The Velvet Underground & Nico
The Velvet Underground
Nico
1967
Album Summary
The Velvet Underground & Nico is the debut album by the American rock band the Velvet Underground and the German singer Nico, released in March 1967 through Verve Records. It was recorded in 1966 while the band were featured on Andy Warhol's Exploding Plastic Inevitable tour. The album features experimental performance sensibilities and controversial lyrical topics, including drug abuse, prostitution, sadomasochism and sexual deviancy. The Velvet Underground & Nico sold poorly and was mostly ignored by contemporary critics, but later became regarded as one of the most influential albums in rock and pop music. Described as "the original art-rock record", it was a major influence on many subgenres of rock music and alternative music, including punk, garage, krautrock, post-punk, shoegaze, goth, and indie. In 1982, the English musician Brian Eno said that while the album only sold approximately 30,000 copies in its first five years, "everyone who bought one of those 30,000 copies started a band". In 2003, it ranked 13th on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the "500 Greatest Albums of All Time", and in 2006, it was inducted into the National Recording Registry by the Library of Congress.
WikipediaTruth time. I’ve never given it a full listen before bc everyone tells me I’m supposed to like it and I resent that. That being said, I really did enjoy this haha.
It’s honestly amazing how influential this album is when you look at it from the surface level. On the surface it’s just simple songs with lots of distortion over them, but when you cut into the nitty gritty of it, you find an amazing album consisting of some very risqué lyrics and themes. The songs themselves are a stunning example of how less is more in music. As demonstrated with the lack of any competently forged riffs on these albums, but more a collection of chords that form a melody and the lack of any form of cymbals in the drums.
Nico <3 Lou Reed <3 John Cale <3 Moe Tucker <3 Sterling Morrison <3. Perfect in its naivete, purity, experimentalism, tonal painting. Just perfect. The world of sound would be a lesser place without the existence of this album.
My first exposure was freshman year of college (2017). Before spotify, I would queue up songs on a Youtube playlist and play them in a random order. One day, probably listening to a Beatles or Doors song, Youtube recommended me Heroin on the right sidebar and it was one of the most astonishing things I've ever listened to. I never heard anything like it before. Initially I thought it was something modern until I discovered it was 1967 when rock was still only getting established. Now I want to remark again that this was my freshman year, so at the same time I was getting introduced to all the countercultures on campus. Due to the topics of drugs and LGBT, I would associate it with the Rocky Horror Show / steampunk culture that was so strong at my school. This atmosphere made me view music as more than just a melody to sing along to but like a gateway to an entirely different perspective on life. Through VU and Lou Reed, I saw the streets of forbidden society, the kind we turn a blind eye to thinking it's dangerous. It would take me another 3 years to finally listen to the whole album, but I'm glad I did not just go into the album blind. I knew how to go into the album. This is an avant garde album. But it is a successful avant garde album, which is very very rare. Whereas pop music was heading toward a direction of being more refined, complex, and crisp, this album went in the exact opposite direction. But I don't mean backwards to 1965 (which is what people thought when they heard this album in 1967). I mean forward by utilizing simple chords and lofi techniques in creative ways that would be picked up by garage bands and later punk. Except the Stooges, no one would was even doing anything like this for years to come. So besides the atmosphere and innovation, how does the album hold? I think almost all the songs are perfect. Sunday Morning is the best opener (holy shit I'm writing this on Sunday Morning). Love the celesta. Femme Fatale is the most classic song, almost like a Carpenters song sang through a tin can. Venus in Furs the most atmospheric song, giving me hard drug and BDSM imagery... Reminds me of A Clockwork Orange. Run Run Run is like rock n roll on speed. I love how simple it is, how it doesn't progress anywhere, but it just keeps going on with periodic distortions that give the audience anxiety. All Tomorrow Parties' sounds like a Jefferson Airplane outtake (which is a compliment I think). There is nothing in this world I love more than the intense drumming and drone in Heroin that creates the atmosphere of the craziness in taking smack. Black Angel's Death Song best shows Lou Reed's poetry and interesting production techniques. European Son is an amazing closing track, beginning with classic Chuck Berry and then diverging into an awesome display of conflicting instruments and feedback distortion.
To my mind, Lou Reed's gift as a lyricist is for literalness and plainspeak poetry. So I was surprised when I listened to this for the millionth time and realised I'd always assumed this was the one where he's more gnomic. Probably because of the album's avant-garde edges. Not so. When he says, "And I feel like I just don't know" on Heroin, he means it. What he does know is what's down back alleys, under ground and after dark. The music is just as filthy. The inclusion of gentile European tradition signifying Nico by Warhol (more likely director than producer) is a masterstroke, both elevating all this American vulgarity with her presence but also upending and debasing what she signifies.
oh my god. why why WHY how is this influential. this is the worst album ever. the voice- awful. and the background? i cant even call it music. why is there screeching. it hurt my ears. this is not good in ANY way. the first song was just boring but it got progressively terrible each song after I did not enjoy this album for even a second I don’t understand how this is influential in anyway. sorry 😞
1/1001. Got ‘Em: 1 Need ‘Em:0 Vinyl quality: fair— surface noise throughout. V5008 Canadian Mono.
A thrilling and tremendously influential experimental rock album. It's blend of pysch, proto-pop, art-punk, dream pop and on and on is what makes it such a fascinating and still wholly original sounding work. It's a difficult work but one that rewards every minute you engage with it.
It's scary how they were ahead of their time. They are immersed in the dark, oppressive atmosphere of German expressionism and French existentialism, but they also exhaled an epic libido: each song was a sexual fetish, and a cathartic sadomaso release. (9/10) FT: Heroin, Sunday Morning
Who did I wrong in this or another life to deserve this week...Patti Smith and now this back to back. Uninspiring-at-best so-called songs about drugs and the streets, many of which were "sung" by Lou Reed. oooo edgy! Oh but at least it closes with *pure genius* [suffers through untold minutes of no-composition feedback-drenched dissonant sounds of a band openly mocking the idea of music and/or anyone in the future voluntarily listening to this] in "European Son" ..... what the absolute hell - was there nobody around to put the brakes on this?? -10/10 0 stars to everyone responsible in 1967 for foisting this mess upon the public.
Production: 13/20 Songwriting: 16/20 Innovation: 17/20 Bangers: 20/20 Emotional response: 18/20 =84 Class class class class class
This is my 100th review. A special kind of symmetry in that my first album was Berlin by Lou Reed. In case you were wondering, I gave that one a 3. It’s hard to review an album that you love, an album that is one of your favorites. There’s a sense of obligation to say something meaningful, but the album is also wrapped up in all kinds of feelings and experiences that are hard to extricate from the music. I don’t have a single favorite album. I have a small number of albums that I consider foundational to my tastes in music, my attitudes about music and, to some extent, my world view. This is one of those albums for me. If you've never heard the Velvets before, that first song is deceptive. The twinkling celesta, the strings, "Sunday Morning" is a lure into a very dark, gritty space. Feedback, dissonance, dark lyrics that take you to dark places, oh yeah. This album is a scar across the lovely face of music. VU is one of those bands that cracks open the possibilities of what music is allowed to sound like and what we as listeners should expect from music. As I said, foundational. I’ve been listening to this album for about 30 years now and it still challenges me. I love that it still challenges me, that it’s never boring. There are still moments on this album that make me uncomfortable, a flash of distortion that will make me tense up momentarily, a turn of phrase that will make me stop cold for a second from whatever it is I’m doing. This is music that is designed to make you uncomfortable. But it’s also immersive and fascinating. I have never in my life met anyone like the people Lou Reed writes about. But he writes it so vividly that you feel like you can understand it. The world revealed in this album is terrifying, but somehow also alluring in a twisted way. The Velvets shine a light on that dark underbelly of what’s acceptable, revealing depravity, humanity, and a surprising beauty. The arrangements of these songs are deceptively simple for the most part, but every sound is precisely placed, every distortion intentional. Cale’s explorations of the viola paired with Reed’s own experimentation with guitar tuning creates a powerful sound that no one has ever been able to match. Add in the steady, minimalist backbone provided by Moe Tucker and Sterling Morrison and you have a sound for the ages, one that’s been copied incessantly but still never really captured. Also, for as much as this is an album is worthy of serious thought, it also is just excellent music. It can be sweet, it can be catchy, it can be provocative, it also at moments just simply rocks. You can’t ask for much more in an album. Fave Songs: (The whole album, favorite to least favorite): Heroin, I'm Waiting for the Man, Venus in Furs, Run Run Run, I'll Be Your Mirror, Sunday Morning, Femme Fatale, European Son, All Tomorrow's Parties, There She Goes Again, The Black Angel's Death Song
I was all over this album when I was in my early 20s, as it should be. I like that this is one of those legendarily influential albums that still holds up. It doesn't quite feel like an artefact of its time, it's weird and edgy enough to still feel current-ish in an unusual way. The pop songwriting craft is there, along with songs about heroin addiction that aren't as boring as drug addiction is. The melancholic feeling is sublime and it is probably very apt for these troubled times. I am very happy that this album exists and I want to peel Andy's banana.
Undisputed classic, both in influence and substance. The sound is raw and stripped-down and the lyrics are reflective of the emerging counterculture of the era. There is so much diversity in this album and it has such a distinctive sound. Favorite tracks: Sunday Morning, I'm Waiting for the Man, Femme Fatale, Venus in Furs, Heroin.
One of those less deniable classics. Responsible for a lot of terrible bands, and a few good ones. Such a strong opening from the twee, gentle Sunday Morning, to the jangly driving (and only slightly overrated) I'm Waiting for The Man to the sad Femme Fatale to a droning, sinister Venus in Furs and on. Heroin is the only break this album takes for mediocrity - Lou Reed was always at his most dull when he was trying to be edgy.
This album's especially great for giving Nico multiple opportunities to say "clown" (pronounced 'klauhn')
A truly iconic album. It's just cool isn't it? Everything about it is cool, from the cover art to Nico's very good, not very good singing to Lou Reed's snide attitude to John Cale's experimental noise making. The grandaddy of trendies everywhere from art-rock to heroin chic to 21st-century hipsters.
When you hear some of these songs, it's hard to believe this was released in 1967. Songs like 'Sunday Morning' or 'There She Goes Again' are just so far removed from the typical sound of music at the time. It's not surprising that this album is flagged as being as influential as it is - you can hear the influence this album had on the alternative/indie rock scenes of the late 70's and 80's. This album is absolutely bizarre at times, but in a brilliant, unforgettable sort of way. The album's centerpiece, 'Heroin', is an excellent example, beginning in a more mellow way before gradually building into an eruption of cacophonic screeching and twisted guitar sound effects. The Velvet Underground were clearly experimental pioneers in their day - to this day, I've never heard another song that reminds me even faintly of 'The Black Angel's Death Song'. And yet, amidst all that weirdness are just some of the most melodically pleasing songs I've ever heard. 'Sunday Morning' is an amazing start to the album and captures the often ethereal feel to many of these tracks. Nico's vocal contributions to the album pair perfectly with some of the album's more psychedelic tracks, including the stand-out 'All Tomorrow's Parties'. "I'll Be Your Mirror" is simply beautiful, and I'll always appreciate the pronunciation of 'Clown' as 'Clon' on the catchy 'Femme Fatale'.
Funny to have another Velvet Underground album so soon on the list. This is their first album and musically, it’s a fascinating mix of psychedelic pop (“Sunday Morning,” "I'll Be Your Mirror") and more experimental avant-garde fare (like the gloomy BDSM jam “Venus in Furs” and "The Black Angel's Death Song"). There are also songs that exist somewhere between those poles (like “All Tomorrow’s Parties,” which has a simple enough structure but features druggy mood music in the background). The album has some great rock numbers too. I love how "I'm Waiting For My Man" keeps that steady rhythm throughout. The music only changes slightly between the verses and choruses. "Run Run Run" takes a relatively basic rock/blues sound and pushes it towards noise rock, and then "European Son" takes things even further into experimental territory. Somehow the sequencing of the album balances all these different styles. Having Nico sing lead vocals on a few songs helps break up the stranger, more challenging material. The album is a weird, wild ride but I really love it. P.S.: If you're not sure about this one, their sound definitely changes after the experimental first two albums. Their self-titled third album is mostly melodic acoustic songs and their fourth (and basically last) album "Loaded" is a big, beautifully produced pop album with some major hits. P.P.S.: Funny to hear the name Severin used in "Venus in Furs" - I never knew he was saying a name there until now!
I've heard that in Waiting for my Man he described perfectly the attire of the late 60s heroin dealer '' ... he's all dressed in black; PR shoes and really big straw hat." (PR is short for PRFCs meaning Puerto Rican Fence Climbers - shoes with a narrow point that enable fence climbing if needed to make a quick exit.) The next lines in that song tell how dealers are always late (another very accurate comment - or so I've heard): "He's never early; he's always late. The first thing you learn is that you always gotta wait" My favourite song is Heroin. Both these addiction songs are anti-drug but even mentioning drugs was enough to get the stations to ban the songs. While my personal favourites are the addiction songs, the album also has songs with transgender and kink themes. More excellent topics to generate radio play lol. I like the Eno quote that the album sold hardly any copies but everyone who bought it started a band.
48 minutes that mysteriously feels like 48 hours. 48 intense, stimulating, unsettling, glorious hours. OK, getting the obvious out of the way, yes, the recording is primitive and the instruments are often out of tune. And Maureen Tucker’s drumming on ‘Heroin’ is unlistenable. Unless it was some kind of artistic choice to, every so often, allow the beat just to randomly wander from the rest of the band? If so, avant garde genius. Who knows? This ain’t King Crimson, that’s all I’m saying. But neither are Neil Young or Bob Dylan (both of whom have, at times, intentionally left mistakes on recordings) going for the sparkling perfection of, say, Rascal Flats. The Velvet Underground’s sound does not require Steely Dan proficiency. This is street stickball, not Major League baseball. And sometimes, that’s where you want to play. Then again, play might not be the best word to use for this particular LP. No one’s better than The Velvet Underground at offering a sweet, simple, almost lullaby type tune set to sour, complicated, dark lyrics: ‘Sunday Morning,’ ‘Femme Fatale,’ ‘I’ll Be Your Mirror,’ all three songs featuring Nico on lead vocals. Nico is like escargot, an acquired taste you either love or hate, no in between. But the entrée to these appetizers are really the Lou Reed led numbers, even darker lyrics and set to darker tunes: ‘I’m Waiting for the Man,’ ‘The Black Angel’s Death Song,’ and especially, ‘Venus in Furs,’ a most unsettling song set to a mostly drone tune (a musical genre the Velvet Underground mine well and often), sustained by the shamanistic beat of Tucker’s tom and accentuated by the haunting middle-eastern moan of John Cale’s electric viola (which is also featured in the terrific free association exercise of ‘The Black Angel’s Death Song.’) ‘Venus in Furs’ is a heady experience, where five minutes casts a spell that seems to last for fifty, concluding in the chilling lyric: ‘Strike, dear mistress, and cure his heart.’ Lou Reed and company are not all doom and gloom, though. They enjoy a perdcic kicking up of their heels, too, as on the very Highway 61 Revisited sounding, ‘Run Run Run,’ or the uptempo pop of ‘There She Goes Again.’ I love Reed’s spontaneous joy and laughter at the end of ‘I’m Waiting for the Man,’ not to mention Sterling Morrison’s adventurous walking bass lines. And, believe it or not, some genuine gentleness and caring is expressed on the lovely and comforting ‘I’ll Be Your Mirror.’ So there are some characters and situations in the Velvet Underground’s world that lean more towards the velvet than the underground. Just not many. The song to end the LP, ‘European Son,’ was dedicated to Reed’s literary mentor, poet Delmore Schwartz, who died alone three months after the recording. The lyrics are sparse and bleak, but the extended musical jam is extraordinary, a precursor to the noise rock of groups like Sonic Youth. Each player is allowed to run free, yet together, and somewhere in the cooperatively created cacophony glory blooms. I was a little winded at the end of the near eight minute track. All this, and an Andy Warhol original on the cover? 'The Velvet Underground & Noco' is embarking upon a journey down a red velvet carpet into a dark cavern. Be prepared for any eventuality.
ICONIC. Not my first time to listen to this and i looped it a few times now.
I listened to the album after several years and I enjoyed it! My favorite song is Heroin and Venus in Furs. The last song is too experimental for my taste.
A very strange album which can feel both musically great while being uncomfortable to listen to - as the songs appear intended to be.
It's one of the most perfect albums ever. There isn't a bum note. No song that isn't classic. It's astonishing that it is a debut record.
I was already very familiar with this album and love it. Great to revisit - it’s been quite a while since I listened to it all the way through.
Elements of psychedelic and pre-punk. Clearly influential and for good reason. Heroin, Sunday morning, Femme Fatale <3
Nico <3 Lou Reed <3 John Cale <3 Moe Tucker <3 Sterling Morrison <3. Perfect in its naivete, purity, experimentalism, tonal painting. Just perfect. The world of sound would be a lesser place without the existence of this album.
Disco redondo, completo, un lujo escuchar esto hoy en día. Quitando alguna canción que no me termina de gustar por prejuicios más que otra cosa, creo que es un disco con 5 estrellas en casi todas las canciones y por supuesto con 5 estrellas como conjunto sin dudarlo.
Variadito y sí dan ganas de hacer un bailecito torpe. Venus in furs fue la que más me gustó, está heavy y lenta. Aunque todas me gustaron en realidad. Jamás en la vida había escuchado a esta banda, solo había visto su famosa portada de andy Warhol, probablemente elnhechod e que Warhol está en la portada me ahyantaba. Qué bueno que lo escuché. Mood: psicodelia :3
Obvio clásico. La raíz de donde nace todo: punk, indie, jingle jangle, shoegaze, etc.
Listened to my vinyl copy. Sounds kinda harsh. Bad surface noise, especially on Heroin (side 2, track 1).
Of course I knew The Velvet Underground by name, I know the famous banana image and I've definitely heard a couple of the songs without ever knowing it's by them (especially the opening song Sunday Morning). Yet, for some reason I was never interested in them and my expectations were low. I really don't know why though, as this album is just really good. The depth and versatility really caught me by surprise and I can easily imagine this album being as hugely influential as it ended up being. Saved this album and will re-listen. I do have one criticism: I really could have done without the final six minutes of the album.
просто уже за Venus in Furs можно лепить пятеру и признавать топом, одна из лучших песен эвер. Но только тут как бэ и другие номера — моё почтение. Открывашка вообще чудесна, героин — культовый депресняк, Вейтинг фо май Мэн — внезапно слушабельный блюз роцк, Фем Фаталь — охуенное исполнение от Нико. Для 67 года это не то что прорыв это просто как Гагарина в космос запустить, как придумать водку с пивом смешать. До сих пор мало кто что-то похожее сделал, а в те времена этот альбом просто убрал всех этих ваших битлов и роллинг стоунзов, любивших поизображать шутов при пидорасах. 10/10, тупо маст лисен, и банан вот этот пусть у нормисов ассоциируется с годным музлом (да и искусством хороших обложек тоже)
Undeniably one of the most important and influential albums of the last century. Perfection.
Zo mooi, zo rustig....dit is een classic Favoriete: femme fatale, sunday morning
Love this, really acted as the vague portmanteau for rock and defined the proto-punk genre, brought rock backs to its roots
Je connaissais mais j’avait jamais prit le temps de l’ecouter actif en entier.je suis imprwssione, c’est envoutant .4.95 car je ne sais pa si c’est un album que j’ecouterais n’importe quand, mais j’y reviendrai tres prochainement.
Muy posiblemente esté entre mis 5 discos favoritos. Cada vez que lo escucho termino sintiendo como si mi canción favorita fuera cambiando de una otra entre Waiting for the Man, Sunday Morning, Venus in Furs, Heroin o There She Goes Again... en realidad no tiene puntos débiles ni canciones de relleno. Un sonido como no había ningún otro en su momento y como no había escuchado nada en el momento en que lo conocí hace tantos años. La música undulante pasando por canciones dulces, psicodelia con el acelerador a fondo, rock y llegando a incluso el ruido total pero que tiene orden y sentido y hace una obra de arte. No hay mucho que pueda decir sin que se oigan a halago tras halago. Las letras todas inusuales incluso las que pueden ser un poco más convencionales o románticas, el resto hacia el ya conocido tiraje de drogas, exceso y prácticas sexuales poco comunes que siempre les caracterizó. Conocí este disco quiza hacia los 12 o 13, sin poner atención a las letras y simplemente recuerdo que me agradaba la música de Venus in Furs. Con el tiempo lo reencontré como a los 16 cuando me adentraba a leer mucho Burroughs, Kerouac, Ginsberg, etc. y no podía haber obviamente mejor acompañamiento, era tal cual como si un autor adicional hubiera plasmado todo en música y se sintiera todo compaginado a la perfección; de esos momentos que a veces menciono en la juventud de cada quien que marcaron hitos fuertes. Todo lo personal que puede ser el disco y ni siquiera ya creo tocaré la magnitud de importancia musical e histórica que representa. Es ya sabido que gracias a este disco se abrió un abanico de bandas y géneros gigantesco con el pasar de los años que estaban tremendamente endeudados con Velvet Underground. No quiero extenderme de más siendo repetitivo. Uno de esos discos perfectos para mí.
First VU I ever bought after they were covered and name dropped by R.E.M. on Dead Letter Office (which was actually the first R.E.M. album I ever purchased). 16 year old me didn't completely get it but it sure grew on me. An all time classic by a band whose entire studio catalog is comprised of nothing but classics (I can pretend Squeeze doesn't exist, try and stop me)
Absolutely PERFECT album. Genuinely one of the greatest achievements in rock, and music in general. One of my favorites!!!
5 star album. Hated it the first time I listened to it in high school. Kinda liked it a few years later. \"Get it\" now that I'm in my late 20s
Almost went with the 4 cause Venus in Furs, but I convinced myself in the end.
sunday morning is one of my favorite classic rock/alternative songs. it's so simple, but emotionally complex and almost entrancing. im waiting for the man is a catchy presumably queer, love song with an awesome riff. even though i don't like nico at all as a person, she is a beautiful singer on femme fatale. venus in furs is an interesting song musically and lyrically, but it has a unique charm run run run remains me of bob dylan and other late 50s/early 60s rock and alternative groups. sadly, i have to say it's my least favorite, i come to lou reed for lyrical content, and this feels mostly instrumental and lyrically hollow. all tomorrow's parties is just- kinda bland. nothing really notable about it if i can remember. heroin is a heartbreakingly perfectly ode to the drug and lou's addictions throughout his life. it slowly builds to an incredible conclusion and is probably the best track on the latter half of the album. there she goes again is a good track. however i do feel like it's mostly filler. i'll be your mirror is absolutely perfect. it's one of the best alternative love songs ever written, and i plan to play it at my wedding if i ever get married. the black angel's death song is a sweeping almost horror song, which is almost definitely the inspiration for the halloween theme. overall, a 4.75/5. genuinely one of the most influential albums of all time, even if some of the tracks aren't up my alley.
So happy to hear this!!! It was fortuitous that it was delivered on a Sunday morning!
I love this album long before this project. Lou Reed's voice has such swagger and sweetness. And then Nico, sounding so warm yet aloof. Every single song does what it was intended to do, even if I don't know what exactly that was. I really got into Venus In Furs for the first time, digging the strings. I Am Your Mirror is one of my all-time favorite songs, but it hit me differently this time around. It sent me into reflecting about how that's how I can only hope to be that for the people I love.
Not my first time of listening but it's been a year or so, what hasn't been said about this album already isn't really worth saying, i wasn't born when this album was released but you can hear it resonating down the decades, seeping into the subconscious to this day and forever. Timeless.
Love this album, always have. Not much else to say, I'm sure there's a 4-hour long documentary on Youtube that analyzes every single note of every song on this album.
Imagine being one of those reviewers that painstakingly deconstructs every song and writes 15 paragraphs like they're auditioning for Q Magazine, when you can sum some albums up in one emoji. 🍌
What's the opposite of defecating in a zorb and then having it hit you in the face over and over as you run down a hill?
Tied for the best VU album ever (with the self-titled album). Gritty. Reminds me of NYC.
Nunca tinha parado para ouvir Vevelt Underground e esperava um som diferente. Fiquei positivamente surpresa! Que disco delícia, dá vontade de dançar na sala, num fim de tarde, com aquele solzinho entrando pela janela...
This is classic Velvet Underground that became so influential in so many ways, Bowie, Glam Rock, Punk and Post Punk all inluenced by Warhols Factory house band, who would have thought it! some great songs here. My Favourites are "Sunday Morning" "All Tomorrows Parties" & "Venus in Furs" Rightfully in the list here.
Great album. Very experimental sound with use of heavy distortion, interruption and varied pace. Various styles/delivery: psychedelic, r/b, rock. Good songwriting to understated vocals esp heroin/femme fatale. Heroin is definitely the standout track which I hadn’t heard before; clear representation of his experience through building chaos and clamor. Solid top to bottom. Femme fetal, waiting for the man, heroin, there she goes again 4.6
I used to be prejudiced against music outside the 80s. Everything seemed too psychedelic until I discovered that everything I listened to was influenced by this album. And how wonderful it is to listen to this album and rediscover it for life! From the cover and the lyrics, the whole album is a work of art.
Loved it perfect for a Sunday morning, some lyrics sounded a little misogynistic though.
Du folk garage racontant l’addiction et le désespoir, est-ce que ça peut mal vieillir? Mention spéciale au technicien de son, s’il y en avait un, pour avoir réussi à faire croire qu’il pouvait faire la job.
Have you ever been on a major wooden rollercoaster? Compared to steel rollercoasters which dominate the scene, wooden coasters don’t go as high, they don’t have loops, there are no barrel rolls, and they don’t go as fast. You know what wooden rollercoasters have that steel coasters never will? Grit! Wooden coasters have a distinct sound and feel as a rider. They rattle you around more. This album feels like a wooden rollercoaster to me. It feels raw, unpolished, ambitious…and gritty. Lou Reed’s voice fits this sound quite well. But I also contend that Nico’s voice elevates her songs to another plane. I’ve always been disappointed that Nico was only with The Velvet Underground for one album…really just four songs. This album is remarkably distinct. Against my better judgment, I’m going to give the 65 track super deluxe version a go because it has a bunch of Nico solo tracks and a disc full of live songs. Wish me well…
Great album. Lou Reed / Velvets, classic. Basically every band worth mentioning has shamelessly ripped this style and sound since they were in high school diapers practicing in the garage. Nico is super-strange, but I dig her, there's some movie about her imploding after her time at the Factory. Love her pronunciation of 'clown' aka "KLON" in Femme Fatale. Sunday Morning is beautiful, Heroin brings back memories, Lou Reed, RIP.
Finns något oändligt coolt med detta album, en mänsklighet som syns väldigt väl och kalla, kalla ljud.
One of the most crucial albums you must hear before you die. 1967 really was a loaded year
It's hard to believe this was released when it was considering you hear echos of noise rock, experimental, drone and a whole host of other genres that didn't properly form for another 2 decades. Of course experimentation and influence don't necessarily mean something is great, luckily however this has Steller songwriting throughout. the sweet poppy songs are as intoxicating as the drone songs or the gritty, dirty rockers. Nico and reed kill every performance.
Well well well... this one almost makes too much sense, perhaps as an atonement for yesterday's MGMT pick. The thing is, that when I first got it, I was disappointed, I only liked I'm Waiting for My Man and Heroin. Yet I knew there was something there... and kept with it, and it's grown and grown on me. And as it's one of my favorite covers, I probably own at least six copies on vinyl (even having given away two copies in the past couple of years, trying to get perfect covers as well. 10/10
A true classic! For me, at least, it's the pinnacle for everyone involved. Yeah, Nico has that cool solo album, and Lou Reed made some cool songs elsewhere, but this one is just hard to beat. The four-track run that opens this album is amazing: a perfect intro, one of my favorite Lou Reed tracks, one of Nico's most memorable tracks, and then the super psychedelic "Venus in Furs." I feel like if I were alive back when this came out this album would've permanently changed me. And I haven't even gotten to my favorite track on here, "Heroin." Such a brilliant, building song. It was used very obviously in the movie Killing Them Softly for a scene where Ben Mendelson does, yep you guessed it, heroin. Leaving that aside, I just love the length and trajectory of this song. The rising and falling throughout is so satisfying. I'm struggling to come up with a good reason to give this less than five stars. There were some songs on the back end that didn't stand out to me, but with all that I love and the highs it has to offer, it's really one of the best of its era. Favorite tracks: Heroin, I'm Waiting for the Man, Femme Fatale, Venus in Furs, Sunday Morning, All Tomorrow's Parties. Album art: The unforgettable, iconic banana. Designed (and signed) by Andy Warhol, the early vinyl pressings of this had a peelable peel sticker and the flesh of the banana underneath is an unsettling pink. I do have this on vinyl, but it's a repressing without the peel sticker. Maybe that's for the best; that pink banana is creepy, and I'd hate to be the guy who lost the sticker. 5/5
This was absolutely fantastic. I have no idea why I've never listened to The Velvet Underground before. My mistake, because they were really fantastic. I also tend to love 1960s and 1970s era rock, so I was destined to love it.
Með betri plötum. Fengi kannski 9,5. Mjög ljúf hlustunar. Gamall góður vinur einhvernvegin.
incredible album, especially good to hear those tracks sequenced again
Classic alternative rock is classic. This was the first alternative album. Much props. Also, how many covers did this album spawn?
Objectively genius? The fact that this was made 55 years ago is a glitch in the matrix. Petition to investigate whether it was in fact made by the ghosts of Lou Reed, David Bowie, Mozart and God gone back in time from 2077 in a DeLorean so that 80% of current music it ultimately influenced could be a thing
Best album cover of all time. Also legendary album with some of my favorite velvet underground songs.
This album might as well be the epicentre of rock and roll. It's the peak, the high water mark that every other album preceding it built up to, and every album following it, tried to no avail, to best. This is not Lou Reed best, I leave that to his magnum opus that is 'Transformer', but this is the world of fashion, design, art, music, drugs, sleaze, psychedelia, literature and poetry - the meeting point of the minds in New York at it's most vibrant and decadent. The album sleeve alone is literally an art piece - its sign by Andy Warhol itself rather than having the band and album name. It's legendary its function too. And then, there's Nico, whose contribution elevates the album past the sum of it's parts, lifting it from the opium den fever dream to an angelic catwalk. It's not the Beatles, it's not the Stones, nor the Stooges that should be the snapshot of 7 decades of guitar music. It's this specific album.
Jestem niemal pewny, ze juz pisalem o tym krazku, ale lista jakos go nie pokazuje wczesniej, co jest dziwne, bo dawno nie mialem tak nie tylko osluchanego materialu, ale rowniez z wyrobiona opinia na jego temat, nie kojarze takze zadnej dyskusji w ktorej moglbym sobie wyrobic tak silnie odcisniete na pamieci osady i ciekawostki, tak czy inaczej, jesli zadanie domowe po przesluchaniu picku zrobilo sie samo, to nie ma sie co tutaj kolejny raz produkowac
Lol har visst alltid trodd at da stoppa etter All tomorrow's parties, så detta blei første gang eg hørte meir enn da. Men bra albi
Oh I did NOT like this when I first heard it. I'd seen an Andy Warhol documentary which included a bit of the famous VU performance at the Factory that the police interrupted, and that looked great, so when VU and Nico turned out to... well, not be like that, I was quite let down. (Conversely White Light White Heat was much more like what I was expecting.) It took a while but I now realise it is cursed with one of the worst stereo mixes of the mid-60s. It's a fantastic album, but it *must* be heard in mono.
More influential than "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" and you know I'm right!
Phenomenal. It's just amazing. So much has been said about this album that I couldn't possibly add anything remotely new. It's just great. One of the most important albums ever made and just a treasure to listen to.
The Velvet Underground & Nico was more artsy than I expected however considering it was recorded during an Andy Warhol tour things started to line up. Themes throughout, are quite avant-garde and for the time would have been somewhat confronting, this reflects the limited number of copies that were sold on it's original release. However it's easy to see that it has been very influential to many future bands and releases in the vein of alternative, rock, punk, goth & indie. Best: Sunday Morning Worst: European Son 4.5 Stars
This is as great as everyone says. I remember when I was a kid looking up to lists of the GOAT albums, this was the first that I seriously enjoyed. It started on a path of classic rock and I have fond memories of it.
Has to be a 5 BUT with major qualifications. This album is nowhere near the Velvet Underground’s best. The extremely rough production is simultaneously this album’s greatest strength and its weakness. The songs themselves definitely hit the mark, even if time has somewhat blunted their edge. You get the impression on tracks like the straightforward chugging rocker “Run Run Run” that Lou Reed is intentionally trying to sabotage any semblance of formality in their melodies - and that I guess is the appeal of this record. But here’s the other thing, this album came out in 1966!! That’s utterly astonishing. There are sounds on this record committed to vinyl about 20 years before they had any right to be. As far as influential albums go, there are few which can measure up to this. Ramones, My Bloody Valentine, Jesus and Mary Chain and the Fall all trace their heritage back to here. It changed the landscape in such a way that, regardless of any technical shortcomings on this record, it is both aesthetically and sonically one of the most important albums ever.
Starting off with an iconic tune heard in many films (Sunday Morning), then fading into I'm Waiting For My Man; this album early on set's the tone of the record - Classic 60's barbershop vocals with a Surf Rock Backing. Moving onto Track 3 (Femme Fatale), was an unexpected one for me. This is the original version of a cover I spent many of my teen years listening to when discovering my sexuality. A VERY moving song and will always be a staple to me. So far from listening to the first 5 tracks, I can already see how this band has had such an impact on rock, avant-garde and indie music throughout it's post years; from the distortion in the guitar and vocals, to the drumming patterns. This distortion in the guitar mixed with the drumming pattern used across the album has been used over and over again throughout 90s rock presented by bands and artists such as Pixies, Nirvana, David Bowie, Red Hot Chili Peppers and the Libertines. As well as 90's bands, this sound has transferred into more modern artists such as Razorlight, Arctic Monkeys, The Strokes, The Neighbourhood, and Lana Del Reys earlier releases.
sehr geil, kenne ich schon ewig, weil mein Vater die Platte hat als Kind mochte ich das Cover sehr K.
This is one of my all time favourite records. Lou Reed truly penned some tragically beautiful songs that will last for ages.
I had this at the age of about 21 as part of the Peel Slowly and See boxset. It's still amazing, a gritty backlash against the staid pop that dominated airwaves in the 1960s.
Wonderful album. Runs the full spectrum of bliss and beauty to horror and strangeness and hits everything in between. It is truly artistic statement.
What is a timeless album? I don’t know but this about as close as you can get.
this is one of my favorite albums. i can't be impartial. all the songs are great. even all tomorrow's parties. which i should hate. i think is hauntingly beautiful. the black angel death song. incredible. venus in furs. amazing.
So cool. The coolest. 😎 The recording is crappy, the performances aren't super tight and Nico's voice is hard to listen to but does that really matter?
Probably the only VU album showcasing the potential of every member of the band. Impossible to overestimate the influence of this record, and thus, impossible to give less than a 5.
The VU are one of my favorites. This is an amazing debut album. I tend to prefer a lot of what they did once they were able to work on their own without Nico, though she has a great and unique voice that works really well with their sound. Standout Tracks: Sunday Morning, I'm Waiting for the Man, Venus In Furs, Run Run Run, All Tomorrow's Parties, Heroin, I'll Be Your Mirror, The Black Angel's Death Song, European Son
Idk it kind of makes sense for the songs about drug abuse and sadomasochism to sound rough
Absolutely incredible. The last two tracks are some of the best recorded Velvet Underground. I suggest reading the '1967 in music' wikipedia article while listening .
An automatic 5, for sure, but I listened to it again twice because why not! Fave track - honestly, about two thirds of the tracks on here are contenders. Maybe more like three quarters. "I'm Waiting for the Man" and "Heroin" are just amazing, iconic. "Sunday Morning" and "I'll Be Your Mirror" are so lush. The freak out of "The Black Angel's Death Song!" Overall, though, I'm going to have to go with "Venus in Furs", which was probably the first song from the album to pierce my consciousness, due to that psychedelic Dunlop tires commercial! 😆
All the makings of a classic. Fresh, subversive and catchy while still having some edge. Love this album.
If Belle & Sebastian don't owe their existence to 'Sunday Morning' then I just don't know what to say.
One of he greatest, most influential albums of all time! Everything about this album is iconic, its sound, its genre-mashing and innovative nature, Nico, The Velvet Underground's members, its bizarreness... All of this topped by having one of the most iconic album covers of all time, designed by no other than Andy Warhol himself.
It’s a bit avant garde but I always loved this album. My music teacher in college always used to say that only 1000 people bought this album but every one of them went on to start a successful band
I went through a real Lou Reed phase last lockdown. Love how honest and raw this album is.
I gave this album my first listen back in high school, and I'll be honest, I didn't get it. The breadth of my musical knowledge wasn't as wide back then, and I couldn't appreciate the artsier sounds or the groundwork they laid for so many amazing bands and artists after. Now it's been a few years, and I hold some of those artists in my highest possible regard, artistically: Bowie, the Talking Heads, Joy Division/New Order, even more modern acts like LCD Soundsystem and the myriad post-punk outfits we have going today. So if I still don't fully "get it," I at least now totally appreciate this album as the source of inspiration for music I love that also happens to have more than a few great tracks on it as well. I'm not at the point yet where I can give it a perfect score (the second half is noticeably more hit or miss than the first imo), but this is an album I think I'll only appreciate more with age.
Venus in Furs has long been a favourite. It might even make my all-time top ten tunes, I get chills from it every time. There are some other good songs on this album, but Nico's voice drives me a bit nuts. Even the songs I don't like so much work well in the context of the entire album though. Highlights: The Black Angel's Death Song Venus in Furs
A great album! Venus in Furs was a favourite and would gladly add to regular listening,
is this better than Loaded, no, but still was pretty and happy. each song I end up liking by the end. 🍌
Loved this album as a kid! Never noticed how bad the bass was off on Femme Fatale on my old cassette version. Still enjoyed it!
A classic but also a couple of songs I'm not so fond of. But on the whole, very enjoyable
My parents were in their very early 20s when this came out. That blows my mind. I don’t think there’s a chance in hell that they listened to it then. Because I feel like if you hear “I’m Waiting for the Man” as a young person in 1968 then that’s pretty much game over. You’re not buying Steve Miller and John Denver records after that. And my dad definitely had THOSE records. Ah well… At any rate, I love how odd and imperfect it is but it will always need more Nico.
Definitely paved the way for punk, noise rock, alternative, and probably a thousand other mini genres. Must have been very provocative at release.
The Velvet Underground es de esas bandas que me gustan cuando las escucho (no tan seguido), pero que siento que ya no me pertenecen (?). Igual, revisitar este disco fue lindo y algo que siempre me impresiona de él es cómo con sonidos y tonos tan distintos entre canciones, lo pienso y sí me la creo como unidad. No que todos los discos deban serlo, pero aquí creo que funciona. Me gusta desde lo melódico y quizá hasta infantil de la música en "Sunday Morning" con todo y su letra en un punto medio entre la desesperación y la esperanza, hasta el final ruidoso, caótico de "European Son". Disfruto sobre todo "Femme Fatale" y "Heroin" y pus ya. 9/10
Really like Venus In Furs and Run Run Run and Heroin. Great art rock album with noise from Lou Reed. Strong 8/10, maybe 9
An album I bought yonks ago without knowing much about the VU, and it hasn't disappointed. Some of these tracks are timeless - 'Venus In Furs' would be somewhere on the list of my favourite songs of all time. Nothing else quite sounds like it. The only fly in the ointment is Nico, I'm afraid. I don't buy the 'ice maiden' thing, and too often her contributions, whilst possessing a certain guileless charm, are simply clumsy
I preferred side two. But overall I though it was lyrically and musically pretty average but I get it. At the time it would’ve seemed better
Really good album. It's easy to see it as one of the bridges between so many different genres. It's both all over the place and coherent.
classic. i think VU were coming up at this point. venus, sunday morning, waiting for the man, femme, heroin. all bangers
Where cutting edge art and music met. This album encapsulates the era of Rock in NYC, while still being timeless enough to be appreciated all these years later.
Хороший альбом. Сперва кажется довольно скучным и немного архаичным, особенно на непопсовых треках. При этом не подталкивает себя выключить, не душит. По мере переслушивания треки становятся приятными. Такими, что был бы не против слушать раз за разом. Но всё же не охуенными. Прям охуенным, кроме обложки, могу назвать самый попсовый трек, Sunday Morning. Он заходит сразу и не надоедает. Остальные – хорошие и отличные. Так, на самом деле даже бы ничего и не выкинул. Но по эмоциям отбиваются не сильно. Да и в целом альбом не похож на то, что я кому-то бы порекомендовал между делом. Так что твёрдая четвёрочка. Вот тут явно заметил, что моё восприятие порой сильно привязано к самочувствию и настроению. Альбом слушал несколько дней, сперва маленько душил, а однажды проснулся, включил и сказал: «Бля, хорошо же». И впрямь хорошо. Но не отлично.
Yes I dug it. Have not really listened too much to it before and would certainly require more listens to mine its full depths, but there’s some early punk in there, right? Bags of tonal variety. I enjoyed it.
I haven't even listened to this one with much attention before. Didn't realize how much flower child is in this one. I always thought it was a little more punk than that. Sort of a sweet folk album and a noise rock album smooshed into one.
1. Sunday Morning - 9/10 2. I'm Waiting For The Man - 8/10 3. Femme Fatale - 8/10 4. Venus In Furs -8/10 5. Run Run Run - 9/10 6. All Tomorrow's Parties - 7/10 7. Heroin - 9/10 8. There She Goes Again - 7/10 9. I'll Be Your Mirror - 6/10 10. The Black Angel's Death Song - uhh 11. European Son - so long jfc
Very experimental and edgy, love the vibes it gives off, the album is a complete experience. Stand outs: Heroin, Sunday Morning
Makes me want to do heroin. I know its not supposed too, but it does. This is my type of 60s music. Deep and dark
the sound quality is what I'd expect from 1967, but the riffs and grooves are catchy, and the vocals are soothing.
was nice to listen to some more velvet underground, as I've only heard some songs. Will definitely play songs from this album more often
Raw driving energy. Still not fond of Nico's voice but the songs seem cooler every time I hear this album.
Pretty amazing psychedelic album. Definitely a lot of weird and melodic sounds here. Some tracks would hook a lot less than others but It's definitely something I'll listen to again.
I enjoyed this album. Unlike the follow up, this was accessible without being to far our there.