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Rebellion always starts somewhere, and in the music world of the transgressive teen whether it be the 1960s of the 2020s, The Velvet Underground represent ground zero. Crystallizing the idea of the bohemian, urban, narcissistic art school gang, around a psychedelic rock and roll band – a stylistic idea that evolved in the rarefied environs of Andy Warhol’s Factory – The Velvets were the first major American rock group with a mixed gender line-up; they never smiled in photographs, wore sunglasses indoors, and in the process invented the archetype. They were avant-garde nihilists, writing about drug abuse, prostitution, paranoia, and sado-masochistic sex at a time when the rest of the world was singing about peace and love.
Dylan Jones’ definitive oral history of The Velvet Underground draws on contributions from remaining members, contemporaneous musicians, critics, film-makers, and the generation of artists who emerged in their wake, to celebrate not only their impact but their legacy, which burns brighter than ever into the 21st century.
Dylan Jones’ definitive oral history of The Velvet Underground draws on contributions from remaining members, contemporaneous musicians, critics, film-makers, and the generation of artists who emerged in their wake, to celebrate not only their impact but their legacy, which burns brighter than ever into the 21st century.
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Reviews
'Loaded is a monumental origin story about the band of misfits, discontents, and visionaries that launched punk, grunge, new wave, glam, indie, experimental, art, and maybe even spoken-word rock. Dylan Jones weaves together a propulsive yet intimate narrative driven by a cast of insiders who trace the Velvets' rise and fall and rise again to legendary status.'
A velvet goldmine of a book.
'Dylan Jones has put the WOW back into oral histories. Loaded is particularly revealing of the band members and their mileu. He got all the right people to tell their tales and most of them are true.'
You might understandably think you already know this story, but in Loaded, the masterful Dylan Jones assembles a raucous symphony of voices to convince you that you don't. Smart, funny and insightful, this spellbinding oral history guides you through the evolving meanings of the music and the lives of the Velvet Underground from the Sixties to the present day. I found it riveting from start to finish.