"I need solitude for my writing; not 'like a hermit' - that wouldn't be enough - but like a dead man."
- Franz Kafka
Though Lou Reed might be more widely remembered for some of the most provocative and contentious experimental rock of the 20th century, his influence stretches equally far within the rock 'n' roll mainstream. A spot-on portent of Reed's vibrant solo career, Loaded witnesses The Velvet Underground emerging from the druggy maw of their late-60s work to pen some of the best vanilla rock anthems of the era, with the typically reticent Doug Yule assuming a more conspicuous role. The album is staggering not for its consistency, diversity, or technical proficiency-- something the band came to stylize-- but for the ardor and joie de vivre with which it explores the capacious boundaries of its form.