You can now watch the last interview ever given by the late great Lou Reed, frontman of the highly influential art rock band The Velvet Underground, who died on Sunday, 27th October at the age of 71.
During a photo shoot in late September this year, Reed had a short chat with director Farida Khelfa in a New York photography studio. Despite his ill health, Reed was as charmingly honest as ever, discussing his first guitar, his childhood, Beethoven, and the power of music.
When questioned about why he started making music, Reed says with a wry smile, “You do what you love. . . or you get arrested”. His passionate expression carries an emotional honesty as he discusses just how sound effects him:
“Sound is more than just noise, ordered sound is music… my life is music… I am very emotionally affected by sound. Sounds are the inexplicable. . .There is a sound you hear in your head, it’s your nerves, or your blood running. It’s kind of amazing to hear that.”
Reeds’ doctor recently confirmed that his death was caused by complications resulting from a recent liver transplant Reed underwent.
Lou Reed’s final studio release, 2011′s Metallica collaboration entitled Lulu – a spoken-word piece based on a two-part German play, has been widely panned by critics. Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich recently wrote in an article for The Guardian that he believes the album will “age well”, and that, “25 years from now, you’re going to have millions of people claiming they owned the record or loved it when it came out”.
Check out our story on Lou Reed’s musical influence here, and watch his final interview below.
Watch: Lou Reed’s Final Interview
(Via Stereogum)
