“The Velvet Underground & Nico” Live

The Velvet Underground is one of the most important bands in rock history, and the album “The Velvet Underground & Nico” (1967) is one of the top albums of the genre. Without it, the indie and alternative rock scene would not be the same. The album established a sound that became a standard: noise and feedback, lo-fi production, dark themes, literary references.

The recording was done in eight hours, in an abandoned studio, under the influence of various substances. Andy Warhol put all the sound layers on the same level during the mixing, giving the album a raw, almost amateurish sound. The result seems to come out of a damaged radio, with Nico‘s voice getting lost at points, as on Femme Fatale.

Tracks like Sunday Morning, with its dreamy, melancholic atmosphere, perfectly capture the theme. I’m Waiting for the Man brings to the surface the harsh, dirty world of the city. Nico’s otherworldly voice becomes ironic in Femme Fatale, ritualistic in All Tomorrow’s Parties, sensitive and direct in I’ll Be Your Mirror. Lou Reed, on tracks like Venus in Furs and the epic Heroin, takes rock beyond precedent.

This album changed rock forever. It inspires and will continue to inspire. Many musicians played their first chords influenced by these songs and as many others discovered its charm through improvisations and new interpretations.

At KET, Vassilis Tzavaras, Stefanos Psaradakis, Alexandros Mylonas and Angelos Mastrantonis dive for the second time into the noisy, atmospheric world of the Velvet Underground and Lou Reed. The band takes an improvisational approach to the songs of the infamous “banana” album and tracks from Lou Reed’s solo career, maintaining their unconventional, raw character and highlighting the timeless power of this sound.

Angelos Mastrantonis – violin

Alexandros Mylonas – bass

Stefanos Psaradakis – drums, electronics

Vassilis Tzavaras – guitar, piano, voice