In the late 60s, The Velvet Underground often performed at the Boston Tea Party, a concert venue in — you guessed it! — Boston. Lou Reed described the Boston Tea Party as being the band’s favorite place to play and the Velvets’ performances at the venue would eventually become legendary. The Velvet Underground would attract an audience made up of bikers, Harvard students, MIT Students, Northeastern Students, celebrities, and a young Jonathan Richman.
In 1967, artist Andy Warhol attended a performance and filmed the show. He got 33 minutes of footage, one that doesn’t quite work as a concert film but which does work marvelously as a time capsule. While the music itself is often distorted (and this is not the film to watch if you’re wanting to hear your favorite songs performed live), Warhol’s camera does capture the feel of the psychedelic 60s, complete with strobe lights, sudden zoom shots, and an audience that alternates between moving to the music and standing still in a state of stoned contemplation. Warhol films like someone who has just gotten his first camera and can’t wait to experiment and see what it can do. The end result is actually rather likable, even if it is often incoherent. The enthusiasm and the excitement of filmmaking and capturing history comes through. When you’re first learning and experimenting with film, there’s nothing cooler than a sudden close-up or a sudden pull back to reveal the size of the crowd. The film finds Warhol having fun with the camera and the footage is ultimately rather hypnotic.
It’s a true time capsule. Here is The Velvet Underground in Boston.
Through the Shattered Lens 