Both Lou Reed and Nico possessed flat sounding voices, and John Cale compensated for this by down-tuning his various stringed instruments--and then the band as a whole down-tuned to Cale's pitch. This creates a slightly off-kilter, droning tone... and the result is a strangely hypnotic, frequently dark, and often unnerving sound that swirls around the songs' street-tough lyrics. At worst, it is at least interesting; at best, it is completely original. Several of the cuts have a distinct pop inflection, but the band subverts them; "Femme Fatale" has a mocking tone, and both "Sunday Morning" and "I'll Be Your Mirror" have a decidedly paranoid quality. But the cuts for which this album is most famous are about as far removed from pop as you can get: the strange exotic stutter of "All Tomorrow's Parties;" the pitch black and street scary tone of "Heroin" and "I'm Waiting For My Man;" and the whip-like accompaniment on the S&M-oriented "Venus In Furs"--all of them frequently imitated but seldom equaled. The most extreme edge of the band is captured in such selections as "The Black Angel's Death Song," a piece so far out that The Velvet Underground were actually fired from a bar gig for playing it one time too many for the management's liking.

If your taste in music runs to bouncy dance music, pop standards, or even what passes for experimental among the top 40--you might want to give The Velvet Underground a miss. On the other hand, if you have an ear tuned to the truly cutting-edge (as in Patti Smith, one of several artists who were heavily influenced by the Velvet Underground), you owe it to yourself to give this band, and this recording in particular, a try. For those who have an ear to hear it, The Velvet Underground is an essential.


A masterpiece not recognized at first   July 28, 2005
 93 out of 101 found this review helpful

In all honesty, I must confess that I didn't much like this album when I first heard it. For years I had heard about the legendary group but hadn't actually listened to their music. I had only heard Velvet Underground cliches, like, "one of the most influential bands of all-time," "genius," "avant-garde masterpiece," so on and so on.

So I decided to give the Velvet Underground a try and was not initially all that impressed. I think the reason that I was not initially blown-away by this album has to do with what I am used to and expectations. As a kid growing up in the 90s, I am used to instant gratification-albums with excellent production that get straight to-the-point. When I heard "The Velvet Underground and Nico" my initial thoughts were, "this is boring and the production stinks". I really didn't "get it" at first. But, as a younger listener not familiar with the Velvet Underground, I think this is an album that takes time and a few listens to really appreciate.

For me, experiencing this album was like having a few Alabama Slammers. At first you're like, "what's the big deal?" but once it hits you, it hits you.

Once I finally "got it," I find that this album is quite deserving of all the praise it's afforded.

Throughout their career, The Velvet Underground underwent many different personal changes. It was their debut, however, that saw the band at its strongest lineup. The poetic Lou Reed, with his dry flat Dylan-like delivery. John Cale, the most artistic and musically gifted of the bunch. Sterling Morrison, an underrated and underappreciated founder. Maureen Tucker, whose drumming on "Heroin" is indispensable. And finally Nico; the German-born actress/singer who was installed in the band by producer Andy Warhol. Her icy beauty and delivery helped make "The Velvet Underground and Nico" the classic that it is.

With repeated listens, I grew an appreciation for the album's sound and its production. While I initially thought the quality of the recoding was poor-I now feel the low-fi sound gives the album a certain effect, a certain vibe. The low-fi quality makes the songs sound genuine and lived in.

This album serves as a time capsule of the bohemian underbelly of New Your City in the late 60s. It is a chaotic time. While you are bombarded with peace and love and "flower power," there is a sense of disharmony and an annalistic apprehension. Images of Vietnam, conformity and consumerism abound. Struggling artists try to make sense of what they see around them and try to express their struggles and lifestyle. From this atmosphere, from these set of circumstances-"The Velvet Underground and Nico" is born.

I see "The Velvet Underground and Nico" as being the antithesis of another classic album released the same year, Love's "Forever Changes." The two albums seem to contrast each other in every single way possible-themes, location, production, and atmosphere.

"The Velvet Underground and Nico" begins much like a fresh new day for a small child might begin-peaceful, serene. "Sunday Morning" sounds almost like a lullaby. The slightly underwhelming guitar solo towards the middle of the song is the perfect touch.

One of the major themes of the album-drugs-is established right away with "I'm Waiting for the Man." While the song and its lyrics are relatively straight forward, they are also unforgettable. The description of how the deal works is rich in detail. The piano towards the end gives the song a sense of urgency.

The Nico sung "Femme Fatale" is one of the album's highlights. Nico was born to sing this song. She comes across like a black widow. Her icy voice, flat and cold, over the gentle melody is the perfect contrast.

"Venus and Furs" examines the seductive, dark side of human lust and sexuality. While it may seem tame by today's standards, it was most unheard of to have a song about S&M in 1967.

"Run Run Run" sounds a bit like a stripped down version of the Doors "LA Woman" (released four years later). The repetitive strumming riff is almost hypnotic. The distortion towards the end gives the song an almost chaotic impression.

Nico sounds subdued, yet dominant in "All Tomorrows Parties." This mid-paced song takes a few listens to really appreciate. There is a lot musically going on, with guitars overlaying the piano and so on. This number deals with anxiety of the anticipation of what the future will bring.

Without doubt, "Heroin" is the albums highlight. This is one of, if not the best Velvet Underground song ever recorded. It's a masterpiece, pure and simple. It is simply one of the most intense songs ever recorded. The song itself seems to emulate (to some extent) what the user feels like while using heroin. One of the reasons that this song is so intense is it starts out so un-intense. It starts out calm and peaceful, relaxed, and then gets more and more intense as it moves along. The percussion which emulates a heartbeat over the distorted viola just gets more and more extreme, until the climax, to the point of total pandemonium...and then back to relaxation, release. By listening to this song, the listener can see why heroin is so sought after. The world is in chaos with-"all the politicians makin' crazy sounds, and everybody puttin' everybody else down, and all the dead bodies piled up in mounds." The listener starts to understand the lifestyle that these bohemians choose.

After the brilliant "Heroin," the album comes down to earth with the pop-savvy "There She Goes Again" which is a good way for the listener to take a breather after the intense "Heroin". It also helps to keep up the momentum.

The third and final Nico song is the beautiful "I'll Be Your Mirror." Nico comes across as warmer than she did on the other two songs.

"The Black Angels Death Song" is a rather obscure song, whose true meaning I have yet to fully grasp. It's a random catharsis of bedroom poetry. Its off-beat extreme nature gives the album an extra edge.

The album winds down with "European Son." While it starts out relatively straight-forward, it soon takes a left turn. With all the effects (breaking glass etc), it is probably the most avant-garde track on the album. It is also a good way to conclude the album as it leaves a lasting impression.

In conclusion, although it took me a few listens to appreciate "The Velvet Underground and Nico," I know recognize it as the masterpiece that it is. If you are looking for instant gratification, you best look elsewhere. But for a truly magnificent experience, listen to this album-not just once, but several times. Once it clicks and it hits you, you will see why this album is so highly regarded.



Alternative starts here   December 9, 1998
 29 out of 34 found this review helpful

Anyone who wants to know where "alternative" music came from should be pointed in this direction. Released in 1967, this album was a good 20 years ahead of its time, and still packs enough punch to blow away today's wanna-be rock bands. It has influenced acts from Talking Heads to Nirvana. In fact, the fall-out left from the impact of this album is still felt today. "Heroin" is famous for its naked honesty of a drug fix, but just as riveting is "Venus in Furs," a twisted, sado-masochistic verse that would make David Lynch drool with envy. Another drug reference song, "I'm Waiting for the Man," with Lou Reed's nervous guitar lick, perfectly captures the moment. Not that this group was all kinky business, though. Reed swipes the intro to Marvin Gaye's "Hitch Hike" to fuel "There She Goes Again." "Sunday Morning" plays like the calm before the storm with its evocation of the perfect sunrise, while "I'll Be Your Mirror," and "Femme Fatale" are other achingly beautiful songs sung by chanteuse Nico. And John Cale adds his avant-garde flavour to "European Son". Moe Tucker stakes her claim as the greatest under-rated drummer in rock. A tremendous album, and one of the best debuts ever.


an inauspicious non-event   October 18, 1999
 23 out of 81 found this review helpful

This record was released in 1967, the same year The Beatles's "Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band", The Jefferson Airplane's "Surrealistic Pillow", Creams "Disraeli Gears", and Pink Floyd's "Piper at the Gates of Dawn" were-in other words, in a year of amazing, brilliant, and original rock and roll records. "Velvet Underground & Nico" is very different from these four records (except that "European Son" is slightly reminiscent of "Piper at the Gates of Dawn"'s "Interstellar Overdrive"), but obviously derived from 1965's "Bringing It All Back Home" and "Highway 61 Revisited" by Bob Dylan, with a bit of mid-sixties Rolling Stones thrown in. Really, I think "Velvet Underground & Nico"'s claim to unusualness rests mainly on the ineptitude of its musicians. The guitars and Nico's and Lou Reed's singing (when he tries to sing, that is,--a big mistake) are very, very much out of tune, and no one here knows how to play his instrument-and I'm not just talking about John Cale on "electric viola"; the rest can't claim to be doing it deliberately. Lou Reed's lyric imagery differs from Bob Dylan's mainly in that it is much cruder (but for that matter, with "Blonde on Blonde" in 1966 Dylan had already gone well past "Bringing It All Back Home" and "Highway 61 Revisited"). "Velvet Underground & Nico" gets my votes for worst record of 1967 and worst record with which Lou Reed was associated--including "Machine Metal Music".

Recommended: Lou Reed's "New Sensations" and "Legendary Hearts" and "The Norton Manual of Music Notation" by George Heussenstamm.


Ineffable dark beauty   April 18, 2002
 20 out of 25 found this review helpful

So, we all know this album has been said to be original, groundbreaking, avant-garde, and ever so influential on "alternative" bands. I first started getting into the Velvet Underground in college, having been electrified by Rock N Roll Animal and read a little of how great the Velvets were. That was also the time when The Sex Pistols rose into prominence, and I remember somebody's commenting that the Velvets were the first punk rockers. But when I listened to this it did not sound like punk at all. Sure, the Velvets were dark and treated disturbing themes, but punk is most of all a sound. Yes, I know, other comparisons are not perfect--heavy metal groups like MC5 and Led Zeppelin had some role too, without sounding EXACTLY like it...but they were heavy hitters, loud crashing music, like on...Rock N Roll Animal. My point is that through and through this is a mellow album, with many pretty songs. Lou's lovely soft ballad "Sunday Morning" and Nico's three beautiful songs, plus "There She Goes Again," are already almost half the material; granted, John Cale does novel stuff with his viola in "Venus in Furs" and "Black Angel's Death Song" and the boring "European Son," but not anything resembling punk, and then there is Lou Reed in "Heroin" (slow some of the way, by definition, right?). Lou's "rockers" -- "Run, Run Run" and "I'm Waiting For The Man"--are repetitive-riff, three-chorders, very rhythmic and not harsh (and excellent songs, much better than punk). Moreover, there is considerable instrumental sparsity, which works well with the slower stuff and the simple verselines overall. Conclusion: No punk--they were just unique. Forget about influences, etc.--I listen to this album, and it is a monument unto itself, at once very beautiful and very darkly imaginative, and one of my ten favorite of all.

Nico's singing? I don't care about those who talk about range, stiffness etc.--I love it. Her voice is very pretty and very rich, and I like her clear pronunciation of the lyrics, which blends well with the simple fluidity of her two beautiful ballads and the best song on the album, "All Tomorrow's Parties." Majesty is achieved, even in the world of Andy Warhol and his events. "I'll Be Your Mirror" has the most beautiful lyrics I've ever heard, but suffice it to read these (I'm not going to quote them all): "When you think the night has seen your mind/That inside you're twisted and unkind/Let me stand to show that you are blind/Please put down your hands/'Cause I see you/I'll be your mirror." Then "Femme Fatale" is about just that: "The things she does to please/She's just a little tease." If you don't want to hear this stuff sung to you, move over, I do.

"Venus in Furs" is a novel experiment in S&M, but my favorite Cale moment is "The Black Angel's Death Song." If "I'll Be Your Mirror" has the most beautiful lyrics, those of "Death Song" are the most dark, disturbing, despairing, and even...graphic. Very powerful, and the bizarre twisting sounds of the viola...it is just great, cacophony becomes euphony and pleasure. "There She Goes Again" has another disturbing theme (male domination), but by contrast its music is poppish, upbeaty in tone. And, of course, in "Heroin" Lou shows how imaginative he can be, as the instruments produce a remarkable visualization of the rushes, and Lou's singing is actually the darkhorse here--he knows how to sound drugged out and his vocals are just right at each stage.

The Velvet Underground are one of my favorite groups even tho I think they are a bit overrated. The monotony of "European Son" foretold "Sister Ray," which I do not like. But every other song is so good--in hardly any other album (by anyone) do I rate so many individual songs so highly, and it is amazing what the group accomplished on this debut. Lyrically, yes, let's talk influence--these brilliant lyrics reflected the Velvet's novel dark themes, which had a big contribution for posterity. The music--it is basically very simple, and so, so outstanding. The best came first, but in that way the Velvets are certainly not unique.