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The Velvet Underground
(4 reviews sent in so far)

The Velvet Underground & Nico
by Darius Henry
December 15, 2007
Rating: 10.0

Velvet Underground & Nico is one of the most influential albums of all time. Think about it this way. Would we have alternative music without this album? Would we have Punk music without this album? Would David Bowie even exist without this album? That’s why I feel that this is the very first Alternative album. And it was released in 1967, the same years as Sgt. Peppers, The Doors, & Are You Experienced? All of those albums are great. But if I had to choose the best album of that year, it has to be Velvet Underground & Nico.

This album starts off with “Sunday Morning.” Beautiful music with Celesta by John Cale. The lyrics, however, deal with what happens when the drug effect wears off. It’s a perfect opener. The next song, “I’m Waiting for The Man” is song a fan favorite from the album about his dealer. Though I disagree it’s their best, it’s still a great song by them. I like how Lou Reed sang in this song. “Femme Fatale” is the first of her three songs that is sung by Nico. And it’s a good song about a person falling for a prostitute. “Venus in Furs” is a very great song. Cool song about “S&M” and some other stuff. Great viola playing by Joe Cale. “Run Run Run” is a good song at best. It’s a songs about several characters either seeking or using drugs. It’s not one of my favorite, but the next song, “All Tomorrow’s Parties” certainly is. The second song that is sung by Nico, and it turns out to be my favorite from her. Great song about Andy Warhol and his factory. As a matter of fact, I guess I have to thank Andy for this fantastic album

“Heroin” is the best song not only for Velvet Underground, but it’s the best song that Lou Reed had ever written. I mean 7 minutes of greatness. Lou Reed is singing about Heroin and with John Cale on voila, this song will blow your mind. I’m that damn serious. “There’s She Goes Again” is another great song that deals with streetwalkers or prostitute if that what you wanna call it. Listen to it great 60s tune in it. “I’ll Be Your Mirror” is the last song sung by Nico on this fantastic album. Another great 60s tune in this one. “Black Angel’s Death Song” is one of those songs that sound good but you don’t get at all. I heard that this song wasn’t meant to be about anything. Oh well. I still like the viola on this one. The last song, “European Son” is the only true mistake on this fantastic album. This is the song that sounds great at first, but gets boring because it’s basically nothing but bunch of noise.

Thanks to Andy Warhol, Lou Reed, and the rest of the band, Rock music was changed forever. Again, this has to be the most influential album of all time. It’s sad that this album wasn’t getting much played by radios back in 1967. But 40 years later, this has become of cult classic. So please buy this history and you’ll see why this is one of the most influential albums of all time.

The Velvet Underground & Nico
By Sister Ray
May 23, 2004
Rating: 10.0

When former Pickwick Records contract song-writer met former Dream Syndicate member John Cale in 1965, the rumblings of a revolution could be heard. Reed, who's brutally honest, poetic writing and rock n' roll heart, was the perfect match for John Cale's avant-garde ideas, and along with lead guitarist Sterling Morrison and drummer Mo Tucker, a legend was formed. The first studio result of that legend was The Velvet Underground & Nico, which is produced by Andy Warhol and features German Chanteuse Nico. This album has placed highly on many polls of greatest albums ever, and for good reason. The album is bloody fantastic. It starts off with "Sunday Morning" (10.0), which sounds sweet and melodic, but is not of a sweet melodic nature, and it details a haunting paranoid naked truth about life. The following song "I'm Waiting for the Man" (10.0) is a classic oft-covered rock classic about a drug deal, one of Reed's best songs. The equally great "Femme Fatale" (10.0) follows, and it is succeeded by the satanic ode to S&M "Venus in Furs" (10.0) which is a masterpiece with terrific poetic lyrics and electric Viola playing by John Cale. This is followed by the cheeky but bland "Run Run Run" (7.8) which despite being repetitive, has funny as hell lyrics, and a great feedback-drenched solo. This is followed by the sinister dirge "All Tommorrow's Parties" (9.2). Then, the zenith. "Heroin" (10.0) which is in my book, the greatest song ever written, Period. It's both beautiful and harrowing. After that is a conventional but raunchy 60's rocker "There She Goes Again" (8.3), and the sweet poetry of "I'll Be Your Mirror" (10.0) and the dark poetry of "The Black Angel's Death Song" (10.0). Finally, we end of with the art-noise mess "European Son" (6.8), which is underscored by a terrific beginning, but it starts to lag later on. Despite that, this is one of the greatest albums of all time, and that is the final word. Now, listen for yourself.

To listen to some sound clips from The Velvet Underground & Nico or to buy it click on: The Velvet Underground & Nico


The Velvet Underground
By Sister Ray
October 3, 2004
Rating: 10.0

After the sheer brilliance of their debut, and the psychotic sonic terrorism of White Light/White Heat, our favorite classic alt. rock act went through drastic changes. First, founding member and violist/bassist John Cale was kicked out of the band by Lou Reed. Then, as a replacement, the Velvets inducted a Boston-bred folk-rocker by the name of Doug Yule. In short, the noisy, experimental side of the Velvet Underground is gone .. and now Reed's talent for pop-songwriting is fully revealed for the first time. And what a great record it makes.

The album starts out with a gorgeous, fragile beauty of a song, "Candy Says"(10.0). This song is one of Reed's finest songs, with beautiful, chiming, jangly guitars from Sterling Morrison and Reed, and a striking vocal turn from Yule. It is followed by my single favorite Reed song ever, "What Goes On"(10.0). It's so perfect, with everyone contributing their unique best to it. Then comes Reed's brilliant ode to kinky sex, "Some Kinda Love"(9.0), with such great lyrics which I can't help but quote "And of course you're a bore/but in that you're not charmless/cuz a bore is a straight line/that finds a wealth in division/and some kinds of love/are mistaken for vision". Genious. It is followed by two outstanding ballads, "Pale Blue Eyes" (10.0) and the very reverent and tender "Jesus"(10.0). And that's only side one.

Side two opens with the fantastic power-pop masterpiece "Beginning to see the Light"(10.0), which continues the thematic story-line of the album. After that comes the cynical, but haunting "I'm Set Free" (7.8), which is followed directly by the song which ends the conceptual part of the album, "That's the Story of my Life"(7.5). The album's only misstep comes next. It's the avant-garde narrative "The Murder Mystery"(6.9). It's an interesting and novel song, that doesn't quite work, but totally fits in the album.

Only one more track remains. This song has to be the most lovable and sweet in the VU catalogue, and it's in a great off-key vocal turn by drummer Mo Tucker. It's called "After Hours"(10.0), and it perfectly caps off a perfect album.

To listen to some sound clips from The Velvet Underground or to buy it click on: The Velvet Underground

White Light/White Heat
By Sister Ray
June 28, 2004
Rating: 10.0

When The Velvet Underground released their sophomore album in 1968, they had no clue they were gonna change the world - again. After the almost unbeatable majesty of their debut, The Velvets fired their famous manager (Andy Warhol) and their chanteuse (Nico), and went on their own. With Bob Dylan's Producer Tom Wilson, they started to go to work on their second album. The result invented what we now know as punk. The first album created Alternative Rock, but this one created punk. To some that may be a bad thing, but in the overall history of music, it's very important. The album starts off with the title cut "White Light/White Heat" (10.0) which is a bouncy, fast, distorted rocker about Heroin and Speed, and features brilliantly twisted lyrics set to 50's rock sped up. Then comes "The Gift" (6.9), which is in reality John Cale reading a short story Lou Reed wrote for 8 minutes while the band engages in a overdrive-drenched r&b jam. Then comes the haunting, harrowing, innovative "Lady Godiva's Operation" (8.3) which features Cale and Reed switching vocal jobs for different lines, over a melodic, beauty of a song, endowed with creepy, rather disturbing lyrics. Then comes the closer to side one, the shimmering "Here She Comes Now"(10.0), the sole ballad of the album. Even this song is twisted with it's dark sexual lyrics, and it's ominous but gorgeous mood. Then, comes the two-punch sonic bombast the gave breath to punk, noise, and death-metal. "I Heard Her Call My Name" (9.0) is a fantastic hook, with awesome lyrics, and the heaviest playing by a rock band up to this point. It's highlight, though, is a delightfully fractured free-jazz guitar solo from Reed, which is so distorted and messy ... it's even wackier than Hendrix. Then, comes the album's closer, and arguably the best track. The 17-minute overdriven, feedback drenched, distorted, perverted sonic bombast of Sister Ray (10.0). Yeah, this is the Parental Advisory music of it's time, with lyrics even dirtier than "The End" by the doors. Yeah, transvestism, oral sex, murder, heroin, and every other possible evil thing is left uncovered, and discussed and garbled by Reed in this track, which is ... listen for your self.

This is the most controversial title in the band's catalogue ... either you love it, or hate it with a passion. Bone-crunching seems to soft a term to describe this album, so you know what you're getting in to. Despite any pretensions you might gather, this is just a classic rock album. And I love it.

To listen to some sound clips from White Light/White Heat or to buy it click on: White Light/White Heat 

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