Lou Reed fronted The Velvet Underground, which represented "the counterculture to the counterculture." With VU, he gave birth to all things later called "punk," "new wave," or "alternative." In other words, SO MUCH GREAT STUFF. Transformer is his second album after he left VU, and I think I'd say it's an extension of that band's varied vibe in some ways. Yet for me it's not as consistently engaging. The best tracks for me are "Vicious," "Andy's Chest," and "Hangin' 'Round." "Walk on the Wild Side." Meh. But, OK. Still, I'll do all I can to round up to 4 stars, since Lou Reed was doing his inconsistent best to bring the stories of the streets to us... and sometimes it sounds so good.