Lou Reed has always been an undoubtedly exceptional artist. From Velvet Underground to his solo career, the man has always been adulated by his fans and denounced by numerous journalists and critics. Lets go back to 1973 when Lou Reed came out with Berlin which was directly killed by most of the press and which is now considered a chef-doeuvre.
But as everyone knows, Lou Reed doesnt care about the press. Even when some of the critics, comfortably sitting in the audience, boo him when he takes the stage to play for the first time since the seventies his album Metal Machine, the controversial album elected one of the worst albums ever made by Jimmy Guterman and Owen ODonnell after it came out in 1975. Lou Reed smiles and presents his musicians with a special smile on his face when he pronounces the name of the famous John Zorn, smiling back at Lou Reed with his saxophone in his hands.
No mise-en-scene, no costume, no lighting. Lou wants to play it raw. He takes a minute to settle down accompanied by loud applause from the excited audience.
The title of the album is pretty straightforward, if anyone who came to hear Perfect Day or Vicious will probably be disappointed. Indeed, Metal Machine is what it is: machines that make a lot of noise. To prevent from any complains, LiveNation labeled the ticket with the mention No Songs No Vocal, pretty obvious isnt it?
The only sound that comes out of the two saxophones is one loud larsen while the speakers make repetitive loud cracks that sound just like a big explosion. Reed grabbed his guitar after about 20 minutes of metal sounds and starts to play some more audible riffs while the saxophones slow down like a break to take a breath, which is probably appreciated by some of the audience who are struggling trying to stop their ears. False hope. It takes about five minutes for Reed to lose it again and continue his storm of sounds. The four musicians are simultaneously either smiling or bluntly laughing, and so am I. Not laughing at him, not laughing at his music but laughing at the awkwardness that he manages to create in The Blender Theater. This is more of a therapy to me, though the music remains inaccessible. My ears start to hurt because of the uttered shrill by the speakers, who are suffering too.
I take the time to look around me: a couple of guys look fuzzed up with an air of bewilderment while another couple of kids look in a crazy trance, totally satisfied and happy. A few quit the venue before the 30th minute though.
What should I think about this performance? Is Lou Reed making fun of us, is he experimenting, improvising; or is he a genius? Ive found on the web that he said in an interview I dont know anyone whos listened to the whole album, not even myself, I didnt make it for that purpose. So whats the purpose Mr. Reed? No answer. Maybe I shouldnt wait for the answer because he will probably take it with him the day he passes away. Standing ovation. I stand up and clap my hands while Lou comes shake his fans hands. I am myself satisfied. What if I had to pay? Would I have written something else? I dont really know. I dont care. I spent an hour sat right in front of what will remain an absolute icon in music.
