•
Rating:
THE REVIEW
This is the formation that has accompanied the great Lou for almost a decade now, bringing this concert to life (an entire concert, the one in Los Angeles on June 24, 2003), of which we have the superb testimony in this double CD.
The testimony of how Lou Reed, at 62 years of age (born on March 2, 1944, where it is not even necessary to say, just listen to his songs to understand it), still has all the desire to tell and express himself through his damned stories, his photographs of urban decay that were and still are the songs from the Velvet Underground period, which are marvelously revisited here with "Venus in Furs", "Sunday Morning", "All Tomorrow’s Parties", "Heroin", and "Candy Says", sung by his friend with the white voice, Antony (it may be a personal opinion, but I don’t find him suitable at all for singing these songs, but so be it, Geniuses must be allowed to do as they wish), and also those from the 1970s.
It is not a self-celebratory live album, in the sense that almost all the hits are missing, from "Sweet Jane", only briefly hinted at in the introductory speech, to "Walk On The Wild Side" and "Satellite Of Love", but the emphasis was placed on some lesser-known gems such as "Set The Twilight Reeling", the tracks from his concept album "Berlin" (a damned story of two bohemians in 1970s Berlin), with a great version of "Men Of Good Fortune", and, of course, some songs from his latest studio work "The Raven", dedicated to Edgar Allan Poe.
The group's sound is minimal, the instrumentation is mostly acoustic, except for Lou Reed's usual unmistakable guitar. On the other guitar is faithful Mike Rathke; on bass, even more faithful Fernando Saunders, who also signs and sings an unreleased song, "Revien Cherie"; then Jane Scarpantoni plays the cello, and there's the aforementioned Antony.
Minimal sound, as was said, but it is precisely in this context that the enormous expressiveness of Lou Reed's voice emerges, especially in the more poignant episodes like "How Do You Think It Feels" and the concluding "Heroin".
Great concert, truly.
Loading comments slowly
Summary by Bot
Animal Serenade is a beautifully captured live concert showcasing Lou Reed’s enduring desire to tell stories through music. The acoustic and minimal instrumentation highlights Reed's expressive voice. The album revisits classic Velvet Underground tracks alongside selections from his solo work, focusing on lesser-known songs rather than hits. Guest singer Antony’s contribution is personally controversial but accepted. Overall, it is a great live album that emphasizes emotional depth over commercial hits.Tracklist Lyrics Videos
Lou Reed
Lou Reed (born Lewis Allan Reed, March 2, 1942 – October 27, 2013) was an American musician, singer-songwriter and founding member of the Velvet Underground. He had a long solo career noted for albums such as Transformer, Berlin and New York and for experimental works including Metal Machine Music.71 Reviews
