New Lou Reeds
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New Lou Reeds

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The best kept secret in music

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"by Julian Cope"

I’ve also been vibrating off the in-bred sounds of SCREWED by The New Lou Reeds, who come from Cleveland and don’t sound like that old Velvets tosser. Indeed, they’ze coming on more like an over-caffeinne’d Warren Zevon meets that classic Elevators period when even a quizzical Roger Kynard Erikson can’t quite reach the Gurdjieffian complexities of Tommy Hall’s lyrics. Delightful babies, truly unctuous self-obsession at its highest level (‘Without warning a wizard walks by!’). ‘Teenage Metalhead’ has a polio strut to die for (nay, live for) and they even finish the record with a song called ‘Peter Laughner’!

- www.headheritage.co.uk


"by Jack Rabid"

Or more likely the New (early) Pere Ubus, a thought reinforced by their being from Cleveland, their recording a song called “Peter Laughner” (an original Ubu member), and most of all by Stephe DK’s vocals, which bubble and squeak and squawk in a highly similar manner as David Thomas’s—not like Lou Reed’s at all. (Even in “Hometown Hero” is very Velvet Underground). But the nice thing about Ubu is that they were so hard to copy, and The New Lou Reeds don’t try, either. The jagged but fulsome rock action here, like on the gnashing “Stranded in Ashland,” instead discovers a previously unknown link between Captain Beefheart, Television, and Neil Young. The music is rhythmic, kooky, a little twisted, and unpredictable. They even try a twisted rock take on ska on “The Foreigner” that does to The Skatalites what The Clash did to Junior Murvin, as well as a waltz-blues in “Brighton Beach” that compares well to Iggy & The Stooges “I Need Somebody.” Screwed By is generally excellent. And lyrically, they convey the absurdity of bad urban decay that was this crumbling, industrial “mistake on the lake” better than anyone since Thomas did. I say “was” because I haven’t been there in 11 years. From this record’s opinion, I might well say “still is.” - www.bigtakeover.com


"by Sarah Peters"

You know that guy in your classes who was too smart for his own good? He was usually my best friend every year; his uncompromising knowledge and bitter wisecracks keeping me afloat. The New Lou Reeds encompass every bit of this smart[ass] sentiment, awash in smarmy, pleasure-seeking goodness.Don’t let their name fool you, they don’t often sound like Lou Reed, though respect for him shines throughout. Instead, they channel the obscurity and experimental guitars of Primus through a filter of low-swaggering garage rock.One can sense they desperately want to live in the time of the Velvets, becoming a part of their legendary crowd. Their druggy, inventive art-rock would likely earn them some credibility even then, but nowadays they could get mistakenly shoved into a more simplistic box. Like many in the NYC scene, these Cleveland boys have an affinity for the Stones, but there’s a lot more to be said for Screwed."Teenage Metalhead" is instantly appealing due to its perplexing pacing and raw-throated bounce. "Hometown Hero" lifts from the jumpy inspiration of Chuck Berry to elicit beads of sweat and soul. Lumbering and bluesy, "(I Felt Like) Woody Allen" feels more modern than the rest of the album, with its alert guitars and fluctuating volume. While the New Lou Reeds will almost definitely get compared to the White Stripes and the Starvations along the way, it should gratify them to know they are in such beloved company.Even the introduction of ska on "Foreigner" doesn’t seem out of place – the band can truly pull off a lot in the middle of their sleazy commentary. Their only true pitfall comes on the closing "Peter Laughner," which, as the lengthiest track, attempts to be their epic but ultimately fails. Its watery eulogizing feels silly – the constant comparison to the Velvets that remains in the back of your head laments that this is no "Heroin," no "Sister Ray". Still, one has to applaud their grandiosity and their ability to recall the winning, seedy production values of the times.Oozing with delight and depravity, Screwed feels so bad for you, but that’s what makes it so appealing. In a countercultural sort of way, I hope there’s more where this came from.

- http://lostatsea.net


"by Antoine Tedesco"

The second the first song starts to play you understand why this band makes any reference whatsoever to Lou Reed – they sound like vintage VU and early Lou Reed. But there’s more to this band than a pleasant reminder of old, garage, punk-inspired music, these guys rock pretty groovy.The bass lines pop while the trashy drums permeate each song. The guitar is fuzzy, a bit messy but always on the money. This is the kind of release that either grabs you instantly or quickly turns you off. Stephe DK’s howling vocals can grate on the nerves, but give him a chance it’s really cool stuff. You actually miss his yelping if you don’t hear it for a few songs – the first time you hear it on Track 2, ‘Stranded in Ashland’, you’re taken aback. But, it belts nicely with the music so you wait for the next time he decides it’s appropriate.Like their namesake, the art-rock vibe is all over the place on Screwed, an album with a front cover that will make you laugh a bit uncomfortably. The victim in this photo is definitely screwed!Track 4, ‘Hate Fest’, is a one-guitar show with country, folk vocals that bring you into the lyrics while most of the songs get you jumpin’, boppin’, and even some rockin’ out.Although it seems to be all the rage, really good old-fashioned garage rock is hard to come by these days. The New Lou Reeds, assuming they stick to the spirit of the master of distortedly storytelling Lou Reed, they will be around impressing music fans for as long as they feel like playing together. - www.sceneandheard.ca


Discography

Screwed (full-length CD) - Exit Stencil Recordings, 2003

Photos

Feeling a bit camera shy

Bio

Beneath the shaking, edgy fear of the future, the sentimental night-mare of the past, and general incomprehension of the present, there exists a kind of wistful humor. Rockin’ their way thru that struggle
comes the New Lou Reeds. Not quite ‘heartland rock’ and not what most people call ‘punk’ anymore, the band owes its sonic debt to a surprisingly diverse array of sources, both musical and literary. But it’s
their honesty that perhaps best defines them; they may have read a lot, but have their feet firmly entrenched in the mud of the proletariat. But enough of that nonsense. Who the hell are these guys? Singer Stephe DK is a visual artist and Edward Á Sotelo (bass) also throws down with big-timers like Cobra Verde and Doug Gillard (ex-GBV) while Jeff Ottenbacher (drums) spends his
time keeping a low-profile gig buying and selling nations in Brooklyn. Together, they recorded their upcoming full-length, Top Billin’ (out this
spring on Exit Stencil Recordings) on a shoestring budget, and are now planning on cruising around the states in a van, drinking too much and
carousing. They sing about food, politics, women, and whatever the hell happened to America. It’s like Southern Rock from the North — or punk for hippies — or X and Richard Hell trying to figure out how to cover all of Music From Big Pink by the Band—or Creedence Clearwater Revival going forward in time and learning a bunch of Minutemen tunes.