Songs for Drella

by Lou Reed and John Cale
a film by Edward Lachman

Songs for Drella (1990) was a fruit of the first (also, the second to last) reunion of Reed and Cale since 1968. “Drella” was a nickname of Andy Warhol to whom the album pays homage. A noble cause, no doubt, but the result didn’t quite work for me.

This film documents a live performance, without an audience though, of the whole album on 4 and 5 December of 1989. No less, but also no more than that. The personal interaction between the two is minimal — they sit like six meters apart for the whole show and never look at each other. From one song to another, the photography switches between colour and black and white, perhaps in a (vain) hope to add some visual diversity. The only song that touched me in some way was Forever Changed.

The screening in Castillo de Mata, followed by a conference with the journalist and music critic Ignacio Julià (which I didn’t stay for), has opened the CINEZiN2 festival.