first off, i love this record for its music. it is my favourite velvet underground album because it is loaded with hits.

now: today i was listening to loaded and i began to appreciate it for its production. i really love the sound of it, small-sounding drums included.

does anyone know what went into it technically speaking, or can anyone point me towards a resource that would describe some of the equipment/techniques employed? perhaps it is not a sonically special record and i am just under-acquainted with records of that period. if so, what was the standard setup of the 1969 studio?

Hijack!

Loaded is great (and yes, quite eccentric and claustrophobic sounding at times) but have you heard of this bootleg?

Velvet Underground - The Legendary Guitar Amp Tapes

This is the blow-out of blow-outs. This unique tape came about when a boston fan recorded the show directly through Lou's guitar amp. The result? Nearly inaudible vocals, Lou's guitar out in front of everything, and a fantastic ride through the guts of the band on a wild night.

I came across a copy recently and it's almost as unhinged as the blurb suggests. Lou comes across as a much more nifty and subtle guitar player than you might think but the best bits are of course the utterly filthy, squalling white-outs.

Next I'm looking for The Who live recorded solely from Keith Moon's kick drum mic.

You guys are, of course, aware that there are 2 rather different mixes of the entire Loaded record. The one that saw release is often referred to as teh closet mixes, with Lou's vocals up front, and much of the VU's sonic fury hushed. I believe that the VU box set has the noisier versions of most songs.

i have heard of that, cjh... but not recently. that sounds rad... i should track it down.

Zenarchist: i have a double disc thing with the main album and demos/outtakes on it. there are basically 2 mixes of every song. it also has satellite of love, walk and talk, sad song, loves makes you feel 10 feet tall etc.... does that cover what you're talking about? the production aesthetic i'm referring to is that of the main album tracks, not the alternate mixes. i like the non-redundant demos too though. sad song et al are amazing.

Zenarchist wrote:You guys are, of course, aware that there are 2 rather different mixes of the entire Loaded record. The one that saw release is often referred to as teh closet mixes, with Lou's vocals up front, and much of the VU's sonic fury hushed. I believe that the VU box set has the noisier versions of most songs.

I thought that was the eponymous third album?

Zenarchist wrote:You guys are, of course, aware that there are 2 rather different mixes of the entire Loaded record. The one that saw release is often referred to as teh closet mixes, with Lou's vocals up front, and much of the VU's sonic fury hushed. I believe that the VU box set has the noisier versions of most songs.

Actually, you have Loaded confused with the self-titled third album, and Lou Reed's quieter "closet mix" of The Velvet Underground is the rare version that appears on the Peel Slowly And See box set. The louder, more immediate sounding mix by Val Valentin is the one available on the current stand-alone CD of the album.

It's also possible you might be thinking of the "Fully Loaded Version" of Loaded that Rhino released in 1997, which along with unedited versions of "Sweet Jane" and "New Age" and a whole lotta outtakes features an "alternate" version of the album, compiled from demos and alternate takes.

shagboy wrote:now: today i was listening to loaded and i began to appreciate it for its production. i really love the sound of it, small-sounding drums included.

"Head Held High", on the outtake disk of the Loaded re-issue, has been a long time favourite track for me. Retrospectively, it sounds like the future of music. Beautiful in it's clipped expression and delivery.

I stand corrected. I really should sit down and compare some of this stuff, along with the remixed Raw Power, and my old vinyl.

any answers for the original question?

Zenarchist wrote:I stand corrected. I really should sit down and compare some of this stuff, along with the remixed Raw Power, and my old vinyl.

I think that Iggy's remix of Raw Power is an abomination, but the amped up remixes of L.A.M.F. and Young, Loud & Snotty are very fine indeed.