Reviews (page 5 of 9)
Don't know if I've ever listened to this one before. Nice stuff.
Boring and unenjoyable.
Could've been a pretty good album but the vocals just kinda break it for me.
I think as a pretentious music major I’m supposed to be in love with this but I really can’t find it. The title track is the first one where I sort of got it, then I’ll keep it with mine is a great song. I want a strokes cover of I’ll keep it with mine. Otherwise, Lou reed and co are holding it down for some terrible terrible vocal Melodies. The production is great, instrumentals are pretty good, but this is one I can not get behind.
I actually quite liked this album. These Days is a great song, and the rest of the album is good too. I'll definitely be coming back especially as we are bound to pull the other velvet underground record. I think the flute is overused, and I can't tell if I like the production or not. I feel like this album could've been better stripped down a little more. Idk though. My curiosity will bring me back another time once I get off my 1001 album catchup bender. I'm feeling a light 4 for now
I felt mixed on this one. I love these days (although I prefer when Jackson Browne sings it) and also the winter song. I actually enjoyed most of this record, the arrangements and orchestration was so good. I can't quite decide whether I liked this partly because of Nico's singing or in spite of it. It definitely is unique. I'm feeling a 3 on this, I think if I had spent more time with Tanner in high school I'd like it even more. solid 3/5
Never heard of this artist. A little mellow for my taste. Pretty music pretty voice. Not for me though
Though I really enjoyed most of this album there is a bit of saminess that kind of keeps it from being really high in my book. But at its best it's like an album version of "Ruby Tuesday" I think the strings were a bit high in the mix too for me but I caught glimpse of a mono mix that may have had it a little bit more in sync so I may have to try that version. Her voice isn't really what I like but what I but I think it's effective. 8.33 ★★★★
Melancholic, sad, dramatic, mellow and experimental. Right up my alley, I love this. 5 stars
This is a really cool album that acts as sort of a prettier, less-abrasive cousin to The Velvet Underground debut. Lou Reed, John Cale, and Sterling Morrison act as the backing band for about half the album, with Jackson Browne showing up for the other half. The songs are all very good, with Reed, Cale, and Browne contributing most of the tracks with songs from Dylan and Tim Hardin rounding out the set. The whole affair kind of mixes chamber folk with some art-rock elements and has a really cool, unique sound. Despite my fondness for the VU, I probably give the slight edge to the Jackson Browne stuff here -- "These Days", "I'll Keep it With Mine", and "The Fairest of the Seasons" are the standouts for me -- but I think the VU stuff acts as a nice, weird complement to the prettier Browne tracks. 4 stars.
Conan The Barbarian sings Parsley Sage Rosemary & Thyme but the songs are all listless and dirge like. Halfway through a strong gust of some kind blows away all the string section’s sheet music and they do the most scratchy, waily, droney free form for about 8 minutes. Not for me, Clive.
hauntingly beautiful album. if you don’t like it i’m sorry but you’re stupid
Better than expected but my expectations were really low.
Not for me. 1/5
Her voice is dreadful. Maybe it could grow but not for me
When I first heard her voice I thought this could be something very interesting but as the songs passed nothing really jumped out at me as something special.
This was Nico’s first solo album after her work with The Velvet Underground, and it took me a little time to get into it, but it’s really grown on me. The album is deeply rooted in folk, but what makes it so special is the strong influences of baroque pop and chamber pop throughout. It has that melancholic, dreamy atmosphere, filled with lush arrangements. Although the songs were written by other artists, with Lou Reed, Jackson Browne, and Bob Dylan contributing, Nico’s haunting, almost ethereal vocals really bring the whole album together. It’s like listening to a folk tale sung by a mysterious witch in the woods, her voice has that deep, haunting quality that sticks with you long after the album ends.
Not really for me, her vocals are grating and difficult to listen to. Shame, because some (just some) of the guitar is well done. Maybe if you're tanked on Cocaine and Weed and covered in daisy chains you can dig this.
Hui - findi schwierig... Singt sie nüd immer ächli schräg?
the fairest of the seasons isch jo suuuper cute mega schöni instrumentierig. und super schöne song? aha logisch jackson browne song. ich lieb ihm. these days jazzier. schöni giti! au er. ihri stimm aber au nöd z vernichlässige. oke bi little sister findi ihren vibratolose gsang langsam chli nervig. song immerno schön. aber chli monoton de gsang. winter song sehr klangteppich sehr interessant mag d flöte. de text isch glaub bewusst holprig. it was a pleasure zeigt etz labgsam dass schono avantgarde stuff debi isch do. lou reed gschriebe und ihri stimm wacklet genau ade richtige stelle. drop D feedback gitarre seeehr cool. okay fun het sich nöd agfühlt wie 8 minute. chelsea girls kenni glaub. meint sie d lauren james und d sam kerr? ihren akzent mit de ziit swirig. schluss aber meeega geil wells sich harmonisch veränderet. keep it with mine dylan song und fangt au so ah haha. oke cool. eulogy to lenny bruce isch heaaaaaavy oooh mein gott. aber geil. sehr cool. sehr dark.
chelsea grill HAHAHAH HÄ ghörtmer au bi the velvet underground so krass ihre akzent? ja würds jz nöd als lieblingslied bezeichne aber ihri stimm isch cool, dass mussmer halt sege little sister findi richtig apathisch hii und daa no schöni flöte als understriichig aber finds echli sehr kitschig puh finds reecht ahstrengend it was a pleasure then het wenigstens chli öppis komischs wo ich na cool find? aber grundsätzlich jo :( hmm au chelsea girls het chli öppis...aber muss au sege isch ener tüfi messlatte oke nei chelsea girls hani echt na cool gfunde! ouh nei di arm :( sie het d flöte nöd gern gha :( OK WART IWIE GFALLTSMER JZ NA? oke ja ich glaub ich loses gad nomal, ich glaub ich han chli ziit brucht aber jz cheggis echli? hanis gfühl zumindest finds gad soo beruhigend! find jz au d strings echli too much aber d gitarre, paart mit ihrere komische, tüfe stimm, findi suuuper es het chli öppis haunting und ihre akzent hilft jz findi? würkli lustig, iwie hets mega klick gmacht bide letschte lieder vom album grosses fetts 4i
It's alright
this was Nico's debut album after collaborating with the Velvet Underground and was named after the Andy Warhol film in which she starred. a relatively simple album combining 60s baroque pop (think baroque compositional techniques mixed with rock to create a majestic, orchestral sound) with chamber folk over sparse instrumentation and beautiful composition. a really wonderful album.
Tom Wilson is one of the more interesting NPCs of the sixties. (NPC in quotation marks. Anything but) Nico…odd to hear a voice so strong, yet so resolutely stuck within a narrow register. It’s like listening to drone music with lyrics.
It's depressing to me that Jackson Browne is only represented in this book through songs he had written and performed by another artist. I realize in 1967 Jackson Browne wasn't really "a thing" and it was nice to have his songs recorded by other artists. It's a bit of a bummer this is his only good representation in this book. Nico was also my least favorite part of the Velvet Underground's debut album. I simply don't find her as interesting as I am supposed to. She doesn't even have that good of a voice and she only co-writes one song on here. So, what's the draw? I spent most of The Fairest of the Seasons wishing I could hear Jackson Browne's version of the song. Nico didn't love the instrumentation that was added, but I have to believe upon hearing the song the producer(s) realized they needed to add more to this because there isn't much else to go on here. For me, this is another example of the curators of this list putting an album they have great nostalgia for on this list at the expense of the music actually being good. At best, I guess this album influenced other artists to play music. This seems to be the same reasoning for putting everything the Velvet Underground laid to tape in the book as well. Both artists were very influential in their own way, but at what point do we acknowledge the influence while leaving out the inferior music? The point is right here. I just don't love this one and take away the flute and strings, what the hell else is going on to enjoy?
Oh my god this was a slog to get through, I didn’t want to give it a 1 but I think I have to
…And welcome to everyone’s favorite show, Do You Believe In Life After The Velvet Underground! This is certainly an interesting album. I hadn’t really thought about the fact that Nico had albums on this list, but, I guess I was wrong. This album is not what I expected it to be. I thought it was going to be some weird experimental album, but I was pleasantly surprised to realized that it teetered more towards the side of baroque pop. The songs an are decently good, Nico has a good, strong voice, although it can kind of begin to drone when you hear it for a whole album. The songs also have some instrumental help from members of The Velvet Underground(So that’s a no if you were waiting for the answer to the question I posed earlier.) The album also has a variety of string arrangements, which sound pretty good, even though Nico was upset to realize they were added without her consent, which I get. I don’t feel this album has much I’d come back to, but it was still a decent album.
I can appreciate this but it’s just a bit boring.
2.5
Moody and Intimate, Nico's voice weaves a nice listen to sit down and drift away too
Yess I love a couple songs from this record already (the first two) so I was pumped to see this album included! I think it's a 4 star album, BUT if the weather is chilly and I'm feeling a bit melancholic this is a 5/5 album.
Really like her voice and a few songs really stand out for me on this one
Love her voice, but most songs blended together (not unpleasantly).
nico “tolerable in small doses on the VU debut” warhol hisses and hoots her way through a whole album of orchestral folk. “these days” is all right; the orchestral freakout on “it was a pleasure then” is cool; and “chelsea girls” hits that “all tomorrows parties” sadness, but it’s too long. can’t say i totally understand nico. something tells me if she looked like mama cass, nico wouldn’t have happened. which is no shade on mama cass—if anything, it speaks to her greatness. i guess there’s a certain tragic beauty to this, but i’m not sure it’s for the reasons those involved intended. apparently she didn’t like the flute. listen, nico, the flute ain’t the problem.
i liked the first two tracks, turns out its because the fellas from velvet underground wrote them. she sings with the energy of my 8 year when I'm trying to get him to school on time. meh
Haunting tunes, marred by baffling arrangement choices and subpar production
It has never been an easy path for Nico, the icy Teutonic muse for many and any who come across her path. Wherever she may roam, her traces leave a mark that would linger, presumably, for the remainder of time. Chelsea Girls, her first solo outing after a contentious stint with The Velvet Underground, is an example of such dealings while not being wholly representative of what would become her later outings. More indebted to Dylan and Cohen in sound than Reed and Cale, Chelsea Girls is the cold chill that pushes along the fallen leaves surrounding the tombstone that was a way of being in 1960s New York; an unveiling of darker overtones after a colorful car crash. It does not come as a surprise that Nico would turn her back on all of this and descend down a dark path that often appeared to have completely swallowed her whole and make her re-emergences all the more improbable. This is the closest that we will ever get to Greenwich Village Nico, even if she is largely taciturn in reception and sharp around the edges in regards to accessibility. Favorites: The Fairest of the Seasons, These Days, It Was a Pleasure Then, Chelsea Girls, I'll Keep It With Mine, Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams.
Meh. It's folksy and old fashioned.
Not a very compelling singer. I did not listen to much of this album.
This album sucks. No two ways about it. It's like I'm walking with a fairy in a forest. But that fairy has a cold and is probably a smurf.
7/10, these days is such a classic
nice enough
DogShit!
🌟 Rating: 4.2/5 📝 Short Review: This album sounds like it’s being sung to you from the end of a dimly lit hallway in a European art film. Strings float like ghosts. Nico’s voice? Deep, detached, heavy with knowing. It’s beautiful in that way old photographs are beautiful—grainy and sad and oddly glamorous. 🎧 Favorite Track: These Days Perfect for staring out of a window you don’t own, wondering where it all went sideways. ⚙️ Consistency With Me: 9.1/10 Because I, too, contain multitudes: icy elegance, emotional standoffishness, and an affinity for being misunderstood by 87% of the population. This is melancholy with taste. Now go light a candle and pretend it’s 1967 and you’re wearing turtlenecks unironically.
Flirting with one-star territory. If we only graded precociousness, this is a five-hit wonder for sure. Tell Zamfir to calm down on the flute.
Tend to agree with the artist’s own assessment: “I still cannot listen to it….The first time I heard the album, I cried and it was all because of the flute.”
my sleep paralysis demon is Nico's voice
The first two songs are great, then it devolves into a Velvet Underground album.
Honestly a miserable listen and put me right to sleep
Nico does a 45 minute medieval bard impression. Nothingburger
Yeah….. 3 tracks in and I noped out. No one should ever listen to this before they die. It’s just boring as all hell, and the singer’s voice just does not work at all. Maybe if she sang in German, I’d enjoy it more, but as it is I could not even bother with this album further than I made it.
The forbidden fifth Velvet Underground album... pretty neat, folky and artsy, not quite as exciting as a VU album but it's got enough aura to be cool
Boring, bad singing, and according to Wikipedia she was a racist.
like the raw and minimal feel of the sound. if only it was more diverse in terms of melodies, it wouldnt be that boring.
Great songs, but I can’t take more than 15 minutes of bad Nico singing.
Pretty calm but not bad
👎🏼
I hate the way she sings.
Nico is kewl
The local door dealers did well on these sessions. Seems like I'd need some to get some enjoyment from this album. It's just the same gentle floaty pop song over and over.
60s pop
As a fan of the Velvet Underground, I wanted to like this album. However, I just couldn’t.
this was good but i can't give it more then a 2... i just didn't vibe with it at all, but it was good music. the 60's singer songwriter stuff i just don't like.
I love women on the list however this was just boring. No soul at all but I understand why I listened to it.
This album is the musical equivalent of a starchy meal: it's satisfying but leaves you kind of sleepy at the end. Nico's cottony voice seems to be divisive, but I think she's just right for these tracks. I think I can safely say that I enjoy this over anything by the Velvet Underground. Favorite tracks: "The Fairest of the Seasons," "These Days"
Lovely album. Good instrumentals and vocal work. A bit on the samey side.
Absolutely captivating. Gorgeous melodies and instrumentation. Played 3 times today. Strangely comforting. Iconic and singular voice. 5/5
Wtf is this
Not my cup of tea at all.
Not my kind of music
If I had been alive in the 60s I think I would have loved this. A lot of cool musical moments and nicos voice grew on me but I think it's best in smaller doses like on the velvet underground albums. I enjoyed it but probably won't listen again
I generally like folk AND 60s weird shit so I was predisposed to like this -- and I did, at first. But it overstayed its welcome. Jesus, Nico's sustained notes in Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams almost drive this down to a 2. I simply do not think she's good singer, but her ideas are interesting.
Why does everyone hate this album? It's so good and that flute, my goooooooooooooooooooood.
This album has some haunting moments. Some are haunting in a good way, some not.
Yeah it’s ok
Nice album. I like Nico's voice.
Favorite Track: These Days
This album sounds like a parody of an album. Very unusual voice, strong, german accent and a silly melodies just don't work together at all. One of the more grating records on this list.
Bizarre listen. She can't sing very well but her German accent makes it oddly soothing. The musicianship is really good which makes sense when you see who wrote most of the music. Its got some weird medieval fair sounding elements mixed with other minimalist aspects.
I heard she wasn’t into the orchestration. Sorry I know it was her record but I feel like she was wrong. The sparse guitar backing, Nico’s haunting vocals and the orchestration all work perfectly together.
..
Ooh lol not my thing
Phew, what a load of artificial artistic crap. Just because Andy Warhol had a hand in it, this album had to be on the list. The album is so boring that I could have left it on in the background if it weren't for Nico's voice and vocals. 1/5
Good, but not great
Way too baroque for me. While I love the addition of her vocals with Velvet Underground as a pace change, she does not stand well on her own in my opinion.
I know of Nico from the album she did with The Velvet Underground (a five-star album for me), but I’ve never heard any of her solo work before. If Chelsea Girl is anything like that, I think I’ll be in for a good time! Overall, I think Chelsea Girl was pretty good. The arrangements were really beautiful and fun to listen to, and Nico’s unique vocals worked really well with the music in my opinion. While the arrangements were nice and enjoyable, they weren’t particularly earth-shattering or game-changing in my opinion, but I didn’t mind listening to it. There wasn’t a lot of variation in the sound of this album, but I felt like Nico played to her strengths, which kept this album pretty accessible in my opinion. I don’t really have any strong opinions about the songwriting, but it’s cool that Jackson Browne did some of the songwriting on this album, not to mention playing guitar on it. As far as individual songs go, “Little Sister” was easily the best of the bunch. The organ and flute sounded fantastic, and I loved when the strings kicked in. Nico’s vocals were perfect for the lyrics. I’m not 100% sure what this song was about, but it sounded to me like it was someone giving their sister advice as she left home, and I thought it was really beautiful. “I’ll Keep It With Mine” was great too. The strings were so bright; they felt like sunshine coming in through the blinds on a Sunday afternoon. The guitar rounded out the sound really well, and it was just a very enjoyable song to listen to. While I wasn’t wowed by this album, it was really pleasant, and it wasn’t what I’d typically gravitate towards, so I appreciated experiencing something different.
It's fine but completely unimpressive. I don't really enjoy slow, melancholic music, so this wasn't that engaging, but I can't say it's bad. Not gonna lie, the first thing I thought when playing this album is "Wait, this is the woman from The Velvet Underground?" which gives "Kratos from Fornite" vibes. She does have a pretty unique voice and delivery.
No
I've avoided Nico until recently, put off by the racism and general Nordic Aryan vibe, despite being a fan of her work with the Velvets. But this was quite odd and intriguing for not sounding quite like anything else at the time. And a bit more accessible than some of her other solo work, from what I've heard.
This started off really strong, but then fell away for the final third or so. It gets a little sharp in places. It Was a Pleasure Then, isn't a pleasure now. Bonus star for the flute. All three star albums need a flute, right?
Not terrible. Better than Joni Mitchell. 2.5/5
Not for me seems like she isn’t a great person
Good artist
First listen
I think, no, I know I would rather have brain surgery than listen to this album again.
While there are some great songs, this is overall a tough listen. The production is a bit too minimalist and rough around the edges.
It was the forlorn sound of the local wino in a dual carriageway underpass
Lush autumn main character vibes. These Days is a masterpiece, and such a unique voice as well.
high 3, very nice
Pre-listening thoughts: well I am confused by her political views but I'm just going to try to listen to this without trying to decipher those Post/during listening thoughts: Her voice isn't spectacular but jesus these instrumentals are. I am a sucker for strings like this. But some of these songs are just slightly too repetitive and droning for me. Some of this I messed with and some of it I did not as much. 6/10 DID I NEED TO HEAR THIS BEFORE I DIE: no Fav tracks: Fairest of the Seasons, These Days Least fav tracks: Little Sister, Chelsea Girls
I've said before that I have a hard time with Nico's voice. On 'Chelsea Girl' she is often completely buried in strings or orchestral flourishes that don't do her or the songs any favors. Jackson Browne's writing and guitar playing are my favorite parts of the album. "These Days" is devastating regardless of who's performing it. (I did go listen to Browne's version of the song after the album was over as a palette cleanser.) Again, too bad about the singing and the strings. Unbelievable as it seems to me, the eight-minute "It Was A Pleasure Then" was my favorite track. Her vocals worked with the sonic freakout and her high-pitched "ooo"s were effective.
Christ this is so fucking boring. And it's just so bad.
It sounds medieval and boring. In addition to being grating, the singer's voice doesn't fit the backing instruments at all, and the audio tracks sound like they were unmixed or at the very least mixed extremely poorly.
Its everything I thought it would be and less
such a classic, love nico so muchh!! her voice and her music is so unique, i’m so happy to have the chance to listen to this album since, i didn’t have the chance to do so. i love how individual the instrumentals are compared to the melody, apart from the strings.
No Velvet Underground, no fun!
no thanks
2.1
I don’t understand the negative reviews for this one at all. Most of this is a stunningly beautiful album (not sure what "It Was a Pleasure Then" was supposed to be). There’s a reason Velvet Underground were never better than when they were working with Nico. Really a 3 (most of it is a 4, but “It Was a Pleasure Then” costs it a star), but fuck the haters.
I really can't stand her voice! The song "Chelsea Girls" could be great but this version s*****. 1,5
Love/hate on this one. An entire album of Nico’s singing is usually too much, but there are moments where it really works, almost ironically. Which can also be annoying. That said, she somehow made a James Taylor song enjoyable, so points for that.
Not really the same without the velvet underground 2/5
I've never heard Nico's solo music before. I read the "Personal life" section of her Wikipedia page once and now I roll my eyes whenever I see Nico anywhere. It's a good thing that I don't really like her music either, a match made in heaven 2/5
Pretty much only because of the music itself, this is a 2.
Pretty Decent. I usually listen to albums for this at night so this was a fittingly calm album. I'm surprised at how much some people on this site hate this thing. It feels pretty inoffensive for the most part. 8/10
I think a woke up in a bad midevil fair. But the music is worse.
Como consumir isso? Pergunta sincera!
Really enjoyed this album, beautiful guitar, ethereal vocals, loved it
The usual two star. First heard of Nico through Velvet Underground.
só consegui pensar em velvet underground pra ouvir e o site me recomenda nico rs vou considerar sinal do destino
Yes, quite like Nico, even though it sounds like her voice is being played through a warped cassette tape. This album goes on a little bit too much with little variation in song style.
Not terrible but not great either. Decent 60's folk sound, made for good background music.
Breathtaking album. The strings are exquisite and I adore Nico's voice
She has a unique contralto and the strong accent gives it a strangely bohemian quality, while the sparse arrangement, courtesy of various stalwarts of the Velvet Underground and Andy Warhol entourage gives the whole a chamber pop feel. Band mates and in one case Bob Dylan supply songs which are well suited to her. Apparently she hated the result, wanting more of a solid band feel than the quasi folk atmosphere producer Tom Wilson opted for. I think she was probably right. She seems emotionally quite apart from the accompaniment, as if she wasn’t in the same city let alone the same room. The arrangements and song selection create rather a monotonous effect tonally.
oh my.. this was not good. She may do excellent as a singer in a band but the solos work leave much to be desired. Aside from slow, dull song, her voice is often flat and lacks range
This fucking sucked. Dreary, whiny, dull, self indulgent SHIT.
I think Nico’s sexy midtown Manhattan girl vibe has carried her reputation a lot further than the music deserves. Some high points (Chelsea Girl, these days) but mostly forgettable in my opinion.
2.9
It’s relatively hard to listen to. I do like her on the Velvet Underground record, but that’s also because of the music and atmosphere. The music and atmosphere on here is not that great
Songs that reach the heart
Me gusta el plan guitarra cuerdas voz, pero al finale durmio un poco. 3.5
es raro, me gusta lo que escucho pero me aburre un poco
Wtf
Hadde dessverre ikke noe til overs for denne stemmen. Tok veldig mye fokus i lydbildet. Fungert bedre med litt lysere stemme, tenker JEG. Ellers smått kjedelig.
Mørk psykedelisk folk, monotont med mye eksperimentering (til tider noe mye) men dette fungerer i riktig humør og setting.
I know and like very much the album by The Velvet Underground and Nico. So I really expected something special when this album turned up. But, oh no, ... first song ... ok, it's terrible but something better must come second song ... ok, it's also terrible but something better must come third song ... ok, it's also terrible but something better must come and so it continued until tenth song ... oh, no, it's even worse than the first nine A really terribly boring album
really interesting sound from this album, almost classical inspired folk rock with ambient strings, mildly operatic singing. it's very relaxing, for the most part. it's a sort of peculiar artistic energy that someone like andy warhol would have. i do like the songs themselves, but man it takes a bit to get used to nico's singing voice, she really likes to enunciate every word and has a very... deep sound with how lyrics are sung. despite this hurdle these songs are pretty beautiful. this album isn't perfect. it's awkward, slow, flawed... but that's why it's so compelling to listen to i think.
It's funny, because I love the first three Nico albums, but I don't really enjoy the banana one, which is supposed to be a milestone of its generation. Maybe it's an age thing; I see that album as a cornerstone for the modernity era _of my dad_. Maybe the shock factor is lost and that's the reason I don't really enjoy it. Whatever. This debut from Nico is haunting. It's not as folkish as the second one (which I adore), but it's already charming and tremulous. Definitely coming back to it, not sure if while driving because it could lead me to a rapture-induced accident.
I love it! I will marry this album!
Not my bag, baby
Mooie liedjes, waarom die lelijke geluiden tussendoor?
Sounds like Bjork after she took some nyquil
something something Warhol something something The Velvet Underground something something blah blah blahhhhh Only salvageable song is These Days
Nico is that girl in high school who can’t sing but decided to write a full album’s worth and sings so low for no reason. Maybe she’s even more out of tune in the higher range? I don’t want to know! Couldn’t finish. 1.4
Nice music (mostly strummy and fingerpicked guitars with orchestral accents), but heavily accented singing voice is an acquired taste. It's intriguing, but not one I'm in a rush to listen to again... Highlights: "These Days", "Winter Song" (sounds like a Renaissance song with flutes), "I'll Keep It With Mine" (Bob Dylan song and I can hear his cadence especially in the verses) Notable: "It Was a Pleasure Then" (Velvet Underground has gotta be backing her up on this one..."Heroin" vibes with the dissonant cello sounds)
i'll keep it with mine and these days are nice songs
I enjoyed this album listen! I already liked the song “These Days” so it was a nice time listening to the full album. In terms of vocal technicality and pitch her voice isn’t my favorite because sometimes she sounds very monotone or slightly off/ under the pitch. But if you are looking for a solid folk rock album I would give this a listen!
Very poor
Meh
I still don't even know if I *like* her voice, but I'm certainly captivated by it. And the songs are great. 4/5
Pretty decent music for a massive racist
I knew the popular track: "These Days". I really like the tune and instrumentation on various tracks: "These Days", "Chelsea Girls", "The Fairest of the Seasons", "Winter Song". But I'm really not into her voice/delivery -- seems like she's struggling with English pronunciation. And some songs are tougher to get through (e.g. "It Was A Pleasure Then").
I wanted to like this more, and waffled between a 2 or 3 star, but Nico herself gave me the permission structure to give it the lower grade since she claimed the album was unlistenable because of the instrumentation... which ironically was what held the album together at times.
Uhhhhh
Albums to Avoid While You Live…..
LOVELY BEST ALBUM EVER I LOVE THIS SHIT
Okay.
Rating: 6/10 Probably biased towards Nico because of the Velvet Underground's debut, but I like her voice. The instrumentation is pretty interesting as well, even though her voice throughout the entire album gets a little stale towards the end since it lacks variety.
Really calm and beautiful
The Fairest Of The Seasons // These Days // Chelsea Girls // Wrap Your Troubles In Dreams // 3.5/5
Meh
You people don’t like these days?
too sleepy
Irgendwie irritierte mich das Ganze...
When it’s good it’s really fucking good. When it’s not good it’s pretentious and meandering. I think These Days makes up for most of the sins itself though.
Very different voice, not exactly beautiful. German singer debut. Collaboration with Velvet Underground and Dylan. Some disonance. Some pretty songs. Hate the German accent.
Not my vibe at all. Very depressing in a bad way. Emotional albums with a somber mood can be great. This one isn't if you ask me.
I agree with Nico that this would have been much more interesting with guitars and drums and not strings and flute all over the place. It is a shame that she couldn't have put forward more of here own musical vision.
Downbeat and rueful chansons with New York folk twist - I'd love to hear it without the additional strings/wings that were added by the producer, they rob the album of some much-needed darkness. Monotonous but sadly not in a fun droney way, most of the time. Favourite tracks: It Was A Pleasure Then (good drone!), Chelsea Girls, Eulogy to Lenny Bruce
It's not bad actually, I think some of you just hate women.
Sounds like the emperor's new clothes looks... Unless Lou Reed makes an appearance.
These days is such a gorgeous song. Parts of the album are a bit out there but overall enjoyed
Starts strong but tails off towards the end. The first two songs are great though so bonus points for that.
Started strong, ended weak - too messy with no thread running throughout. I will say I found the other reviews to be harsh critics of her voice. I wouldn't describe it as "angelic" or pitch perfect, but it has a raw moody quality that I enjoyed. Not for everyone I suppose.
Ooh! Nico! Her version of "These Days" is probably in the top 50 of my favorite songs of all time. I also love "Fairest of the Season" but not nearly as much as I love "These Days." But! I haven't listened to this record in full since I was a teenager who had discovered her by listening to the Velvet Underground. I had an art piece that hung in my room that said "Please don't confront me with my failures, I have not forgotten them." I remember not being crazy about the entire record, and I'm curious if that will still be my impression now that like almost twenty years has gone by. "Little Sister" has a great little arrangement with the strings but I'm not sure how much I really like the song. The lyrics are too cliche about what you would like write down as your first thoughts when thinking of what it means to have a little sister. "Winter Song" I don't know that I care for it one way or another, but something this song makes me think about is how unique her voice truly is when compared to other singers of her era. Where other people often go for like how high someone can sing, I think that Nico often went for how low she could go (and how to add the certain je n'ai sais quoi of Nico to the song). Is it that she's German? "It Was A Pleasure Then" is the song so far that reminds me the most of the Velvet Underground and while I was listening, I ended up pulling up the album's wikipedia page just to read it over...funny that this one was written by Cale and Reed. Something that made me laugh reading the wiki was that some of what I love best about the album (the strings and flutes) were basically put there post-recording and without Nico's opinion. Apparently she hated the flutes so much they made her cry upon hearing the record as she felt it overshadowed the whole thing. I guess we'll have to agree to disagree on that one, Nico. She had also asked for drums and there are almost no drums on the album at all, another thing I might disagree with her on...I like it without! "Chelsea Girls" oh I had forgotten about you! How much I love you. I have got to remember to listen to this song more often. Maybe I always loved it because I used to sort of daydream about how cool it would have been to be able to hang out at the Factory throughout my teens. "I'll Keep It With Mine" I didn't know was written by Bob Dylan. I can sort of hear a bit of him in it, especially in how the guitar is played throughout the track. "Somewhere There's A Feather" I now remember also really liking this song but didn't remember it upon looking at the tracklist before starting my listening. It's so funny how that sometimes happens when a song just sort of falls off of your radar. "Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams" is eh but I do enjoy the finger plucking on violin. Now for the final song "Eulogy to Lenny Bruce." I'm not sure that the last time I heard this album that I even really understood what a eulogy is or who the heck Lenny Bruce was. I think I have a bit better of a grasp on both of those things now. This is probably my least favorite song on the album, I don't know why I don't like it but I really don't...hah. Now knowing how much she didn't like the way this album was arranged, it's a shame that we never got recording copies of what she would have liked this album to be. I think that most of what I personally like about it wouldn't have been without those additional changes made after recording, but you never know...I might have really liked it? This was a nice nostalgia flashback especially because right now I'm waiting for a storm to roll in and am powering down for the night.
Nah, meh, blerg
First couple of songs I thought, great. The minimal background music gives it a certain timeless quality. But then it became very 60s psychedelic. Too 60s psychedelic. Boring. With an occasional good song thrown in here and there. Favorite song: these days.
1/5
Honestly not my favorite, dissonant sounds and barely audible vocals.
Was not a TERRIBLE to listen to, but certainly drags on. Outside of it having a certain 1960s Joni Mitchell-like, folk charm, I've quickly come to have a low opinion of Nico. She's in Andy Warhol's film which leads him to insist that she sing on The Velvet Underground's record, and then she releases a solo album full of songs she didn't write or compose, AND hardly actually sings on. She's mostly just talking. I'm not seeing the talent.
What absolute trash. I was in a bad mood before, but this made it 10x worse. It was NOT a pleasure
heard before
Enjoy a couple of the songs a lot.
Someone who wanted to be a singer and had money / connections to make an album happen.
Dreamy vocals
I like these one at a time - a whole album het voice starts to annoy me
Such a different voice, don't love it as it just feels so affected, like someone trying to pronounce Shakespeare "correctly" and just wrecking it as a result. It's quite rough in some songs like The Fairest of the Season while others like These Days it sounds more natural and less of an affectation. Little Sister the backing winds and winds make her voice seem flat in comparison. Winter Song has some nice instrumental parts. Writing of It Was a Pleasure Then was too meandering for me with no structure, did feel a lot like a pretentious "art piece" that's supposed to be impactful but doesn't have substance. Melody of I'll Keep You With Me is quite nice (vocals are weakest part of that one). Okay but also I feel like I'm at a Ren Faire the entire time (could be good or bad I guess). Anyways I guess there could be a time or place for this to be a vibe but it's overall not too worthy of consideration.
4/5 - I can imagine this is a Bob Dylan-type situation where Nico's vocals on this project can be incredibly polarizing, but it works for me. Really nice kind of hypnotic guitar loops paired with her singing makes for what can be an unsettling experience, especially on more abstract, longer-format tracks; think It Was A Pleasure Then. The orchestral accompaniment that litters a number of the songs in this project adds a great dimension to many songs that in its absence would be much more flat - it greatly helps to elevate the folk sound. I'd say this is a album defined considerably by its highs, but can be a bit more of a challenging listen unless you really have the appetite for it - I feel like you really need to be in the mood to wanna listen to this one.
Not my thing, didn't care for it. It's a lyrics album I suppose, and I don't always have the attention span to dive into them, but the music was quite meh.
Wasn’t expecting to like this after the first song, but the sound is strangely alluring. All the songs kind of hit the same note though, and her voice is quite pitchy.
Her genius would shine through in her following albums, where she was allowed to make the music she wanted, but this is a good start. First few tracks are excellent, 'These Days' is an all-timer, but it loses it's way a little bit after that. Not a bad listen, but it's nothing compared to something like Desertshore.
Really enjoyable. Tragic that no one listened to Nico and the direction she want to go with the album.
Wow this one was really really good!
On first listen I was like, well, her husky voice act isn’t my fave, and the faux Middle Ages madrigal instrumentation isn’t doing it any favors. But then, we realized it was having a lovely calming effect on our dog, Othello. So we played it a few more times. I guess it’s not that bad. Weird & eclectic & moody.
Instrumentation is nice, vocals aren't and this isn't a genre I care for. One thing I can say, though, is that the vocals are muddled as hell in this mix! I can barely hear her! That sucks, regardless of what I think of her voice! There's value in doing something new as a function of doing something new, but eventually you have to take something on its merits besides novelty. Just because it's a VU spinoff doesn't make it not frustrating. I gotta draw the line somewhere.
Her singing is pretty bad
This is the start of her Spotify bio...One of the most fascinating figures of rock's fringes, Nico hobnobbed, worked, and was romantically linked with an incredible assortment of the most legendary entertainers of the '60s. I include that because I feel like that explains this album and her ability to create a musical career. This wasn't good, her vocals are not great, the lyrcis are okay, and the musical arrangements don't do anything to help her voice. But she knew people that had money, she was pretty and they needed something to do with her (wikipedia says she lived with a music producer for 3 years and noticed her singing and said let's connect you with a band). For this album specifically, she didn't write multiple songs on this album and other people produced the songs in ways she didn't approve of (adding flutes and strings, she wanted drums). Which adds to the mess in this album. Too many hands were in it and nobody agreed on what it should be. To me this album is flawed because she wanted to be a musician and others around her just wanted to put a pretty face on an album. Leaving a mess of sound that feels like an amateur high schooler on an open mic night.
wow... can we get Joni Mitchell back?
If this album were released today, it would be violently ignored. It’s quite boring. I don’t think I care for Nico’s voice. She sounds like a little girl looking in the mirror playing dress up and pretending to be a proper adult in her game of make believe…oh, and she’s wearing a RIDICULOUS amount of makeup. Or it just sounds like she is just desperate to enunciate every single syllable properly in an effort to be completely understood. Aside that, the music is lovingly orchestrated in parts but all very insignificant and non-threatening.
If music was a raincloud, it would be this album. I'd be interested to hear it the way she wanted it, with drums and more guitar. It sucks she didn't want strings and flute, but the producer added them anyway. I generally like the sound of those instruments, but that wasn't her vision, and they didn't help make this any better. It's very drab and a bit of a downer. Even Nico didn't like it! It's also just her singing other people's songs, and her voice isn't even that great. This wasn't my thing.
Interessante Frau mit interessantem Lebenslauf. Aber Singen war keine gute Idee. Wobei so eine herbe, düstere, unperfekte Stimme schon einen eigenen Reiz hat.
Not the most riveting album, as the songs are very quiet and modest, but I very much enjoy Nico's voice and slightly exotic pronunciation. Would give a 3.5 if possible, but rounding it up because <3 Nico.
It was ok at best, I'm familiar with Nico from her work with the Velvet Underground, I quite like the sound of her voice even though she isn't a great singer, I just think the album is a little repetitive and lacks a bit on the production side of things.
nice little alternative and original album. not quite my palette,but appreciatethe originaility
I tried to like it, but her voice is just too monotone for me and the songs are too melancholy and not beautiful melancholy either. It almost sounds like she's tone deaf. The only thing interesting about this album is her accent.
Listenable music. Strange how I've never heard of this person, but know of groups influenced by her, partners of hers, etc.
I discovered the Velvet Underground around the same time I discovered Wes Anderson so naturally, I've got a soft spot for Nico. I've never quite loved this album, apart from a handful of specific songs. It's top loaded with the two best songs right at the start. But some others just didn't quite work for me. Reading the background has been very eye-opening though. Turns out that Nico absolutely hated the flutes and strings that were added against her wish and this explains so much! I can now picture an imaginary version of "Chelsea Girl" that's starker and layered with drums, perhaps more closely representing the Velvet Underground, whose members contributed several of the songs. It's a bit of a stretch because the strings are so prominent in these songs that I know so well. But I'm completely with Nico about the flute! "Little Sister" and the title song in particular always kind of grated on my nerves, despite being penned by her former bandmates. They'd have been much better without that flute, as would "Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams", though the latter manages to be brilliant regardless. Having said all of that, the album is what it is and the additions give it the distinctive character, whether Nico wanted them or not. I'm not entirely sure that the album would have worked as well without the strings. But the flutes should have never made it to recording and are the main thing keeping this one from reaching 5 stars. With apologies to Nico, who tried to stop them, it's not a perfect album, but it was close.
"The Fairest of The Seasons" is admittedly a well crafted tune, though I agree with Nico, it could use some drums and guitar, but then I guess it would not be the unique the chamber pop that was celebrated. I commend all involved for the advant grade effort of "It Was a Pleasure Then", but it just ends up sounding disconnected (which I guess could be the point given the lyrics), but I am not convinced the result was what was intended. I'm generally not a fan of The Velvet Underground or John Cale, so it is not entirely unsurprising that I didn't enjoy the result. I really don't think this album belongs on this list.
meh
YES. Love Nico. She managed to bottle some real feelings. Captures ups and downs, melancholy yet hopeful. I really dig the strings.. pretty interesting that Nico was opposed, haha. Feels like such a pure sound. Maybe this album could be considered a gumbo, since she was just surrounded by talented folks and contributors. All those cool New York cats. Just feels like so many layers of style and juice. I love everything about this album.
Chelsea Girl by Nico is essentially a Velvet Underground record with Nico as the lead singer and that isn't too bad. 3/5.
Cool album, not phenomenal, not terrible. A blend of pop with folk and classical themes with flutes and strings. Arrangements are nice, clean and low key. The vocals are strong with good actuation, but they sometimes don't quite fit in with the background melodies, as if they were parts of different songs. This is the main reason the album doesn't feel too great to me.
Interesting back story on her. "Jack of all trades, master of none" seems to apply here.
This sounds like music that would be in a Wes Anderson movie. (one web search later) Yep. I like Wes Anderson movies... I don't really dig this music. Props to Nico getting on this list with that voice. I don't even have words for "It Was A Pleasure Then"
Respectfully: what the fuck is this shit? I try to be open-minded about this list, give everything a fair shake, and accept that there are people out there who enjoy some things that I don't...but this was a rough listen.
Perhaps if I were in a much different headspace I may have enjoyed this.
Boring!
You know what, this album was beautiful. It really feels like she just took her best moments from her collab album with The Velvet Underground, and just turned it into an album of her own.
An absolutely beautiful album. The Fairest of the Seasons, Somewhere There's a Feather and Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams are all highlights, but These Days is truly in a league of its own. Just an unbelievably deep song that really makes you confront the passage of time and where you are in life. I loved how instrumental the album was (the strings!! the flutes!!) combined with the ghostly, ethereal quality of Nico's voice. Such a singular sound.
Much better than I remembered, though its a spotty record. I do love the cover of These Days (I think she might have been the first person to record it - long before Jackson recorded it himself).
These Days is one of the greatest songs of all time and even though she didn’t write it, Nico’s voice captures the haunting regret of it so perfectly. The rest of the album inevitably does not stack up but Chelsea Girls, I’ll Keep it with Mine, and Wrap your Troubles in Dreams are good. It gets pretty Warhol-y in the middle which I’m sure some people like but I found distracting. Still, These Days makes it a heavy 4.
Very boring. Sparse sounding. Monotone vocal singing sad songs.
Not for me at all. I can see how this was influential on many others though.
There are 4 songs on this that I was really into, and the rest were vaguely annoying like the Velvet Underground often are to me. I will not be returning to this album, but those 4 songs are bangers. Surprisingly emotional for such a monotone singer, too.
Good and Sorrowful and Easy Listening
Weirddddd
I didn't mind this, not sure i really enjoyed it either though.
1.0 - Awful
Attention chef-d'oeuvre, mais pas n'importe lequel. Pas le genre de chef-d'oeuvre qui vous saute à la gueule avec des guitares hurlantes ou des refrains que vous braillez sous la douche. Non, ici, on est dans une autre dimension. On est dans le genre de chef-d'oeuvre qui vous susurre des horreurs à l'oreille, qui vous glace le sang tout en vous caressant la joue. "Chelsea Girl", le premier véritable album solo de Nico, est un piège. Un piège magnifique, mais un piège quand même. À première vue, tout semble normal pour l'époque. 1967. La pochette, avec ce portrait de Nico, pourrait presque passer pour celle d'une énième chanteuse folk de Greenwich Village. On s'attend à de la douceur, à des fleurs dans les cheveux, à des chansons sur la paix et l'amour. Grave erreur. C'est tout le génie de ce disque : il se présente comme une brebis pour mieux vous dévorer comme un loup. Je me souviens, à la boutique, ce disque traînait souvent dans les bacs, juste à côté du Velvet Underground. Les clients le prenaient, le retournaient, intrigués. "Ah, c'est la chanteuse du Velvet ?". Oui et non. C'est bien elle, la déesse teutonne imposée par Warhol, mais ce qu'elle propose ici est à des années-lumière du chaos électrique de "White Light/White Heat". C'est la descente, le lendemain de la fête la plus déglinguée de l'histoire. C'est le silence pesant après les larsens. L'arme secrète, l'instrument principal, le venin et l'antidote de cet album, c'est la voix de Nico. Une voix sépulcrale, un chant funèbre qui semble venir d'outre-tombe. Elle ne chante pas, elle psalmodie. Elle ne vibre pas, elle constate. Chaque mot est pesé, détaché, prononcé avec un accent germanique qui transforme la moindre ballade en une messe noire. Elle chante l'amour perdu comme on lirait un rapport d'autopsie. C'est d'une froideur polaire, et pourtant, ça vous transperce le coeur. C'est là toute la dualité de ce disque. Et puis, il y a la musique. Et là, attention, c'est du lourd. Pensez donc : les chansons sont écrites par le gratin de la contre-culture de l'époque. On a du Lou Reed, du John Cale, et même un tout jeune Jackson Browne qui n'avait pas encore la moustache. On pourrait croire à une compilation de démos de luxe, mais Nico s'approprie chaque morceau avec une autorité déconcertante. Elle prend leurs chansons, souvent déjà bien plombées, et les aspire dans son propre trou noir. Les arrangements de Larry Fallon sont la deuxième clé du mystère. Oubliez la guitare saturée et la batterie tribale du Velvet. Ici, c'est un écrin de velours : des cordes baroques, une flûte mélancolique, des guitares acoustiques cristallines. C'est beau, c'est léché, c'est presque trop joli. Et c'est justement ce contraste qui est génialement pervers. Sur cette musique de chambre qui inviterait à la rêverie, la voix de Nico vient poser son linceul. C'est comme regarder un film d'Ingmar Bergman avec une bande-son de François de Roubaix. C'est déstabilisant, unique. Des titres comme "The Fairest of the Seasons" ou "These Days" (signés Jackson Browne) sont des merveilles de folk dépressif. On sent la solitude, la nostalgie d'un truc qui n'a peut-être jamais vraiment existé. "I'll Keep It with Mine", un cadeau de Dylan, devient sous sa langue une promesse glaciale. Et que dire de "Chelsea Girls", le morceau-titre écrit par Reed et Sterling Morrison ? C'est une visite guidée des bas-fonds chics de la Factory de Warhol, un poème sur la vacuité et la beauté vénéneuse de ces vies consumées par l'art et la drogue. On a souvent dit que Nico détestait cet album, trouvant les arrangements de cordes et de flûte trop "jolis", trop commerciaux. Elle aurait voulu un son plus brut, plus aride. Peut-être. Mais c'est justement cette tension entre la forme (la pop orchestrale) et le fond (le désespoir existentiel chanté sans le moindre pathos) qui fait de "Chelsea Girl" un disque si fascinant. C'est un album malade dans un corps de mannequin. Pendant que les hippies se roulaient des pelles à San Francisco en chantant l'avènement d'une ère nouvelle, Nico, elle, officiait seule dans sa crypte. Elle ne célébrait rien, elle constatait la fin. La fin de l'innocence, la fin des illusions. C'est un disque d'une maturité et d'une lucidité effrayantes. Aujourd'hui, "Chelsea Girl" n'a pas pris une ride. Il flotte hors du temps, hors des modes. C'est un diamant noir, parfaitement taillé, dont la beauté froide continue de fasciner. C'est un disque qu'on n'écoute pas pour se remonter le moral, mais pour se faire du bien en se faisant un peu de mal. Pour toucher du doigt une forme de beauté pure, intransigeante et terriblement humaine. Une pépite. Un indispensable pour quiconque s'intéresse à l'univers étendu du Velvet Underground et à la face sombre du "flower power". Un 5 sur 5 évident, pour l'un des plus beaux disques de chevet pour nuits blanches
Too experimental for it's own good in places, but overall a solid baroque-folk record. The fingerpicking guitar is engaging and particularly mesmerising on songs like These Days and The Fairest Of The Seasons. Strings are rich and add so much body to the barebones of guitar and Nico's vocals, which itself is beautifully out of tune and discordant. Best Tracks: - These Days - The Fairest Of The Seasons - I'll Keep It With Mine Worst Tracks: - It Was A Pleasure Then - Chelsea Girls Rating: 7/10
Instrumentals are nice but vocals are just not good and very boring.
3.5
wow, not much range. How was she so famous?
Voice of a chain smoking angel I love her
Its pretty and charming. Why the hell do the people doing this project hate that? Misogyny.
I don’t really mind Nico’s voice; I think it’s simple yet quite pleasant. My problems with this album come from the instrumentation either being bland or too over-the-top dramatic and sounding like something out of the medieval period. 5/10
pretty solemn rock album, see the appeal, but not my style 2/5
Can see why VU would want to work with her
Obviously some kind of a joke here. Pretentious dribble. No direction no drive no tune. Can't hold a note. This wouldn't make most people's 1000001 albums. No stars but have to give one to register feedback
Honestly I didn’t love this. It’s probably a hard zero in terms where it falls with respect to my personal tastes. It’s like musical blue cheese.
If you told me about this album without me listening to it I would've assumed I'd hate it, but I actually found myself enjoying this one. The beautiful production mixed well with her unique vocals. The only negative was some of the songs dragged longer than they needed to.
Completely unknown. I found the songs rather boring and languishing and her voice very monotone. Not a fan.
gosh this was so fucking sad. she feels like a real life bard singing songs about the people around her. like instead of singing about big legends she mythologizes the mundane. 3 stars but I want to listen to this again
Despite this being a style of music I often like, this album is boring as hell and Nico can’t sing.
Little Sister
The music isn't too bad, not at all remarkable, but unfortunately there's no Lou Reed here to rescue Nico from herself, so you only get her whiny warbly God awful vocals. I will never understand why anyone ever thought it was a good idea to put such an awful singer in front of a mic.
Beautiful music with a bizarre vocal delivery that rapidly outstays its welcome then somehow comes around to be pleasant again. What an oddity.
An excellent album. It's a shame Nico disliked it so much.
What the hell?? She is really awful. If someone else had been singing…almost anyone else…I would have liked this album, even with the flutes. One positive thing I can take is that I was exposed to a couple of Jackson Browne songs that I was not familiar with. Unfortunately, I don’t think that I will ever to be able to unhear what she did to “These Days”. One star is being generous.
Most of this is a rough listen. I’ve never been a fan of Nico’s voice although I am fascinated by those who adore her. I often wonder if she would have had any popularity without the Warhol and VU associations? Chelsea Girls, I’ll Keep it With Mine and These Days are the highlights here for me. It’s still better than Yoko Ono.
You can’t say she’s a great singer. But she still made really pretty, incredibly influential music. She doesn’t get enough recognition.
Wow this isn't good. And super boring. Couldn't finish.
I love Nico. And I love These Days. But I didn't love this album. I wanted to love it. But I only liked it. And only a little. 3
Solid morning vibes.
The first 4 songs sounded the exact same so I bailed
wow. just really not for me.
Nah bruh
how fitting it is that my first album on the list is by someone who I’ve had no prior knowledge of! okay I know the velvet underground though, but just by name. lyrically this album is very interesting. certainly very eccentric and vivid songwriting that kind of reminds me of björk’s lyrics for some reason. some of the lyrics on the album make sense, while some don’t, and that’s completely fine because it just adds on to the album’s charm. what’s also charming is nico’s voice. it’s honestly impressive how multi-textured and layered it is. her voice is just so rich and expressive and went places that I didn’t expect her to go to. at parts it has an almost hypnotic feel to it. sound wise, this album has its highs, but its lows too. the whole album transports me to some sort of bavarian meadow in the summer. the flutes and violins just added loads of depth to the record. most of the time, this sound works for nico, but on certain tracks, it works against her. it was a pleasure then is is the main culprit of this, there was just too much going on with the production here, and artistic choice or not, it just should’ve been a more subdued song. sonically the album improved in the second half, which is why most of the songs that I enjoyed were from the part of the album. favourite songs: chelsea girls, winter song, i’ll keep it with mine, wrap your troubles in dreams
This album was alright, couldn't get into it that much, but still have respect for the lyrics and softness of the album. Nico's voice will turn me away from future listens of this album. Good use of woodwinds, strings and plucked guitar. Fave tracks: The Fairest of The Seasons, These Days, Winter Song
boring music with vocals from a woman who can’t really sing. it was a struggle to get through this one, to be honest.
I don’t like her voice but for some reason, I liked this. Must be the Velvets.
Deep, calm voice, and the music seems a bit sad.
Pretty yet sparse tunes Forgettable poetry Delivered flatly
Maybe the worst album I've listened to.
I wanted to turn this off when it got to the second song. Spoiler alert, the album doesn't get any better. I think this is the worst album I've heard on this list so far. 1/5
Debe ser una broma de estás fechas ¿No?
I don't like the vocals, some guitar parts and melodies were nice but I couldn't really get into it. 3/10
Nico is for sure an aquired taste. High school Kit was a huge Velvet Underground fan, but I skipped all the Nico songs for years. I'm not sure why or when I started to appreciate Nico's singing, but it came eventually I've come to love the imperfection in it. She's a good contrast to Emmylou Harris. Emmylou's voice was so clean and perfect, and it left me a little cold. I like all the warble and weirdness in Nico's singing. I love how many Velvet Underground people worked on this with her. It feels like her own album seperate from VU, but with their influence still very clear throughout. Also going back to my earlier flute hate, the flutes on Winter Song are way too much. Far be it from me to question John Cale, but dial back the flutes my guy. These Days is an all time great song. 10/10 on the Mt Olympus of good tunes. Album Cover: (A) Nico was a 6ft tall model who hung out with some of the coolest artists of all time. Of course its gonna look cool.
A pretty cool album at times and sent me down a rabbit hole of reading about Nico.
"The Fairest Of The Seasons" is a familiar song. I like it, the vocals and strings are really nice. "These Days" has that same familiarity. I haven't heard this song as far as I know, but it strikes a nostalgic tone. "I'll Keep It With Mine" is great, I love the strings here again. This album was pretty good. The first two songs were by far the best, and the rest felt very single-tone. I probably wouldn't listen to any songs other than the first two again. 6/10
What if medieval bards were on the smack? Nico's voice is the saddest voice I've ever heard.
Yeah this one wasn’t it. Boring, uninteresting and Nico sounds awful. The backing music was okay but this is not an album anyone needs to hear before they die. In fact, if I had died before listening to this album, that would’ve actually been preferable.
Trying too hard to be 'creative'
Very unengaging and I am not a fan of her voice. It Was A Pleasure Then has one of roughest stretches in a song I've heard on this list. A couple of tolerable tunes, but overall, I just can't get into the monotone, one-note delivery set to a medieval flute.
Early in the pandemic, at the beginning of the first lockdown.. These Days came on the radio. I stared out of the window and saw a red balloon floating out of a garden across the road. I followed the balloon as it blew further away across the river and eventually out of sight. At the lowest moment of a dark time, a true moment of absolute beauty.
3.5/5. One really good song among some okayish ones.
I’m one of the few people who really can’t stand the Velvet Underground, so seeing a Nico album initially filled me with dread. And indeed, it turned out to be some hippy-dippy music with a dark edge that I couldn’t really connect with. The whole performance feels like something I’d accidentally stumble upon at a small club or at a house show in someone’s basement - something I’d sit in and listen to a couple songs but would head out early. I’ll admit I enjoyed Nico’s performance, set against the minimal instrumentation, more on her own record than her collab with VU. That said, it still feels pretentious and unfinished, and it felt more and more like pulling teeth getting through the last few songs. I probably wouldn’t give it another listen unless I found myself in a pretty dark place mentally. Even then, there are better, sadder songs to listen to when depressed lol
# Playlist track - The Fairest of The Seasons # Notes - I was excited to get to know this, since I really really like Velvet Underground. - Major disappointment. - Album starts out OK but drags on and on in an insufferable parade of boring and uninspired tracks. - Do not recommend.
a really great album when you’re in the mood, with two fantastic songs
Peaceful and pretty but not boring. Great vibe but probably won’t come back
"I still cannot listen to it, because everything I wanted for that record, they took it away. I asked for drums, they said no. I asked for more guitars, they said no. And I asked for simplicity, and they covered it in flutes! ... They added strings and – I didn't like them, but I could live with them. But the flute! The first time I heard the album, I cried and it was all because of the flute." What if the Velvet Underground was more like Fairport Convention? is a question nobody asked but here's the answer. The guitar is cool, both the fingerstyle stuff from Jackson Browne and the weirder stuff Lou Reed/Sterling Morrison have going. It mostly does not sound like the final take you'd leave on an album, not in a bad way. The tension between the raw guitar tracks and the very produced everything else is interesting. I imagine I'd cry if I'd put a bunch of work into an album and then heard that flute on Winter Song. I like It Was A Pleasure Then, and also think it's the perfect thing to imagine from a pretentious folk band trying to go experimental while their audience stares in disgust. Fairport Convention's Jazz Odyssey. I'd like to hear the album Nico wanted. It might not have been all that good either but I'd still like to hear it.
Nico isn’t even English is she? Who put her up to this? It feels like there’s a really great album buried here, if they de-ren-fair’d it.
I could only make through about half of this. It’s incredibly listless and morose. There’s lots of “depressing” music that I’ve listened to and loved, but this is just…sad. I didn’t care at all for Nico with the Velvet Underground, either. This might scratch someone’s itch, but there’s just nothing here for me.
Fav: The Fairest Of Seasons Least Fav: It Was A Pleasure Then I actually like Nico’s vocals, but some of these songs really do overstay their welcome
I kinda like her voice. Found this pretty soothing.
the fairest of seasons- 6 these days- 6 little sister- 5 winter song- 5 i like the flute it was a pleasure then- 6 chelsea girls- 5 ill keep it with mine- 5 somewhere theres a feather- 5 wrap your troubles in dreams-5 eulogy to lenny bruce- 5
Pretentious, experimental cock-and-bull. It's always the avant-garde bitches who are a little sick up in the head.
Found this to be annoying and difficult to get through. Lots of moans
Unusual singing voice. I think it fits the mood of the album though. The instrumentation is quite nice. The only song I didn't like was It Was A Pleasure Then. Unfortunately it's also the longest song on the album.
Only capable of singing 3 notes? Befriend the right people and it won't matter! This album sucks. The music sucks and nico can't sing for shit.
This was Nico’s first solo album after her work with The Velvet Underground, and it took me a little time to get into it, but it’s really grown on me. The album is deeply rooted in folk, but what makes it so special is the strong influences of baroque pop and chamber pop throughout. It has that melancholic, dreamy atmosphere, filled with lush arrangements. Although the songs were written by other artists, with Lou Reed, Jackson Browne, and Bob Dylan contributing, Nico’s haunting, almost ethereal vocals really bring the whole album together. It’s like listening to a folk tale sung by a mysterious witch in the woods, her voice has that deep, haunting quality that sticks with you long after the album ends.
Nico is such a fucking vibe
Musically this is a good album with a focus on nice chamber pop arrangements with a hint of folk. The problem: The production doesn't highlight the player of instruments but Nico. As a singer, she's ok but not great. A whole album of her isn't nice enough. And I say that as a German myself: German accents in English are a bit cringy.
Realise what an icon she was but sadly not for me - found it quite depressing but not in a good way
Imagine taking the worst part of velvet underground, isolating it, and making an album. Case in point
Well, I've experienced the Velvet Underground with and without Nico, so I guess now's finally the time to experience Nico without the Velvet Underground... except it's not. See, despite this album being considered Nico's first solo album, the majority of instrumental and songwriting work was done by members of the Velvet Underground like Sterling Morrison, John Cale, and, of course, Lou Reed. However, Nico's voice is still the main focus of this album, which is good because it didn't get much time to shine on The Velvet Underground & Nico. I like Nico's singing. I didn't praise it in the VU&N review, but I'll praise it now. It's good. The sound is nice. It's a nice midway point between the Velvet Underground & Nico and The Velvet Underground (the album). The songwriting is pretty good, even if it isn't Nico's. The songs are nice. I'm looking at the reviews on this site and this album doesn't seem to be the most popular. I don't get the hatred for this album. Don't get me wrong, this is no Velvet Underground & Nico. I'm sorry for the endless comparisons, but it has to be done. That album is better. However, I like this album quite a bit for what it is. It's not a masterpiece or anything, but I like it. I just think it's neat. Light 4/5.
Nope
A deaf woman attempts to learn English by singing meaningless AI generated lyrics that she clearly doesn't understand. Nor do I for that matter.
Interesting, kind of old low-production sound. A vibe. She’s got a bit of a deeper voice
Enjoyed most of it, although parts were hard to listen to. Standout songs: Winter Songs Wrap your troubles in dreams