Some Kinda Love: Performing the Music of The Velvet Underground

In Between
A stylized banana graphic on a white background
Live album by
The Feelies
ReleasedOctober 13, 2023 (2023-10-13)
RecordedOctober 13, 2018[1]
VenueWhite Eagle Hall, Jersey City, New Jersey, US[1]
Length70:50
LanguageEnglish
LabelBar/None
ProducerBill Million
The Feelies chronology
In Between
(2017) 		In Between
(2023)

“[The Velvet Underground] were ahead of their time. I think that they just had an approach that was very appealing to people who are just starting and playing. It’s simple songs. The structures are very low-key and stripped down. It’s the kind of thing you listen to and you think ‘That’s something within my grasp.’”

—Feelies' guitarist and vocalist Glenn Mercer on the influence of The Velvet Underground on The Feelies[2]

Some Kinda Love: Performing the Music of The Velvet Underground is a 2023 live album by American alternative rock band The Feelies covering The Velvet Underground. The Feelies count the Velvet Underground as a major influence and also toured with Lou Reed in the 1980s.[3] It has received positive reviews from critics.

Reception

Editors at AllMusic rated this album 4 out of 5 stars, with critic Mark Deming writing that the decision to cover the Velvets is "a calculated risk" with the inevitable comparisons to the original material, especially since both bands share "adoration of the rhythm guitar... eager embrace of simple, hypnotic percussion, and... status as East Coast individualists with an aversion to creative compromise" and this album is successful as "a party where five fans dive deep into some cherished songs and attack them with an ideal balance of reverence and abandon".[4] Bill Pearis of BrooklynVegan attended the live show on this album and calls this release "a delight and a document of their continued love and acknowledgement of their biggest inspiration".[1] Editors at Pitchfork scored this release 7.7 out of 10 and critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine praised it for choosing songs that show the positive side of the Velvets' catalog that results in a celebratory recording that is "a roaring rock’n’roll record because the Feelies play with such enthusiasm".[5] Jeff Tamarkin of Relix called this "a vital addition to The Feelies’ own canon" with the band taking "each song’s essence and turn[ing] it into a Feelies tune".[6] Mark Berlyant of Under the Radar gave this release 8 out of 10 stars for being "more loose, free, and just flat-out fun" than the band's studio work.[7]

Track listing

All songs written by Lou Reed, except where noted.

  1. "Sunday Morning" (John Cale and Reed) – 3:34
  2. "Who Loves the Sun" – 2:48
  3. "There She Goes Again" – 2:45
  4. "What Goes On" – 4:14
  5. "Sweet Jane" – 4:22
  6. "Head Held High" – 2:51
  7. "I’m Waiting for the Man" – 4:12
  8. "White Light/White Heat" – 2:41
  9. "I Heard Her Call My Name" – 3:27
  10. "New Age" – 5:29
  11. "That’s the Story of My Life" – 2:09
  12. "All Tomorrow’s Parties" – 6:30
  13. "Rock & Roll" – 4:23
  14. "We’re Gonna Have a Real Good Time Together" – 3:33
  15. "Run Run Run" – 4:06
  16. "I Can’t Stand It" – 4:02
  17. "After Hours" – 2:08
  18. "Oh! Sweet Nuthin’" – 7:38

Personnel

The Feelies

  • Stan Demeski – drums
  • Glenn Mercer – guitar, vocals, mixing
  • Bill Million – guitar, background vocals, mixing, cover design
  • Brenda Sauter – bass, background vocals, lead vocals on "All Tomorrow's Parries" and "After Hours"
  • Dave Weckerman – percussion, keyboards

Additional personnel

  • Scott Anthony – recording, mixing, audio mastering at Storybook Sound, Maplewood, New Jersey, United States
  • Richard Barone – guitar on "Oh! Sweet Nothin'", vocals "Oh! Sweet Nothin'", photography
  • Julie Chencinski – cover design
  • James Maestro – guitar on "I Can't Stand It", vocals on "I Can't Stand It"
  • Andy Peters – assistant recording
  • Howard Wuefling – liner notes

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c Pearis, Bill (October 13, 2023). "Album reviews: Helena Deland, Feelies, The Drums, Tricky, more". Indie Basement. BrooklynVegan. Retrieved July 5, 2024.
  2. ^ Benitez-Eves, Tina (March 8, 2024). "The Feelies' Glenn Mercer on Showing 'Some Kind of Love' Covering the Music of the Velvet Underground, Songwriting, and Returning to The Willies". Features. American Songwriter. ISSN 0896-8993. OCLC 17342741. Retrieved July 5, 2024.
  3. ^ Wilcox, Tyler (October 23, 2023). "The Feelies share some kinda love for The Velvet Underground". Features. Uncut. ISSN 1368-0722. Retrieved July 5, 2024.
  4. ^ Deming, Mark (n.d.). "Some Kinda Love: Performing the Music of The Velvet Underground – The Velvet Underground". AllMusic. RhythmOne. Retrieved July 5, 2024.
  5. ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas (October 21, 2023). "The Feelies: Some Kinda Love: Performing the Music of the Velvet Underground Album Review". Albums. Pitchfork. Condé Nast. Retrieved July 5, 2024.
  6. ^ Tamarkin, Jeff (January 19, 2024). "The Feelies: Some Kinda Love: Performing the Music of the Velvet Underground". Relix. ISSN 0146-3489. Retrieved July 5, 2024.
  7. ^ Berlyant, Matthew (February 19, 2024). "The Feelies: Some Kinda Love: Performing The Music of The Velvet Underground (Bar/None)". Reviews. Under the Radar. ISSN 1553-2305. Retrieved July 5, 2024.