Lou Reed’s Pre-Fame Quest to Create a National Dance Craze
Lou Reed and John Cale met while touring a novelty act trying to make a hit on a discount record label. A new compilation highlights Reed’s wild pre-fame journey.
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The 10 Spookiest Lou Reed Songs
From graphic depictions of violence and death to ominous and grating musical atmospheres, Lou Reed created numerous frightening tunes.
Patti Smith’s “Piss Factory” and “Hey Joe” Remain Prophetic 50 Years On
Patti Smith’s “Hey Joe” and “Piss Factory” expresses her unremitting fight for freedom: when she went from a factory girl to a poète maudit.
New York Dolls’ ‘Too Much Too Soon’ Lived Up to Its Title (More or Less)
The New York Dolls didn’t just play rock and roll. They swung, achieving a groove that set them apart from other rockers at the time and since.
Suicide’s Music in Film: An Interview with Martin Rev
Suicide’s music is used in films from the comedy Mistress America to the documentary The Red Orchestra. Martin Rev shares memories of the films and the sci-fi that he and Alan Vega loved.
Iggy Pop Is in a Frenzy on ‘Every Loser’
After more than 35 minutes of masterful music on Every Loser, does Iggy Pop seem to be a winner, a loser, or somewhere between the two? He is true to himself.
The Alchemy of the Velvet Underground’s Art
In The Velvet Underground documentary, Todd Haynes shows the music catapulting across time and space to Andy Warhol’s Factory, where the alchemy worked its magic.
Lou Reed Unplugged: The Velvet Underground Reimagined on ‘Words and Music’
Lou Reed and John Cale hint at the other side of the swinging ’60s with a fascinating collection of mid-’60s demo recordings for the Velvet Underground.
‘The Velvet Underground’ Film and the Exploding Lou Reed Inevitable
Todd Haynes’ audiovisual blast delves into the creative combat that birthed America’s first great avant-garde rock ‘n’ roll band, the Velvet Underground.
‘Velvet Underground’ Soundtrack Could Use More Idiosyncratic Curation
The soundtrack for Todd Haynes’ new documentary on Velvet Underground contains unimpeachable music but fails to offer a cohesive argument about the iconic band.
Sundance 2021: Edgar Wright’s Quirky ‘The Sparks Brothers’
Using collage, clay animation, and 2D anime-style art with traditional archival footage and modern black-and-white interviews, Edgar Wright tries to capture the Sparks as a "Hollywood" band with an obsession for European visual art.
‘Johnny Thunders & Wayne Kramer’s Gang War!’ Is a Time Capsule and a Car Crash
Punk rockers Johnny Thunders and Wayne Kramer exist on a continuum of wild-eyed, angle-headed anarchists—a continuum filled with poets and artists and guitar-pickers, living and dead, who show us how to resist The Man.