Oh! Sweet Nuthin’ (Best Lyric): Error 404: Reed Not Found Had Squeeze not plastered the name “The Velvet Underground” on its album art (the lesser of the Velvet’s two phallic covers by a mile), it’d almost assuredly be lost to time. Not a single hook stands out among this collection of uninspired blues and folk instrumentals. Nondescript, vaguely pointing to bands like The Beatles (as heard extremely clearly on the McCartney-esque”Crash”) or The Beach Boys (the inspiration behind “Caroline” isn’t exactly subtle), and pushing absolutely no sonic or formal boundaries, the record is offensively forgettable. What Goes On (Mood): Squeeze is rock music from the early ’70s - that’s really all the character it has. Personnel: Doug Yule, Ian Paice (of Deep Purple) History has been kind to The Velvet Underground, and for good reason: the music of Reed, John Cale, Maureen Tucker, Sterling Morrison, Doug Yule, and sometimes Nico oozes with enough sheer creativity and artistry to fuel artists for countless more half-centuries. Only 10,000 people bought the first Velvet Underground record, the old quote commonly attributed to Brian Eno goes, but everyone who bought those 10,000 copies started a band. Yet, of course, the next half-century would see The Velvet Underground and their (nearly) flawless catalog emerge as some of the most influential music ever put to tape. Shockingly few people knew of the band, and even fewer bought their records. In 1970, affter creative power struggles, romantic drama, and four eccentric albums (each now thoroughly canonized), Reed had failed to break his little project into the mainstream. When Lou Reed left The Velvet Underground - perhaps the foundational band of underground, artsy, experimental guitar music - he moved back into his parents house on Long Island and took a gig as a typist at his father’s office. It’s exact science by way of a few beers, as we revisit late ’60s New York City and the tumultuous art-rockers The Velvet Underground. Welcome back to another edition Dissected, where we take a holistic look at a band’s discography, a director’s catalog, or some other critical pop-culture collection.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |