York-born songwriter into the field of country music, while previous collaborations with the likes of Miles Kane have often dragged her into the indie realm.
Audiences got a particularly unexpected insight into that ever-expanding, ever-unpinnable selection of influences on her Norman Fucking Rockwell! album back in 2019, for which she unveiled a cover version of ‘Doin’ Time’ by the archetypal California band, Sublime.
On the face of it, it is hard to draw many parallels between the ska-infused sound of the Long Beach band with the cinematic output of Lana Del Rey. In fact, potentially the only link between the two artists prior to the release of that cover was just how indebted both were to their West Coast surroundings – something which neither artist has ever made any attempt to disguise.
“I did that song because the label I’m signed to [Interscope] is producing the documentary about Sublime’s life story,” Del Rey explained of the cover during a 2019 appearance on KROQ’s The Kevin and Bean Show. “So, they asked a bunch of people to cover different songs.” For the performer, though, the cover was of far greater importance than a mere contractual obligation.
Seemingly, in fact, the idea of covering a Sublime song as utterly essential and beloved as ‘Doin’ Time’ filled Del Rey with a certain degree of self-doubt. “I, you know, obviously said yes and went down, but I definitely thought about it,” she admitted. “Just because I do love Sublime so much. It’s like probably one of the few things I don’t want to fuck up.” Adding, “I listen to a Sublime track probably everyday.”
In the end, Del Rey’s cover certainly didn’t disgrace the sacred nature of her relationship with Sublime. In fact, her distinctive voice managed to convey the degree of tragedy injected into the song by the fact that Sublime’s vocalist, Bradley Nowell, died of a heroin overdose in 1996, in between the recording and the release of the track.
Not only did her version pay stunning tribute to Nowell, and her enduring adoration for Sublime on the whole, but it also added an entirely new sonic dimension to that instantly beloved 2019 album, yet again showcasing the extent of Del Rey’s genre-spanning talents.
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