In 1997 Lou Reed released what I consider his greatest achievement other than 1989’s New York, Set The Twilight Reeling. I went absolutely batshit for this album and still dig it out from time to time. In 2000 he followed it up with the just-okay Ecstacy. It is no Twilight so after a few spins it went straight into the library.
I dug it out recently and while I agree with my original assessment that it is lesser Lou, there is still a great deal to enjoy on it (other than the money shot cover art.)
Tunes like “Paranoia Key of E” and “Future Farmers of America” have a really good groove and are very hummable.
The masterpiece, though, is the incredibly purple “Modern Dance” – a song that actually has the audacity to rhyme “Moon” and “June.” The lyrics to “Modern Dance” are so absurd they achieve a sort of brilliance; the song itself has the chord progressions of a classic showtune, but with Reed’s fuzz guitar and, um, unique vocal delivery. Everything that is awesome and awful about Lou Reed (he may be a fool, but he’s our fool) can be found on this track. It is, in its own way, absolutely fucking perfect.
Here it is on YouTube. He dresses like a chicken.
I love the fact he is jerking off in the cover photo …
Very good video.
A nice, almost literal, touch of the “theatre of the absurd”.
However, for my money, I have yet to hear anything that could top his 1992 force of nature;
MAGIC and LOSS.
For my money, that is one of the best albums – best EXPERIENCES – that I could recommend.
It grips me EVERY time I play it.
Every. Time.
I wouldn’t otherwise call myself a Lou Reed fan.
I appreciate his work, but never went out looking for it.
I DID go to see his performance piece “THE RAVEN” live (in 2002?), and was blown away (almost literally since the sound engineer had everything cranked up so damn LOUD), and I waited in eager anticipation for over a year for the CD release, which I do still play on occasion.
If you can state that “Set The Twilight Reeling” is better than “Magic and Loss”, then I might have to hunt it down.
~P~
PTOR