Pages tagged “lou reed”

A live opus, twenty-five years in the making

The 1970s saw the heyday of the rock opera, with musical opuses by Genesis, Queen and Meat Loaf all vying to out-bombast The Who’s seminal Tommy and Quadrophenia and Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber's Jesus Christ Superstar. Lou Reed's contribution to the genre came in 1973 with Berlin, his psychodrama about a drug-addicted couple that mixed the titular German capital’s art-born-of-political-strife with an LES aesthetic—and nearly relegated Reed's post-Velvet Underground solo career to one-hit-wonder status.

In Lou Reed’s New York, the people worth knowing—the ones with nobility—are jazz arrangers, maverick saxophonists, conceptual artists. Characters. These days, that’s pretty much who to mention if you don’t want the 66-year-old 
songwriter to hang up. Topics politely suggested as verboten by his publicist: his personal life, the ’60s, bisexuality.

Trawling Amazon’s used CD listings, Paste noticed a startling trend. If the comments sections are to be trusted, incredible numbers of music fans are buying albums, playing them exactly one time, and then whisking them off to the land of eCommerce. To get to the bottom of this phenomenon, we embarked on a rigorous series of fake interviews with these hasty sellers, to find out why a certain album graced their CD player exactly once, and not a moment more.

The Age of Disco gave us a lot of cultural touchstones, not the strangest of which was the Cartier Love bracelet. Fashioned after chastity belts of yore, the bracelet came with a tiny screwdriver and actually had to be bolted around the wearer's wrist in a permanent fashion, presumably by the giver. Add to the weird factor that it was way on the pricey side, as well as the fact that you were strictly forbidden (by Cartier) from buying one for yourself (it had to be from your lover, being the Love bracelet), and you've got yourself the Decadent Years' hottest commodity.

Perhaps it's acquired a few extra layers of crustiness over the years, but there's little doubt that Lou Reed's sweet, sensual voice has always had the power to stand on its own. When the man talks, it's the sound of pure New York City cool seeping out through his lips.

"I have a B.A. in dope—and a Ph.D. in soul," said Velvet Underground alum Lou Reed during his keynote address at SXSW on Thursday morning. But that's not all he said. Another gem: “Punk in the old days meant a coward. I meant punk—aggressive steel street action. That’s what I meant, and there they were, like a lot of these bands last night. All that young guy stuff? That’s punk. No one did that, and now it exists, and it will forever, because where else are we going to put it? It’s there or jail.”

If you want to catch a bit of the wit (or, you know, music) emanating from Mr. Reed, he'll be touring the world over the next few months. Pitchfork reports that the European leg of the tour will feature a 30-piece band, a children's choir and a set designed by The Diving Bell and the Butterfly director Julian Schnabel.

Take a tour on the wild side:

March
18 - Brooklyn, N.Y. @ St. Ann's Warehouse

April
20 - Northampton, Mass. @ Calvin Theater
25 - Norfolk, Va. @ The NorVA
26 - Richmond, Va. @ The National
28 - Durham, N.C. @ Carolina Theatre
29 - Asheville, N.C. @ Orange Peel
30 - Knoxville, Tenn. @ Tennessee Theatre

June
23 - Cork, Ireland @ Cork Marquee
24 - Belfast, Northern Ireland @ Belfast Waterfront
25 - Edinburgh, Scotland @ Edinburgh Playhouse
26 - Nottingham, England @ Royal Centre
29 - Paris, France @ Salle Pleyel
30 - London, England @ Royal Albert Hall

July
3 - Munich, Germany @ Munich Philharmonie
4 - Hamburg, Germany @ CCH Congress Centrum
7 - Copenhagen, Denmark @ Copenhagen Opera House
9 - Stockholm, Sweden @ Annexet
11 - Tallinn, Estonia @ Saku Suurhall
12 - Riga, Latvia @ Arena Riga
14 - Warsaw, Poland @ Sala Kongresowa
16 - Brussels, Belgium @ Bozar
19 - Lisbon, Portugal @ Campo Pequeno
20 - Loule, Portugal @ Monumento Duarte Pacheco
21 - Malaga, Spain @ Terral
22 - Madrid, Spain @ Mardid Conde Duque
25 - Girona, Spain @ Portaferrada Festival
26 - Benidorm, Spain @ The Bullring

Related links:
LouReed.com
Paste review: Lou Reed - Animal Serenade
Paste news: Lou Reed composes new songs for Nanking

Got news tips for Paste? E-mail news@pastemagazine.com.

Regardless of anyone’s stance on the Iraq war, the fact remains that there has been U.S. military presence in the country for nearly five years. With that comes ramifications. St. Ann’s Warehouse in Brooklyn and a host of artists will present “Speak Up! A Benefit Concert for Peace in Iraq & Justice at Home.” The event will take place on March 18, the eve of the fifth anniversary of the war.

Artists set to perform include Laurie Anderson, Antony, Blonde Redhead, David Byrne, Norah Jones, MEN, Moby, Lou Reed, Damien Rice and Scissor Sisters, to name a few. The evening will include a presentation from Timothy Greenfield-Sanders, whose photography series “Alive Day Memories” captures 13 different soldiers
who were injured in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. The program will also include a variety of speakers on the topic.

Tickets are on sale now. Reserved VIP seats cost $125 and general admission are $65. Proceeds will benefit United for Peace and Justice and Iraq Veterans Against the War.

Thanks to Brooklyn Vegan for the tip!

Related links:
St. Anne’s Warehouse site for Speak Up!
Greenfield-Sanders.com

Got news tips for Paste? E-mail news@pastemagazine.com.

Ever since the glory days of the Velvet Underground, Lou Reed's been out doing his own thing, whether tonal or otherwise. Now, in a Hova-esque move, Reed is taking inspiration from a new piece of cinema in crafting fresh material.

The film in question is Nanking, a portrayal of the brutal Japanese invasion of the Chinese city during World War II. Reed composed and recorded two songs derived from the events in the film - "Gravity" and "Safety Zone." Both songs are streaming at Lou Reed's website.

Not surprisingly, the lyrical material is quite dark, with images of "war" and "bayonets" racing through both songs. "Gravity" pounds away mercilessly, while "Safety Zone" (based on the demilitarized area in Nanking that saved thousands of lives) offers a more hopeful, acoustic sound.

The film Nanking opens Dec. 12 in New York, with a national release to follow in January. Look for a review in the next issue of Paste.

Related links:
Lou Reed on MySpace
NankingTheFilm.com
YouTube: Lou Reed - "Walk on the Wild Side" live

Got news tips for Paste? Email news@pastemagazine.com.

'Twas art what extended a silkscreened banana of good fortune to the Velvet Underground in its early days, turning the obscure group into a slightly less obscure group with a German model and solid record deal. And lately, when he's not recording tracks with the Killers or appearing on the covers of Kung Fu magazines, ex-Velvets-frontman Lou Reed continues to fancy a foray into the visual medium.

Tonight, Reed and record producer Tony Visconti will appear on the new Gallery HD program, Aperture, joining conceptual videographer and photographer Justin Guariglia in his New York City studio - only after hanging out with a Shaolin Monk on the roof, mind you. According to Aperture, "A student of China in the mid '90s, Guariglia took an interest in Taoist and Buddhist philosophies, spending months visiting Buddhist mountains, holy sites, and temples throughout China – from the Silk Road grottoes to the Shaolin Temple . He would remain in Asia for nearly a decade, traveling extensively through nearly sixteen countries, while working on documentary projects throughout the region."

Meanwhile, at Mark Seliger's 401 Projects in New York, Reed's own photography is on display next to pieces from a motley crew of other musicians like Patti Smith, Jakob Dylan, John Mayer, Michael Stipe and Bryan Adams. Everyone's work can be previewed here, accompanied by an audio interview. The exhibit continues through October 7.

Related links:
LouReed.org
Gallery HD on Voom.TV

Got news tips for Paste? Email news@pastemagazine.com.

With the recent closings of CBGB's and The Bottom Line, perhaps Michael Dorf, former CEO of New York City’s Knitting Factory, finally realizes what a special place he founded back in 1987. On March 1, Dorf will celebrate the 20th anniversary of his beloved “Old Knit” with a benefit concert for The Stone, a non-profit performance space in Manhattan’s Lower East Side.

The evening marks the seminal club’s survival with performances by a host of musicians who got their start at the at the venue, including Lou Reed, Laurie Anderson, John Zorn and Lee Ranaldo, among others. Tickets for the March 1st concert at New York City’s Town Hall are on sale now via Ticketmaster and range from $25 to $52.

Related Links:
Lou Reed’s homepage
The Stone's homepage

Almost 40 years removed from the start of his tumultuous career, Lou Reed has garnered the potentially dubious distinction of “living rock legend.” While the tag implies membership in a glamorous fraternity of distinguished artists, it can just as easily reference an elephant graveyard containing the barely-animated remains of artists either receding from the public eye into relative obscurity, soldiering on despite laughably declining vocal prowess, or in some way compromising themselves in a desperate groping attempt to needlessly pad both résumé and bank account (say it ain’t so, Bob). But while there’s something to be said for knowing when to walk away, you have to begrudgingly admire artists who seem intent on having their death rattle amplified through a sweaty microphone.

With his latest release, Animal Serenade, Reed puts to tape a live performance, recorded at Los Angeles’ Wiltern Theater on his 2003 tour. The two-hour show is presented in its entirety on this double-disc set. If it sounds long, that’s because it is. Painfully so. Reed drags many of the songs kicking and screaming past the 10-minute mark and, while it’s possible for this approach to strike the right chord with a live audience, on an album it often redefines the word “tedious.”

Fans of the bedraggled Velvet Underground-era Lou Reed beware: Animal Serenade contains very few moments of the unsettling junkie rock that made Reed such a mesmerizing talent. In fact, his contemporary persona establishes him as an icon of the over-the-counter culture more than anything else. His performance here relies far too heavily on the latter half of the album’s title and not nearly enough on the former, trotting out a more subdued, kinder, gentler Lou. He even performs the Velvet Underground song “Heroin” (arguably one of the most enduring and excruciatingly honest drug odes ever written) sans the manic thumping drum, effectively removing the heart of the song on every metaphorical level imaginable.

In addition to “Heroin,” several other tunes from Reed’s early career are represented here and, for the most part, they’re too slick and polished to recreate the power they once possessed. He has surrounded himself with such an incredibly talented supporting cast that the grittiness of his voice and lyrics all but clash with his band’s impeccable musicianship. In another counterproductive move, Reed turns over many of his vocal responsibilities to the vibrato-prone Antony (yes, just Antony—like Prince or Madonna), eliciting mixed results. In “Candy Says,” the delivery of Reed’s occasional “pinch hitter” evokes shuddering thoughts of Peter Cetera sitting on a washing machine (especially in contrast to Reed’s rough-and-tumble vocal approach), contributing even more to the unsettling notion that Antony has been hired by Reed himself in an attempt to dress up a few of the songs. Unfortunately, what you get is a made-for-VH-1 movie where the character of Lou Reed is grossly miscast as Five For Fighting’s John Ondrasik channeling Aaron Neville.

Even with its occasional faltering, Animal Serenade isn’t an outright failure by any means. Reed’s oddly emotive voice works on “The Bed” and “Set the Twilight Reeling,” and his biting, coarse lyrics hit as hard as ever on “Small Town” and “Dirty Blvd.” The album triumphs when Reed is most prominently featured, warts displayed unabashedly. While these moments of revelation are somewhat scattered and often intruded upon, there are enough of them to keep Lou Reed enthusiasts happy. The best Lou is the fearless Lou who isn’t afraid to put his voice and words (and neck) out there, dredging up mental images of a filthy New York City underground. Unfortunately, Animal Serenade still comes across as a less confident Lou Reed, one who’s forgotten what it was that called us to venture into the gutters with him all those years ago.

Almost 40 years removed from the start of his tumultuous career, Lou Reed has garnered the potentially dubious distinction of “living rock legend.” While the tag implies membership in a glamorous fraternity of distinguished artists, it can just as easily reference an elephant graveyard containing the barely-animated remains of artists either receding from the public eye into relative obscurity, soldiering on despite laughably declining vocal prowess, or in some way compromising themselves in a desperate groping attempt to needlessly pad both résumé and bank account (say it ain’t so, Bob). But while there’s something to be said for knowing when to walk away, you have to begrudgingly admire artists who seem intent on having their death rattle amplified through a sweaty microphone.

With his latest release, Animal Serenade, Reed puts to tape a live performance, recorded at Los Angeles’ Wiltern Theater on his 2003 tour. The two-hour show is presented in its entirety on this double-disc set. If it sounds long, that’s because it is. Painfully so. Reed drags many of the songs kicking and screaming past the 10-minute mark and, while it’s possible for this approach to strike the right chord with a live audience, on an album it often redefines the word “tedious.”

Fans of the bedraggled Velvet Underground-era Lou Reed beware: Animal Serenade contains very few moments of the unsettling junkie rock that made Reed such a mesmerizing talent. In fact, his contemporary persona establishes him as an icon of the over-the-counter culture more than anything else. His performance here relies far too heavily on the latter half of the album’s title and not nearly enough on the former, trotting out a more subdued, kinder, gentler Lou. He even performs the Velvet Underground song “Heroin” (arguably one of the most enduring and excruciatingly honest drug odes ever written) sans the manic thumping drum, effectively removing the heart of the song on every metaphorical level imaginable.

In addition to “Heroin,” several other tunes from Reed’s early career are represented here and, for the most part, they’re too slick and polished to recreate the power they once possessed. He has surrounded himself with such an incredibly talented supporting cast that the grittiness of his voice and lyrics all but clash with his band’s impeccable musicianship. In another counterproductive move, Reed turns over many of his vocal responsibilities to the vibrato-prone Antony (yes, just Antony—like Prince or Madonna), eliciting mixed results. In “Candy Says,” the delivery of Reed’s occasional “pinch hitter” evokes shuddering thoughts of Peter Cetera sitting on a washing machine (especially in contrast to Reed’s rough-and-tumble vocal approach), contributing even more to the unsettling notion that Antony has been hired by Reed himself in an attempt to dress up a few of the songs. Unfortunately, what you get is a made-for-VH-1 movie where the character of Lou Reed is grossly miscast as Five For Fighting’s John Ondrasik channeling Aaron Neville.

Even with its occasional faltering, Animal Serenade isn’t an outright failure by any means. Reed’s oddly emotive voice works on “The Bed” and “Set the Twilight Reeling,” and his biting, coarse lyrics hit as hard as ever on “Small Town” and “Dirty Blvd.” The album triumphs when Reed is most prominently featured, warts displayed unabashedly. While these moments of revelation are somewhat scattered and often intruded upon, there are enough of them to keep Lou Reed enthusiasts happy. The best Lou is the fearless Lou who isn’t afraid to put his voice and words (and neck) out there, dredging up mental images of a filthy New York City underground. Unfortunately, Animal Serenade still comes across as a less confident Lou Reed, one who’s forgotten what it was that called us to venture into the gutters with him all those years ago.