tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7817911217098974229.post8837425832511607586..comments2023-11-05T04:09:26.194-05:00Comments on e g r e g o r e s: The enduring nihilistic brilliance of Lou Reed's "Berlin"Apuleius Platonicushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11761230673724504084noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7817911217098974229.post-48610478209758174022012-07-27T09:40:01.129-04:002012-07-27T09:40:01.129-04:00oops - that was supposed to be "Ezrin's s...oops - that was supposed to be "Ezrin's schmaltziness".Apuleius Platonicushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11761230673724504084noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7817911217098974229.post-91863134848389003272012-07-27T09:38:46.879-04:002012-07-27T09:38:46.879-04:00Hi Katy! I think one of the things that really wor...Hi Katy! I think one of the things that really works for me is precisely the mixture of Ezrin's schmaltiness with Lou's distilled nihilism.<br /><br />Peter Gabriel's first album is an interesting case too. I had such high hopes when it came out, but other than Solsbury Hill it left me completely cold. But then again, Solsbury Hill is all by itself quite spectacular.Apuleius Platonicushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11761230673724504084noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7817911217098974229.post-80905859760020154792012-07-27T07:56:05.034-04:002012-07-27T07:56:05.034-04:00@mamiel: I am one of those people who freely ackno...@mamiel: I am one of those people who freely acknowledges that Lou Reed has produced quite a lot of work that is mediocre and also some genuine crap. I have been consistently underwhelmed by just about everything he's done since Street Hassle, although one of these days I'll get around to making a serious effort to try to appreciate "New York". Personally I don't think his work with Metallica will ever be rehabilitated, and hopefully it will just be forgotten. But I could be wrong!Apuleius Platonicushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11761230673724504084noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7817911217098974229.post-53105035695725410782012-07-27T03:59:17.399-04:002012-07-27T03:59:17.399-04:00Lou Reed's recent collaboration with metallica...Lou Reed's recent collaboration with metallica also got terrible reviews. He called it very important work though, wonder if it will be as enduring at Berlin. Probably not....Ellen Catalina, LCSWhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05370543572803320295noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7817911217098974229.post-72525195237740498972012-07-27T00:34:48.671-04:002012-07-27T00:34:48.671-04:00I've never been able to make up my mind about ...I've never been able to make up my mind about this album.<br /><br />Bob Ezrin's production is as horrible as one would expect: Juxtaposing misanthropic lyrics with female back-up singers and a horn section at one point! Ezrin has always had the ability to screw up great things for me, whether we're talking about his everything-and-the-kitchen-sink contributions to "The Wall" or his everything-and-the-kitchen-sink contributions to Peter Gabriel's first albums or... "Berlin". <br /><br />But there are moments of icy beauty mixed in here, most notably on "Caroline Says II" and "The Bed".<br /><br />I think the scariest moment for me came when I realized that "Caroline Says II" is really a re-write of VU's earlier "Stephanie Says". Listening to the two songs back-to-back is really chilling.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16323871207793126503noreply@blogger.com