Pitchfork

Lou Reed said when he was just 66 years old, "Man, there's nothing happening at all. Every time I put on my satellite radio, there's just nothing going down at all." He paused briefly, then added, "No, not at all."

Then one fine morning, Lou went down to the SIRIUS satellite radio offices, and he didn't believe what he heard at all. They were offering him his own radio show and, yes, his weekend was saved by rock'n'roll.

This Saturday evening, May 17, at 6 PM, turn your SIRIUS extraterrestrial music-receiving device to channel 70-- "SIRIUS Disorder", as they call it-- to feast those ears on the inaugural edition of "Lou Reed's New York Shuffle", the latest venture from the rock'n'roll icon. Reed, having, like, been there, has plenty to say about the death of freeform radio and the crappiness of tightly-controlled playlists, but will let his gruff voice serve as a beacon of eclecticism as he and producer Hal Willner kick out the jams.

In a press release, Lou said, "For years, I've always been a fan of eclectic radio, such as FM radio in the past when you could hear stations play widely divergent music, ranging from rock to country to jazz to opera. I loved the days when DJs who did their own programming set the bar high. I learned from these DJs and it's a delight, with my friend Hal Willner, to do this type of radio today on SIRIUS. We will try to bring SIRIUS' listeners audio from all parts of the world that covers the whole musical spectrum."

Oh admit it, you're just gonna play the second half of The Bells and then grouse about "the kids" for a while, aren't you? We wouldn't expect anything less.

We assume Lou's new gig won't affect his forthcoming European Berlin tour, which kicks off in just over a month. Hey, if he's gotta miss a few shows to go out and make the fine fine music himself, well, that's all right now.

Lou also shows up on I Will Break Your Fall, the new album from his longtime bass player and collaborator Fernando Saunders. Saunders and Reed duet on a song called "Baton Rouge". The album is out June 17 in Canada on Summit/Conveyor/Universal. 

Lou Reed:

06-23 Cork, Ireland - Cork Marquee
06-24 Belfast, Northern Ireland - Belfast Waterfront
06-25 Edinburgh, Scotland - Edinburgh Playhouse
06-26 Nottingham, England - Royal Centre
06-28 Paris, France - Salle Pleyel
06-30 London, England - Royal Albert Hall
07-02 Zurich, Switzerland - Hallenstadion
07-03 Munich, Germany - Munich Philharmonie
07-06 Hamburg, Germany - CCH Congress Centrum
07-07 Copenhagen, Denmark - Copenhagen Opera House
07-08 Copenhagen, Denmark - Copenhagen Opera House
07-09 Stockholm, Sweden - Annexet
07-11 Tallinn, Estonia - Saku Suurhall
07-12 Riga, Latvia - Arena Riga
07-14 Warsaw, Poland - Sala Kongresowa
07-16 Brussels, Belgium - Bozar
07-19 Lisbon, Portugal - Campo Pequeno
07-20 Loule, Portugal - Monumento Duarte Pacheco
07-21 Malaga, Spain - Terral
07-22 Madrid, Spain - Mardid Conde Duque
07-25 Girona, Spain - Portaferrada Festival
07-26 Benidorm, Spain - The Bullring