I started listening to Nico a few years before I got into the Velvet Underground. In fact, my initial interest in the Velvet Underground was entirely inspired by Nico's Chelsea Girl. I checked them out and liked it, but I never really got into it. Then my friend Jeff played me some of Lou Reed's solo stuff. Again, I spent some time with the Velvet Underground and again I was impressed but never captivated. I recently got into Owen's cover of "Femme Fatale" and this pushed me to check out Nico's album with the Velvet Underground (or is it the other way around) and at least I can finally say I get it.

"Femme Fatale" should probably only be played in smokey coffee houses in front of a strung out crowd, but it captures a time and place that I only wish I saw. There's a really clear psychedelic rock influence in the music (see: tambourine and boring drumming), but Nico never sounds like she's part of the band. As she does in many of her recordings, she sounds troubled and dour. I think that sort of emotion works wonderfully in this contexts and gives the song a bit more gravitas than it would normally have - I mean, she's singing fairly ridiculous lyrics and she pulls it off.

I wonder if I'll ever really learn to love the Velvet Underground.