Kurt Vile and the Violaters - "Run Run Run" [Velvet Underground cover]

This fall, a tribute to the Velvet Underground's groundbreaking debut album will be released and will feature track-by-track covers by the likes of Iggy Pop, Michael Stipe, Sharon Van Etten with Angel Olsen, Thurston Moore, Courtney Barnett, Andrew Bird, and more.

Years back, Beck did a track-by-track cover of the seminal album with a bunch of friends and now more artists are jumping on board to pay tribute to the classic album. The first offering from the tribute record is "Run Run Run" by Kurt Vile and the Violaters. When speaking with Rolling Stone, Vile said "Lou Reed/the Velvet Underground were probably my earliest classic rock influence. I loved it. The first time I heard them, I’m sure I was probably stoned. When you hear music like that, so organic and raw, but you know, so confident, all those things combined, [it’s] so cool. So unapologetic. It just has an effect on you that you can’t even necessarily detect at the moment.” The tribute album was produced by the late Hal Vilmer and it was his last project before he passed in the spring of 2020. Vile originally recorded this cover while on the road and then mixed it during the pandemic. The cover is a revved-up banger that stays rather faithful to the original and the rest of the track list looks to do the same!

I’ll Be Your Mirror: A Tribute to the Velvet Underground & Nico is out September 24 via Verve.