Velvet Underground

‘The drugs were so new, they weren’t illegal yet’: the debauched rise of New York’s wildest bar

It was a seedy hotbed of sex, drugs, edgy music and A-list celebrities where Lou Reed and Andy Warhol partied alongside Blondie and Bowie. How did Max’s Kansas City fall apart?

Daniel Dylan Wray

05, Aug, 2024 @4:03 PM

‘Hip-hop is the new avant garde’: John Cale on Lou Reed, anger and continual reinvention

He made rock history with the Velvet Underground and produced landmark albums for the likes of Patti Smith. At 82, his 18th solo outing proves he’s still at the bleeding edge

Sean O’Hagan

16, Jun, 2024 @8:00 AM

John Cale: Poptical Illusion review – counterculture icon finds his fun side

Cale creates a sense of hope as he sets hard-won musical wisdom alongside dreamlike reflections in songs with synths, noise and hip-hop grooves

Dave Simpson

14, Jun, 2024 @7:00 AM

Marian Zazeela obituary

Artist who collaborated with her husband La Monte Young on a series of installations aimed at flooding and altering the senses

Richard Williams

06, May, 2024 @11:01 AM

Nico: The Marble Index/Desertshore review – an unforgettable trip to a very dark place

These two reissued solo albums from the German singer have a fearsome reputation – but they offer an experience like no other

Alexis Petridis

28, Mar, 2024 @12:00 PM

John Cale: Mercy review – the titan of cool misses a trick

The 80-year-old’s latest album features some inspired younger guests but cries out for less dated beats and a visionary producer

Kitty Empire

21, Jan, 2023 @2:00 PM

The 100 greatest BBC music performances – ranked!

As the Beeb celebrates its centenary, we take a look at its most memorable pop moments, from the birth of grime to the first sightings of Bob Dylan and Bob Marley, plus TOTP goes Madchester and countless classic Peel sessions

Guardian music

06, Oct, 2022 @12:12 PM

Lou Reed: Words & Music, May 1965 review – revelatory early cuts

The 23-year-old Reed and John Cale try things out for size in this treasure trove of previously unreleased demos

Kitty Empire

18, Sep, 2022 @8:00 AM

Lou Reed’s earliest Velvet Underground demos unearthed for reissue

Recordings from May 1965 were sealed for nearly 50 years, and reveal folk-like renditions of songs including I’m Waiting for the Man and Heroin

Ben Beaumont-Thomas

06, Jun, 2022 @12:02 PM

‘They didn’t go round the corner for beer’: Lou Reed and John Cale’s Songs for Drella

After years of estrangement, the two Velvet Underground musicians decided to make a record and filmed concert about their mentor Andy Warhol. Director Ed Lachman talks about how he captured the pair in action

Alex Needham

14, Apr, 2022 @1:56 PM