Lou Reed: Spanish Fly DVD Review:

Formerly of The Velvet Underground, Lou Reed has since moved on to a solo career with great success. He is a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee and he has entertained millions with his classic rock jams. His concert at the Benicassim Festival in Spain on August 7th, 2004 is now available to purchase on DVD. This Spanish Fly DVD is not likely to be as impressive as seeing the concert live, and isn’t as well produced as many other concert DVDs are, but Lou Reed fans will find it a sufficient way to hear the great music live without paying a great deal of money.

Playing classic like Sweet Jane and Romeo Had Juliette, Reed captivates the audience with his unpolished performing voice and slow rhythmic jams. The other band members include Mike Rathke on guitar, Fernando Saunders on bass, Jane Scarpantoni on cello, and Tony “Thunder” Smith on drums. Together they play with Reed in fluidity that shows many years together.

Because of the fact that the concert is at a festival, it seems that there were not as ideal of opportunities for filming as they may have been elsewhere. The crowd is obviously very excited, but it is difficult to even tell how many people are there in the outdoor concert at night, with only brief views of them. Occasionally smoke or fog drifts across the stage which remains a rather constant shade of blue.

As much as it seems that they are having a great time playing, the songs often sound different than fans may be used to because of the struggle Reed has with the vocals. It isn’t that he is off key, but he seems to be off of something.

The audio sounds good, although very loud even from the opening menu. It is in stereo. There is 4:3 aspect ratio which looks really clear, although there are too many wide shots of the stage. The special features include fourteen photos taken by Reed himself. They are black and white, and most seem to be of the people in the band or close to them.



Ryan Izay