Reviews (page 7 of 8)
The main thing this album has going for it is no Nico. A reasonably interesting listen, but by o stretch enjoyable. Certainly belongs on this list.
One thing I noticed is how the left and right year = different sounds weird
Another development in this endeavor is that I've come to understand the Velvet Underground better than I once did. And for one hot minute, I thought maybe I'd even come to appreciate their art. That is to say, I was somewhere in the vicinity of a 3-star rating. And then... yeah. It went south from there. So, I still think I better understand what they were all about, but I'm not one to actually choose to listen to the sounds the group makes. I was going to write "musical output," but that might be taking it a step father than I'm willing to go.
Pas ouf, c'est bordélique un peu. Créatif mais anarchique.
Weird 60's drug music. I was kind of digging The Gift, but it drug on far too long. I much prefer their first album. A lot of just feels like noise.
lou reed suck my nards u friggin poopoo butt
2 stars.
I've never listen to this album, but i'm a big fan of their legendary first LP, so i have some expectation on this one. First we have roughly the same lyricals themes, like drugs use (white light/white heat is about injecting speed or methamphetamine), gender issus, sexuality and Lou Reed's trouble youth. We ear John Cale sing in 2 songs (The gift and Lady Godiva's operation), this album made the achivement of being more experimental than their first one, maybe a bit too much for my taste, but its the velvet undergound so we have to acknoledge their influence on punk and alternative music. The album is less psychedelic and more noise and art rock, with song like The gift wich is a 8 minutes spoken song, apparantly the album was make to recapture how they sounded live. We could also see early punk, new wave and even metal eleent in some song like Here she come now and sister ray. The song I heard her call by my name is inspired by Jimi Hendrix and its guitar work look a but like run Run Run from their first album. The album is much more experimental and noisy than their first LP, but i also think its less good, look sister ray a fucking 17 minutes long partyaly improvised song and its more messy and wierd than anything a bit like the rest of the album, but not in the same way than the first one. I still respect how much this band was a head of their time and again influencial for all their sucessor, but this is not really my kind.
i dont really care about this either
Usual squalling guitars. The Gift was ok, very obvious but gruesomely fun plot twist! Beginning of Sister Ray is good then it becomes the same noisy mess as European Sons's on ...And Nico.
Ik heb me eigenlijk nooit gerealiseerd dat al die Velvet Underground zo oud is. Uit de tijd van de Stones, de Beatles en de Kinks. Maar nog voordat Black Sabbath zogenaamd alle riffs uitvond. Tuurlijk, het klinkt wel oud, maar ik dacht dat het 70s was. De muziek (of mja, soms is het meer geluid) is vrij psychedelische rock met wazige spoken word in de eerste nummers. I Heard her call my name is een eentonig tromgeroffel, waar wild een gitaar aritmisch overheen loopt te janken. Sister Ray moet het sluitstuk zijn, de overweldigende climax. Maar het is een lange zit vol improvisatie. Kan me voorstellen dat dat live iedere keer anders is en de absolute fan die kickt daar op natuurlijk. Maar geef mij maar iets meer gepolijste liedjes. Meteen na het album start youtube toevallig een live uitvoering uit 1969 van Sister Ray, van maar liefst 36:52 minuten. Wat me gelijk opvalt is dat de geluidskwaliteit veel beter is, wie weet is het geremasterd. Maar dan komt naar voren dat het best wel richting bluesrock gaat. En dat klinkt dan een half uur erg lekker (zou daar zo een 4 voor kunnen geven). Maar ja, dit staat niet op het album zoals wij het voorgeschoteld krijgen, dus kunnen we het daar niet op beoordelen.
I enjoyed the compositions, but they soon became far too repetitive. Lyrically, awful.
Proto-punk, sounds weird. A worthwhile story, a mediocre experience. 2,5/5
I find the praise for this album baffling. Yeah it’s a contrast to the San Francisco flower power scene, but what was so revolutionary about it? This was 1968 not 1948 - surely people had heard distorted guitars before? And where are the tunes?? I’m sure their first album had some tunes on it… I did enjoy the storytelling on The Gift, but not much else.
2.75 stars If I'm going to listen to a velvet underground record it's usually and Nico. But I don't listen to much velvet underground.
Well, I hate this album
I never liked this band, the singles that I’ve heard, and listening fhe full albums doesn’t make it better. I can see the appeal, it’s just not for me. 3 out of 10
Other velvet underground albums were better
Pretty awful
Art rock with absolutely batshit crazy lyrical content. Lots of noisy guitar solos. Not my thing. Too weird. Debated giving a 1 star, but it is listenable. Some of the songs have normal-ish structure.
Disappointed here. "Loaded" is an all time album and the &Nico work is interesting and enjoyable. This misses The mark in my opinion
2.5/10. Didn't finish the album. Freeform, noisy, like jazz but rock. Wasn't for me.
Lou Reed plays a cantaloupe on this one. "The Gift" to be specific. That's real, you can Google it. IDK, I think this is their most boring album. It's noisy, but not in an exciting way. They play some regular 60s rock that's mixed so low you can barely make out the lyrics, and once in a while Lou Reed comes in with a very distorted guitar. Marvel at their genius. Eh, it was cool in 1968 at least.
I hadn't heard this band before, because I hate Lou Reed's solo work. It's not as bad as I expected. It's good for a while and then it's very repetitive. I understand why this record is important. I like some artists who were obviously influenced by it, like Sonic Youth and the Pixies. Favorite song: The Gift
This is a weird as what I thought a Velvet Underground album would be. I have listened to the previous one (with the banana) but not this one. The spoken word track was a bit over the top, but the last half of "Lady Godiva's Operation" took it to another level
This feels very experimental. The second track is poetry which for me personally is difficult to listen to. Id never heard velvet underground before. I understand the album is a gateway to later genres but you can really tell. I wouldn’t call it timeless. The best track for me was White Light
Still not really my thing, but yeah, Waldo was indeed a schmuck
It's a bit of a slog, ain't it? Ghostbusters!
I gotta really be in the mood to enjoy this much feedback and repetitive madness. Today was not that day. I still like "Stephanie Says," but Shawn says, "Not today, Lou."
Went into this one ready to like it and enjoy it and sadly it just wasn't the case. Sister Ray is easily the best song and I'd say its the only track i cared about, which isn't the worst thing considering its 17 and a half minutes long. There's so much layering and different instrumentation, it's cycling and repetitive and I was into it. I can easily see how this would inspire a lot of bands to come. The other tracks just didn't interest me much or flat out were annoying. The gift is mixed so stupidly shitty and you know where the story is going to go halfway through it. Some very silly choices were made with panning the vocals left to right and back again and it's just annoying. I'm sure they were shitting their pants back then but it's gimmicky now. I'd listen to sister ray again but none of the rest. An the album art sucks. Score: 40 Art: 20
Chaos
2.5
I’m conflicted. It’s weird and noisy and oddly irrelevant. This does not conform to anything, and I think some could argue whether or not this is even music. Hell we have story about a dude mailing himself to a girl and getting stabbed through the box, and we a 17 minute power jazz record about sucking on a ding dong. Meanwhile, there are synths and guitars whaling all over the place. I wouldn’t say I vehemently hate this record, but I would have a hard time telling someone that I like it. I would just say this shit is loud, sloppy and strange. I just don’t know what to do with myself.
An interesting album, especially with the poetry/story in the second track. I wouldn't really say I enjoyed this too much, though. Fave track(s): Lady Godiva's Operation
28th February 2023 Listened during the day while working from home. Took the floor up a bit and painted the living room. Peter softer, folkier Underground, parts of this (including the 17 minute central track) were not for me.
Nothing special. Would not suggest or recommend it.
A very solid 2, nothing very interesting though
This is a really challenging album... it's messy and plenty of eclectic parts that start to take some of the straightforward nature of the velvet underground sound and start to twist it. I can't find much here to appreciate. A pass.
Sort of good, probably influential, I want to like it, and most of it is navel gazing bullshit I don't want to listen to again
I appreciate the creativity for its time, but this is tough to listen to.
I get this is important. I can hear the influence it had on other stuff. But the stuff that came after is just.. better.
Rock experimental. Coñazo.
Lou Read and VU are awesome but this this one was kinda meh for me.
I want to like The Velvet Underground and there are elements of their music that I really enjoy. I can see how they inspired so many things to come. But it also drags for me and I can't wait for it to be over.
Heel erg chaotisch. Doet zelf af en toe pijn om aan te horen. Het heeft wel enige legacy, en dat is het enige pluspunt aan dit album
Not a fan
So I was accidentally listening to the extended version but didn't like anything on this and so much of it went on forever.
I do not get them and the quality of the sound really takes me out of it.
Not... great
Thought i liked the band but apparently not :(
as a lou reed fan, white light/white heat was a disappointment. it's made up of the kind of experimental music i don't enjoy and don't find a lot of interest in. there were periods that consisted only of discordant keyboard smashing. i can understand the significance and influence on punk music, and its release in '67 was much earlier than other punk music. but i just didn't enjoy this. one positive is the storytelling in "the gift." yes, it's weird but intriguing. i don't think i've heard a song like this before. the storytelling was performed dryly by john cale, and it isn't too surprising it was written by lou reed.
I barely enjoyed this. This is mostly just mumbling, rambling, noise. Even the experimentation just sounded like they let some wild animals slam on instruments for a bit. I can get a little bit down with noise rock, which is why I guess this isn't coming in at an absolute 1. But I really don't have much good to say about this. Another strike for me with the proto-punk genre. We get it, these bands helped establish punk...but it was not very good. We don't need this many examples.
I've heard this one several times and unfortunately I just don't get it. Probably my least favorite VU album...
I think I’m just not avant-garde enough
Sheesh what noise! The title track is the most accessible, which isn't saying much, but from there it goes downhill. The gift is the sort of thing that you want to listen to once - just to hear how it ends. The vocal contribution by Reed on Lady Godiva's Operation is grating and amateurish. Speaking of amateurish, Here she Comes Now sounds like it was improvised on the spot. The last two tracks are distorted and hard to listen to and I guess it's that don't-give-a-shit-attitude that made this popular with the punks a decade later.
White light is ok, the rest are just rambly bollocks.
Not really a fan of how the album is produced. So distorted and sounds like noise. Made it hard to appreciate the songs.
This one was just too obscure or weird
Another Velvet Underground album checked off, and I'm still not sure what to do with them. I didn't get much out of White Light / White Heat. The first track has on old 1950's rock and roll sound to start, before it transitions in to noise. Noise is a common feature to ¿all? of the tracks on this album. Between the noise and lyric content (including frequently spoken lyrics), I did not like this album.
Oldie but not so goldie
I get that the VU is very influential, and I like a ton of stuff that smarter listeners say were influenced by them, but calling this album good is like calling a bucket of cum a doctor.
Very strange. Seems to be mostly talking over improvised/disconnected music.
While I like The Velvet Underground's most famous record, I still think they are one of the most pretentious bands of all time. This album is fine, but I would not listen to it again. Best Songs: White Light/White Heat, Sister Ray Worst Songs: The Gift
Not really enjoyable for me. But some parts are interesting, which is the only reason why it gets 2 stars from me.
Not great, but at least no Nico! The best song was The Gift, a mad spoken word story about a guy who posts himself. Many of the others are sloppy and unfocused, and there are way too many outtakes and live versions as filler on the linked version of the album.
2+
I can see how it was edgy and novel at the time of release but it does nothing for me
VU is another one of those bands I can acknowledge was pioneering and led to other genres and styles of music, but I have trouble getting into them. "The Gift" for example just seems so pretentious.
Weirdly Tidal's link brought me to Social Distortion's White Light, White Heat, White Trash from 1996. I enjoyed that album. I can't say that I enjoyed this album. Lou Reed wrote some of the best tracks in rock and roll history, and I respect the Velvets and understand their massive importance in music history. I'm just not a fan of fuzzy noise jams, not a big Sonic Youth fan for the same reason. This album is kind of a mess, I know I won't be getting it for my vinyl collection!
gott að hafa klárað þessa. Ekkert endilega að fara í rotation
Not what I’m looking for.
Very long album, with nothing to prove for it. I think the music is alright but not good enough to listen again. There’s too much talking and not singing like just make it instrumental or don’t talk.
The notions dripping off these lads in this album.
I kinda dig it. The bad songs outweigh the good
Meh. Had its moments, but not many. And the 8-minute story time wasn't one of them. Although it sort of pains me to give this a 2, I can't justify a 3.
Only Here She Comes Now prevents this from getting a 1 star
This album is very strange. Especially "The Gift" at least the stereo mix that is, where the short story and music are panned hard left and hard right respectively. I don't think it is bad and it was certainly an influential and critically acclaimed album, but I don't think it is The Velvet Underground's best album. I feel bad about ranking this low, but I know that the other two albums I'll end up rating higher.
Pros: - First track - I love that experimental ending, with all of the instruments just gradually pulling apart rhythmically. Very cool sound! - Then the second track starts with some spoken word! I have to admit though as this track went on that I became a little bored by it. I've mentioned it before but I'm a big believer in albums starting with a song or having their second song be some kind of moderately uptempo / interesting sound regardless of the genre, and this one was really interesting to have the second song be a repetitive 8 minute long spoken word song. - The experimental-ness of the album and overall sound is really intriguing. Specifically experimenting with vocal deliveries is really cool. Cons: - Not every act needs things like choruses and hooks, but I think they could benefit from having some of them? Or more of them? I found myself bored at times with some of the songs. Ultimately I didn't love the album..
Loud noise but I get it
Here she comes mow was covered by nirvana so that's a star and I wanted to know how the gift would end so that's 2. Was a bit disappointed in this one. Expected better.
Most influential band of all time, blah, blah, blah. There’s less to like here than on the other records, as much as one admires the experimental bent and iconoclasm, which doesn’t fully come off anyway. “Sister Ray” is as gritty as art/noise rock got, but just because it was among the first of its type doesn’t make it a masterpiece. Anyone annoyed by Reed’s talky vocal style will be sent over the edge by “Lady Godiva’s Operation.” The muddy, submerged production is a big part of the issue – one wonders what this lot would have achieved with modern technology, including sampling (Cale’s later work suggests what might have been). The record’s commercial performance suggests sometimes bands get what they deserve, while its critical reception shows the power of revisionist history. 2.5 for 2.
Lost a fucking point because of the 17 minute song about a blow job. Sucking on my ding dong says Lou Reed. God I think deep down really fucking hate the Velvet Underground. I get it, they are super influential and all that. But I also fucking incredibly fucking pretentious man. Avant Garde heroine chic rock and roll bullshit.
Robert est au plus mal en ce moment et je vais vous expliquer pourquoi. Alors qu'en début de semaine, je lui avais déjà tenu tête en refusant catégoriquement de me plier à ses exigences, celui-ci vient d'être transféré à l'hôpital en soins intensifs pour la raison suivante : il aurait été tabassé par mon compère et rival de toujours eltrapeze (l'intéressé l'a confirmé à l'heure où je m'enregistre). Bien que je trouve l'album du jour très moyen (Lou Reed se moque de nous depuis les années 60), il n'aurait certainement pas mérité de créer un tel élan de haine. Je ne cautionne en aucun cas les agissements d'eltrapeze. Pour en revenir à l'album, et je crois que tout le monde sera d'accord avec mon analyse, le problème a deux sources : Lou Reed et le menuisier du dernier morceau. Inutile de rappeler comment le premier travaille ses chansons (il appelle ses parents, lance l'enregistrement, puis la conversation, et une fois le combiné raccroché, colle sa voix sur des instruments). En ce qui concerne ledit menuisier, son intervention est un énorme point d'interrogation. Il scie d'abord des planches de bois puis perce un énorme trou dans le mur du studio avant de creuser le sol au marteau-piqueur. « Que cela cesse » crieront nos oreilles jusqu'à la dernière seconde.
I’m not sure if this is a different band named Velvet Underground, But this is some of us disappointing music I’ve listened to. I had high expectations going into this and was extremely disappointed.
I always feel like I'm in an "Emperor's New Clothes" situation when I listen to The Velvet Underground. This is garbage but I have to listen to everyone tell me it's brilliant. Pretty sure I heard him say "busy sucking on a ding-dong" at some point?? There were one or two moments that prevent this from being one star but it really is complete trash.
Könnte gut sein wenn’s nicht so lärmig wäre
I get, in part, this is an experiment in what an audience will put up with under the guise of art and that pushing boundaries is necessary in the evolution of music but I really object to just how unlistenable the whole album is - the discordant guitars, the monotonous sound mix, the shouting - and presented in such a way that I am the problem if I don’t ‘get’ it. If I’m square then so be it. An extra star for being on this list, to educate others to avoid at all costs.
not in the mood at all for this
*hits blunt* Uh yeah I do happen to be a huge connaisseur of *looks at hand* expremented Rodc
Definitely not the same level as some of their other albums. This one felt a bit all over. The first song was pretty noisy then the second song was just talking. The other three songs weren’t too special and the album was pretty short. Overall pretty meh. 4.2/10
Veel te rommelig en arty. En de stem van Lou Reed trek ik echt niet.
The Velvet Underground hebben best aardig wat nummers die ik erg kan waarderen. Maar dit album....niet door te komen. Chaotische herrie. En het gaat maar door....
Meh
entiendo que es un disco realmente influyente e innovador para su época pero de lejos es mi favorito de la banda. tiene buenas canciones y otras en las que simplemente no puedo concentrarme, pero en general lo siento como un caos de sonidos que no logro conectar.
Not terrible. Just sooo long
I know, I know, they're iconic or something but...ehhhhh.
How do you rate an album that feels like an experiment gone bad, yet goes on to create and/or drive a genre by how it influences other artists? Ultimately I have to go with my own ears and emotions—how do I feel about the music? Would I listen again? I really struggled with this review; the best I can give it is a 2.
Ugh. I…. _HATE_ Lou Reed. So asking me to listen to VU is asking a lot. The song “White Light / White Heat” I know from Bowie. He performed it in concert a bunch of times. I can see where the foundation of punk came from from these songs, but some of them… people talk about prog rock bring pretentious, THIS stuff sounds pretentious to me. That 17-minute piece just meanders. God, it was bad. I’m adding one star for the song “White Light / White Heat” since I always liked it. So that’d be 1.5 stars, round up to…
The Velvet Underground are one of the most important band of all time, or so I keep hearing. Doesn't help that this album sounds like it was recorded on a boom box because Lou Reed spent all of the recording money on heroin. I actually like some of their material (mostly from their previous album with Nico but also some of Loaded). This album just kind of sucks though. It does get a bonus star because of the Gift though. The feedback cleared my sinuses. Actually the title track is okay.
The album started off ok - "White Light / White Heat" sounded like proto-glam and was promising. "The Gift" had a fun riff and story, with a good punchline. However, underneath both these tracks were hints of the noise that was going to annoy the crap out of me later in the album. "Lady Godiva's Operation" sounded like some decent 60s psychedelia until the doctor part where it got weird. "Here She Comes Now" also had that 60s vibe and wasn't bad. But then the last two tracks brought the noise rock front and center. "I Heard Her Call My Name" had a horrendous almost all-feedback guitar solo that sounded like garbage to me. The jam in the middle of "Sister Ray" was just sloppy and all noise. I wanted to shut off the squealing organ and feedback. The end of "Sister Ray" was even more obnoxious than the middle. I tried to give the album a fair shake - even listened a second time, and that's when I noticed that the noise was present throughout, just not as noticeable on early tracks. I like some Lou Reed solo stuff, but I'm definitely not a fan of this album. Giving it a 2 rather than a 1 solely because there were some redeeming moments.
Not a big VU fan.
Art rock bullshit. 2 stars for a couple catchy songs.
bleh
Might appreciate it more if I were on drugs.
Dude, this was not good. Even for them
Lacking any production value whatsoever and with little regard to singing in tune, this was the ultimate 'fuck the system' album of the time, doesn't make it any good though.
An Interesting album. With some good times and equally some shite. Literally had to turn some off because of the racket. Weird little story track about a bloke posting himself to the woman he loves and she ends up stabbing him in the head. Compelling.
Velvet Underground hieß unsere Studentenkneipe in Brügge. Das Album hat leider weniger Spaß gemacht, als die Abende da.
.
Wow, I did not care for this. 3/10
4/10. I will admit, it was better than the Wikipedia article made it sound. But you know, I really didn't need some guy talking into my left ear for 8 minutes straight about some hopeless romantic, and honestly it was a bit of a cop-out to just have him die at the end. Similarly with the 17 minute song at the end, except I couldn't even be bothered to follow the story of this one, though I did figure out that she was busy sucking on his ding dong, because the singer said so about every 30 seconds. I'd be inclined to say the album was fairly good if it weren't for these two songs, except that these two songs are 65% of the album.
Another gsrage band
Classic lou reed: half of the time is interesting, half of the time you can enjoy it. Hole time is just noise. I get it, is experimental, but why?
Not my favorite VU record, but still a vibe to listen to. A little too noisy & chattery to be enjoyable throughout.
Ne das war nicht ganz meins - 2
Some good tracks on here but the final product is ultimately too disjointed to read as a cohesive album. Comes across more as a set of B-sides and demos, a view reinforced by the garage-level production
Definitely not an album that I choose to be in a list of best albums, half of the songs are just random noise sounds. Maybe when they make the album have just a few songs and wanted to release something new and say, ey, we should load the rest of the album with random shit and wala!
Some stuff stood out- "The Gift" was experimental and interesting, as was "Sister Ray" and "Lady Godiva's Operation", but I can't see myself returning to it, and too much was plodding
Interesting, but not as much my speed. Somewhat grungy.
Got through disc 1 and the start of disc 2 but boy it wasn't easy. What a weird band.
They remind me of the Beatles and, crazily enough, I'm not a huge Beatles fan. I did really enjoy the second song but that's primarily because it was a spoken song. I thing the singer's singing was the biggest issue for me however the instrumentals were good. I'm giving it a 2 since I couldn't even finish the album.
interesting
It was aite, not super my style
Not great
Not amazing.
Better than the last VU album but not by much. Not my thing I’m afraid
I hated this album
exhausting
Always really liked the Andy Warhol album, but this is just nonsense.
oribil - o stea
ugh...
Noise
"Not *another* Velvet Underground album, please. Dear God!!" But, I tried to be the bigger person and at least give it a fair shake. I was listening to this while getting ready for work. As I had on "Lady Godiva's Operation" and it was about midway through, I was stepping out of the shower. Suddenly, I heard a harsh man's voice yelling "Sweetly!" As I am a female, alone in the house, it quite literally scared the bejeezus out of me. A few seconds later I heard the screaming again, and this time realized it was overdubbed on the song. (Go to 2:51 to hear for yourself...it's quite unsettling.) The rest of this album is weird, "experimental," (aka: weird), and in my humble opinion, crap. I seriously don't get the hype.
Not for me. Their first album has some classics. Don't get it- probably helps to be off your face in the 60s!
eh ... i can tolerate the banana album in very small doses ... the rest of the catalog aged like fine milk. meh at best.
I used to think highly of The Velvet Underground with its association with Andy Warhol but it's only gone downhill since the last album. Unfathomable how this was included when so many more deserving bands like Toto or the Doobie Brothers don't have a single one
WTF did I just listen to? and why?
I used to enjoy The Velvet Underground. Now I dread the albums that the list is going to toss at me with barely coherent drugged up execrations. I couldn't find anything here that wasn't a disappointment.
I understand that VU became important because they, and primarily Lou Reed, ventured into unoccupied musical territory and expanded the sensibilities of rock music. That said, I never listen to it. It's not enjoyable, impressive, or a vibe I can relate to. Crappy singing, crappy playing, just... blah. I'm sure this gets is share of five and four star ratings. Can't do it.
There might be no redeeming qualities on this one chaps. The good instrumentation is in 17 minute long songs that drag. Theres a 8 minute interlude of just talking. The one short song is legit unlistenable.
I know they are a pretty famous band and the album with the banana on the cover is very popular but I thought this album was 100% garbage. It's not often that I hear something that I dislike from beginning to end. I did not find anything good about it and could not wait for it to end. It's probably "experimental" and "laying the groundwork" for other bands but it sounds like some super shitty high school kids that just got instruments and waits for their mom to leave the house so they can play something horrendous and think they are super deep and unique. Hopefully I never hear this terrible album again, it's amongst the worst things I have ever heard. There is nothing redeemable about it, pure garbage.
This sounds like your weird pervy lush of an uncle with his "band" in the basement, and not in a good way.
"Fuck! We've got 2 hours studio time booked this afternoon and we've not done any rehearsing, let alone written any new material. What are we gonna do?" I have no idea how this band supposedly became influential, because this is absolute cods.
Not a sound for me. Couldn't get past the first 3 songs.
This felt like the overly artsy kids at school started a band and tried to be like the Rolling Stones, and it doesn’t work
Yeah was not into this one. What was up with random talking over some of the tracks?
Couldn’t get into them. Maybe o got lost in the track they legit just talked
Can understand why so many thought if they can make money with that, I'll be able to make money out of what I play. Not totally awful, but not the best. Sorry, just can't bring myself to give it a 2.
👎👎 crap
I’m not sure this qualifies as music.
"[T]hey often played loud with new equipment from an endorsement deal with Vox. However, the final product was compressed and distorted-–most members were dissatisfied with the final product and it was followed with the less experimental The Velvet Underground the following year..." -Wikipedia "White Light/White Heat sold fewer copies than The Velvet Underground & Nico, and peaked at 199 on the Billboard Top LPs chart. The album's only single, "White Light/White Heat", failed to chart, which the band blamed on airplay bans and lack of promotion from Verve. The album was dismissed by many contemporary mainstream music critics, although underground newspapers took notice." -Also Wikipedia Let me get this straight: the band didn't like this album because it sounded terrible, critics didn't like this album because it sounded terrible, and it failed commercially because it sounded terrible, and yet I'm supposed to believe that this is an album that's important enough to be on a list of albums I need to listen to before I die. It really doesn't help that this is one of three albums from The Velvet Underground and one of five from Lou Reed. As much as I hate The Velvet Underground & Nico, I can at least understand why that album's on the list. It's impossible to deny that it had a huge influence on the underground rock and punk scene and could easily be called the single most influential rock album of all time. That album being on the list should mean that White Light / White Heat isn't necessary, but apparently we needed The Velvet Underground & Nico but worse. Every song on here is five minutes longer than it needs to be at a minimum, and every song is significantly worse than the one before it. That last point really comes to a head with Sister Ray. I was damn close to giving up midway through that song, only to find out "midway" was actually about a quarter of the way in. Truly awful.
This is lo-fi slop? This is one of those albums that really make you question why people loved this in its heyday. There are albums today that have garnered lots of attention that we’ll look back on with the same confusion, but when that’s the case why is this a must-listen 50 years later?
Wow... this is mostly just noise.
Like listening to fingernails on a chalk board. Ugh
CHE CAZZO È. SICURAMENTE È STATO IMPORTANTE PER LA MUSICA A VENIRE BLABLABLA…QUESTO È RUMORE PURO E I TESTI FANNO CACÀ. “THE GIFT” PUÒ ESSERE UN RACCONTO INTERESSANTE, NONOSTANTE NON SIA UNA CANZONE: C’È CALE CHE LEGGE UNA STORIELLA E UN BABBO DIETRO CHE SUONA LA CHITARRA NEL MENTRE. MI PIACCIONO PERÒ LE PALLE CHE I VELVET UNDERGROUND NON TIRANO INDIETRO. 1/5
overall it was pretty crap. was hard work to listen to.
There are times when the band members go AWOL and either play a different song or get entirely too board with the droning. Examples - Bass at the end of the first track - Guitar in the first two minutes of The Gift - The random vocals on Lady Godiva's Operation "SWEETLY!" - All of Sister Ray If you plucked out good parts of each track you would make one complete good song. "Here She Comes Now" is the first decent track on the album. Rough album.
The Velvet Underground may be an innovative band with exciting concepts. Apparently, my understanding of music isn't sufficient enough to appreciate this album. I won't listen to it again. 1/5
너무 듣기 힘들었다. 마치 난해하고, 알 수 없는 이미지로 가득 채워진 실험적인 예술 영화를 본 듯한 기분이었다. It was incredibly difficult to listen to. It felt like watching an experimental art film filled with obscure, inscrutable imagery.
1/5. Absolute trash. Experimental crap.
Pretty garbage. Go write a book instead of making these stupid songs if you’re just gonna talk the whole time and put terrible music over it. You know they’re stupid when their Spotify bio has a typo in the first sentence: “The Velvet Underground were largely ignored during HEIR original run from the mid-'60s into the early '70s, but few bands would cast as long a shadow in terms of innovation and influence.” Absolutely one of the worst albums I’ve ever had the misfortune of subjecting my ears to.
I disliked this to the point that I considered going back and lowering the ratings of other Velvet Underground albums.. glad they learned they would have better success with a different formula
veel geluid, weinig geluid om van te kunnen genieten
Helt igennem nederen album. The Gift er måske den mest irriterende sang jeg har hørt (med headset på)
Disturbing album 1/10 unbearable
Noooooo
terrible. awful.
I love Lou Reed, I like John Cale a lot, but I have something to say: a deep dark secret that has haunted me, a theatre/art history grad who has been described as a “pretentious wanker” more than once: I hate the Velvet Underground. I hate this album, I hate the production, it’s almost unlistenable.
06/17 Hippie druggie bullshit
Like an ice pick to the ear drum.
Now that you’ve listened to this album, go back and play The Gift. I’m 100% positive this is what the CIA plays at “11” for terrorists held at black op sites between their water boarding sessions. This is just bad music. Hard pass for me.
Trying way too had to be cool and edgy. Brutal sounds, just all around unpleasant. Except the Waldo story, that was dumb but at least it was weirdly interesting.
Сара опет слабо слушала, фокусирала се на јаковов албум марко 1
Naw
This is by far one of the most obnoxiously abhorrent albums that I've had the displeasure of listening to. It had the sensation of waiting in line for the electric chair, hearing nothing but the jarring sounds of the screams of the unfortunate before me. They should try making music sober instead of manufacturing this bs off whatever narcotics they were on.
Why is this on the list?
That shit sucked for real
Это не альбом. Мужики просто пытались придумать новые песни. У них не получилось.
this actually physically hurt to listen to, in particular the screeching guitar. i used to looove the velvet underground but this has me really questioning my taste. almost gave it a 2 for the moments of solace in Here She Comes Now and parts of Sister Ray.
0.5 / 5 Best Song: Sister Ray Worst Song: I Heard Her Call My Name Weirdest Song: The Gift Honorable Mention: White Light/White Heat Thank god, it's over. I laughed hysterically, but out of bewilderment or torment, I do not know... By far the most abrasive, chaotic, and ear-shattering abomination I have ever had the displeasure of experiencing. Half a point awarded for Sister Ray, which made me laugh for quantity of ding dongs sucked.
#20 What a noisy mess of an album. It feels like they are trying to be as experimental as they can possibly be, while also making it deliberately off-putting.
At best it bored me (such as during the Gift), at worst aggravated me (such as the weird vocal cuts on Lady Godiva's Operation), but mostly it just confused me. It sounds like giving a small child access to any musical production gadget and telling them to go wild, while one or two actual musicians try to keep up. It works best as an album described to you than you actually giving it a listen. I'm really hoping either of the two eponymous albums live up to the Velvet Undergrounds' legend.
Pretty songs
Wow this is BAD.
Jesus was this recorded on a potato? What is this awful noise at the end of the first song? Cool and now song #2 is just someone telling a weird-ass story. Oh great the last song is 20 minutes of noise. No thank you.
wow no thank you.
Halva albumet är en intermission. Velvet underground måste vara det mest överskattade bandet någonsin, så hjälper inte att de släpper ett "album" som absolut inte kan räknas som ett album. Varför detta med i listan?
This was truly awful. Most of this isn’t “music” - just noise, or talking (over noise). The most music-like tracks are fuzzy-sounding and have terrible song lyrics.
More experimental shit by Velvet Underground. Yeah hard pass. Only decent song is The Gift, and that is only because it has an interesting story. But it's not even a song, it's just the guy telling the story while music plays. And the music is too high, can't hear the words. Thankfully the music is all in the right channel and talking all in the left. I just moved the balance slider and I could understand the story. Best song: The Gift
Was very raw and kinda just sounded terrible. Their other albums are actually enjoyable this just seems terrible to be terrible.
Not a fan at all. Unfocused.
Gah. Terrible rock album. Too weird.
I take back every time I called something else pretentious bullshit, because this takes the absolute cake. What a self-absorbed waste of 40 minutes.
they lost me here
ehhh naur
The last song made everything else irredeemable by association.
A bunch of noise and words. i couldn't wait for it to end
Nope from me
I had assumed I'd enjoy this, so it was quite the disappointment. And opening bland track, followed by a long story over some low repeating sounds. A 17 min noise track with a story that, sure great write a book. I guess if this is your thong then sure... cool. But I've got bettwr things to do with my time.
This is the kind of nonsense that music critics fawned over so that they could come off as sophisticated and, therefore, justify getting paid to listen to music. This is the equivalent of when you give a group of kids a tape recorder and a microphone and, just like this album, they can demonstrate that they don't understand audio levels and sound mixing.
el peor álbum q escuche en mi vida
This is an ADHD Nightmare. It is chaotic, loud, just a bunch of random noise with talking over it. You know the creepy tunnel scene in Willy Wonka ... This is like that but on drugs. I hate it with a passion and couldn't get through a single song
Not my jam. Mostly noise, and weirdly experimental. There's a 17 minute song about a blowjob with the lyrics "You're busy sucking on my ding-dong. You busy sucking on my ding-dong." For fucks sakes.
Blah. Find it annoying at best. My husband is a huge fan and did admit this wasn't their finest hour.
The Gift was fun in a novelty kind of way. I Heard Her Call My Name was atrocious and a 17 minute final track was a special kind of torture. Abysmal.
Oh this again. Really, we need all three of these? Pretty sure we get the gist of what this band is all about after the one album, I have to listen to all of them before I die to really understand music? What if I already went through my Beat phase in college? Anyway, there's not what I would classify a "song" here. Especially whatever is happening at the end of this thing. "She's busy sucking on my ding-dong?" Bro. Embarrassing. That was cringe THEN. Anyway, I'm out of patience with this band. Pretty sure Sonic Youth would have figured it out without them, and the Nirvana cover of "Here She Comes Now" is infinitely better because Kurt had a sense of like, melody and rhythm. Also, real quick, this is not the only experimental band from the 60s. But apparently enough people have decided that this is the only one that matters somehow. This band is annoying. I'm annoyed. Suck a ding-dong, Velvet Underground.
This was fucking dreadful cunt, looking aside the horrid audio quality the lyrics and musicianship on this fucking suck. PUN INTENDED because the rambling in Sister Ray was just stupid, as well as the incoherent dribble that come out of whoever-the-fuck drug addict sings for Velvet Underground. I HAD TO LISTEN TO SOME CUNT SAY "TOO BUSY SUCKIN' ON MY DING DONG" ARE WE BEING SERIOUS NOW This was fucked man I don't understand why these guys are so acclaimed. That being said, I've had everything served up to me on here except for the banana album - whatever that's called.
I actively hated listening to most of this. It’s difficult to make me completely dislike an album that has even decent guitar playing. But this even got me to cringe at the guitar parts. Somewhere hidden in there are some good guitar riffs but you can barely tell because of the ear-shattering nonsense noise going on elsewhere. I should get an award for getting through most of Sister Ray without driving my car off a bridge.
“…the album’s engineer was so put off by the 18-minute ‘Sister Ray’ that he left to get coffee, complaining that no amount of money was worth listening to that crap.” I’m with him. 1.4 stars
oh dear god, not another velvet underground. No. Not gonna happen.
garbage noise.
called the velvet underground because their music puts you underground
Yeah I was too mean to the first Velvet Underground one we got At the very least, Nico wasn’t that painful, if a little boring. This one is so unpolished and rough that it barely sounds like music at times. It really does sound like you gave a bunch of five year olds instruments and told them to rock out. Horrible rhythm, the vocals just straight up suck, and the instruments are passed through way too many layers of distortion. The lyrics are awful too, it’s not like there’s some kind of deep meaning behind them. That 17 minute song to cap off the album is definitely some of the truly worst music we’ve had on this list I really don’t have a whole lot to say that’s nice about this one, I understand why it’s on the list and how it’s super influential but man this one straight up sounds like shit. Every once in a while there’ll be a section that sounds ok but they’re far and few between. I really don’t get the appeal of this one at all
It's still the same thing; too rough and unpolished for my enjoyment. The Gift is some kind of dry comedy bit and I don't know why it felt the need to be 8 minutes long. Lady Godiva's Operation is the same thing; a half-baked melody wrapped in random sounds with no care for whether or not it's listenable. They're more obsessed with being an art project than making music. Also Sister Ray is 17 minutes and I have more important things to do with my life.
I hated the first Velvet Underground album that we got and I was so disappointed to find out that there was another one on this list. There is not much to say other than I can't stand listening to this music, it's not even music. Why is this album on the list? It does literally nothing.
Listen, I don't mind a jam session. I'm not huge into the Grateful Dead, but I can appreciate them. There's elements of noise rock and psychedelic here, but man, they find one chord progression and beat it to death, don't they? Yes, the lyrics were extremely progressive for their time, but there's got to be more than that, especially when the vocals are buried beneath everything else. Throughout listening I was steady on a two, maybe a three, but then "Sister Ray" started to drag on and I realized, with growing horror, that it was going to go on forever. This is just my purgatory, I guess.
Couldn’t wait for this to finish
Prätentiös ohne Ende, der zweite Song hat mich richtig aufgeregt.
I'd like to nominate "The Gift" as a bottom-ten song in the 580 albums from this list. We were so far into negative-star territory that even Lou Reed couldn't pull us back to mediocrity.
Very unpleasant experience, not sure I liked a single thing about this album, the 17+ minute final track cemented 1-star status
Did I just hear five plus minutes of sucking on my ding-dong?
I just didn't like it, the vocals were drowned by the guitar, which might be fine, but makes it really hard to follow a spoken story for 6 min. And the vocals that did come through weren't very enjoyable and didn't really build on the distortion or use it for effect. It all seems very random and disconnected Standouts The Gift 1/5
The Velvet Underground will forever be that band that people like because it's "different" or "groundbreaking." It's straight ass. It's so fucking garbage. I wanna blow my fucking ears in after hearing the first few songs on the album. It actually hurts my ears. Straight brainless noise, and pretentious people can't convince me it's good or purposeful like genuinely shut the fuck up. Silver Ray's alright but it's still unnecessarily long like we get it. The opening track isn't too bad, but the rest of the album is completely unbearable. This is probably the worst album I've ever heard.
You would have to be on some ridiculously strong hallucinogen, like pure liquid acid, dripped onto centimetre cubes of plaster of paris, which you had to keep in the freezer to prevent the drug evaporating, to think this album was 5 stars. Otherwise sober you’d realize that this is a festering pile of dog shit.
Listened to The Gift with right ear only, that way it was pretty enjoyable The rest stinks
Bogus lyrics and equally as bad instrumentals
Like their other album, certainly interesting from an expiramental view but not enjoyable to listen to.
Nul, pas aimé
This is what happens when Andy Warhol does zero work on a Velvet Underground album
If there’s something to get, I didn’t. Too busy sucking on that ding dong.
Feel like there’s a joke I’m not getting, like a bunch of teenage boys have somehow managed to have their shitty album get big. Favourite song: White Light/White Heat Least: The Gift
I think theres a reason that people mostly talk about "The Velvet Underground & Nico" in regards to The Velvet Underground as group because while the whole nature of their work is experimental or avant garde in nature... Some of it is too much so to be enjoyable for the average person. Frankly the only song I kind of liked here was "I Heard Her Call My Name" and the rest was absolutely not for me, ESPECIALLY "The Gift" the 2 channel use on that song drives me fucking crazy I h a t e it. And y'know what I bet Sister Ray sounds life-changing if you just shot some smack into your veins
I love when someone takes garbage and turns it into art. I hate when someone, posing as an artist, produces garbage and tries to convince you that it's art.
I’m not sure all of that was actual music.
I didn't like this. They were trying SO HARD to be counterculture it just comes off cringey.
I went in biased because I saw the little blurb on Apple Music refer to this as The Velvet Underground’s noise album. My fears were confirmed. Absolute garbage.
Some of this will always be more in the admire/respect camp, but from their own telling it was a failure technically, the product of amateurs enthralled with the sound of distortion and loud guitars, something anyone who has been in a practice space will understand. Reed’s lyrical concerns have never interested me and their “boundary-pushing” a bourgeois, adolescent fascination, a tourist on holiday, maybe provocative in its time but quickly tamed. At times his performance has the sensibility of a 6 year-old giggling at the word fart.
A bunch of noise
2.5/10
Struggling to think of anything positive to say about this. Jarring guitars that sound like they're being bashed against a wall, coupled with awful vocals and mumblings. The only thing that would be a positive would be if I never have to endure any more Velvet Underground ever again which, given the nature of this list so far, is pretty unlikely.
Could not stand this. Not for a second. Sorry.
I do not like the Velvet Underground. This isn't good and their vocalist is so annoying. There are decent parts, but not great overall. Liked Songs: "White Light/White Heat" , "Here She Comes Now"
Stupid album by a stupid band 1.5
Didn’t love this one
Die Frage ist nicht, ob die Katze beim Hören gestorben ist – sondern ob es Gnade war. Dieses Album klingt, als hätte jemand Feedback zur Kunstform erklärt und vergessen, wieder aufzuräumen. Verzerrung, Dissonanz, ein 17-minütiger Krach-Monolith namens „Sister Ray“, der klingt wie ein Stromausfall im Irrenhaus. Die Künstler wollten Noise – sie haben ihn bekommen. Avantgarde? Vielleicht. Hörbar? Kaum. Am Ende bleibt nur Stille. Und die klingt plötzlich wie Mozart.
Didn't get this at all.
Beznadziejne czuć że słabo nagrane
Holy shit, this is not good. I want to like it. I really do.
The music is extremely simple and boring and the guitars are covered with feedback and distortion that makes them tough to listen to. The lyrics are repetitive on most of the songs, and there's even a meandering spoken word track. It's not the worst album on this list but it still gets a 1.
no thank you
This faded into the background..... until it started to annoy me. Sorry Phyl.
Listened Before? N What a pile of pretentious garbage. Apparently they fired Andy Warhol before they recorded this one.... I hate Andy Warhol - but he would have improved this record. What a noisy turd. My first TRUE one star rating. Added to Library? N Songs added to playlist: Here She Comes Now (because it was short and the only song that had any coherence to it).
Underwhelming :/ and ew
Never actually listened to these before but I was aware of their Andy Warhol album so I was quite excited going in. However I just couldn't get past what felt like messy instrumentals and slurred vocals. Maybe it was just the style of the time and I can see how in a time of very "clean" music it could be viewed as a bit rebellious but I really struggled to enjoy any of it.
Well... there's that. Love you John Cale, but this ain't it.
I don't get it, this group continues to be overrated to me.
I didn't enjoy 1 second.
Garbage. Beat poets with amplifiers. I can't stand beat poets. I'd gladly listen to 100 hours of that Captain Beefheart Fish Head album before I'd listen to this again.
Who is this for?
Terrible
What an insanely unpleasant album. Not one redeeming quality.
Pure noise. Not good.
Hated it, and I like the velvet underground other stuff
Thank god I didn’t listen to the deluxe version. Absolutely horrible. You must have to be high AF to think this is decent.
Quite messy. A little too much distortion and squeeking; way too much talking.
I hated every second of this. The subversive subject matter of the lyrics was newish at the time, but other than that I simply don't like/get Lou Reed's oeuvre. This sounds like the output of heroin-addled narcissists, which it is.
I am not cool enough to enjoy 90% of this. 0.4
This is mind numbing stuff. As much depth as a puddle. Does not belong in any best of lists and instead belongs in the dustbin of history.
What a shambles this is. Going by the Wiki entry the recording was rushed and chaotic and even the band thought the production was terrible. Why anyone would want to sit down and listen to this on the regular I have no idea
3eme album avec Lou Reed =>1/5 Je n'aime toujours pas son chant, et l'accompagnement est particulièrement désagréable dans cet album.
Er det noen som setter på dette frivillig?
Pretentious as can be. Indulgent. Hard to listen to.
Ah not my favorite band and least favorite album from them so far.
What the heck even is this?
This is experimental noise rock and the thing about experiments is they’re often a failure. 6 tracks and 40 minutes, meaning you get a 17 minute track that’s just slamming on instruments. If that were the only offense I could get over it, but it’s not. The opening track ends with cringe inducing noise; “The Gift” is story time with minor background music; “Lady Godiva” starts ok until you get bad talk singing out of nowhere followed by an annoying heartbeat sound; and “I Heard Her Call My Name” has some really obnoxious guitar. Not since Pink Floyd’s debut album have I been so disappointed in an artist I otherwise like. This is bad and it should feel bad. 1/5
The gift... Can I send it back? Awful album, not surprised I've never heard of them before.
Goodness me! That was shit!
Just because every band I love loves this album doesn't mean I have to. 1/5
Had to listen to this AND Bjork yesterday. Not my finest musical day.
White light / white shit!
a failed experiment? Tracks to Track: White Light/White Heat
Proof that Americans can make noise.
I had to turn the volume way down on my headphones to survive that seventeen minute shitfest at the end
Unlistenable. Terribly recorded to boot
Honestly unlistenable in parts. The distorted guitar that got them all the acclaim wasn't intended and the band didn't like it? Give me a break.
painful
Just wasn't pleasant or even interesting
This wasn’t an easy album or something I enjoyed. Most of the guitars are too distorted sounding just as noise. One song was too long without really catching my attention.
Didn't get this at all. Half listened earlier in the week and came back to listen properly today. Too avant-garde, not a fan of the vocals, lyrics not great. The final song sister ray, at 17 minutes final nail in the coffin.
this sucks
What in the Christ on a bike was that! Just cause you can be experimental doesn’t mean you should or are good at it! I will say one thing though I think they may have invented the Audiobook with the track The Gift…. Poor Waldo!
Noise. No Songs.
Sheesh. You can hear that these are some great musicians. But for the love of Pete, who gave them so many drugs? Hate to high hell. Perhaps with exception of the few classical rock and roll tracks.
I just don't like this band.
Not my vibe
No. It's more than just sounds because I can say that it's rock, but it's just barely more than sounds.
Profoundly annoying and aimless. Oh look, Lou Reed is involved. Hard no.
I can't do this one. Couldn't finish it. 1 star.
Thank goodness it's over. Of the 40 minute runtime, 20 percent of it is one song that is just a story. 1 star.
Unlistenable.