POP Montreal 2016 Symposium – John Cale has no time for nostalgia

John Cale
Montreal Museum of Fine Arts
September 23, 2016

John Cale is not one for looking back. The Velvet Underground co-founder and producer was in town to perform a rare show at The Rialto during POP Montreal, followed by a live interview at The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts the next afternoon moderated by McGill Professor Will Straw, during which he discussed his early years with the Velvets, his various collaborations over the years, his producing work, and much more.

Throughout the hour-long conversation, Cale proved somewhat cagey when discussing his early run with the Velvets and his time in New York City in the late 60’s – early 70’s—he would happily discuss the inter-mingling of music and the visual arts (appropriate since the MMFA is currently hosting an exhibit by NYC photographer Robert Mapplethorpe), but seemed reticent to glamourize the “gritty” New York that has become synonymous with the Velvets and the origins of proto-punk.

The topic of punk frequently came up, and Cale acknowledged that he believes the phenomenon truly began in the UK, a surprise admission from someone so closely aligned with the rise of New York punk in the 70’s. “The Brits birthed punk,” Cale stated at one point, pointing to the influence of meth amphetamine as the inspiration for bands to start playing faster and wilder. “Take meth and you’ll be very busy for a long time,” he joked.

Cale and fellow artists were able to live cheaply in New York due to the Fluxus project, which allowed artists to apply for reduced rent in abandoned industrial buildings. That inter-mingling allowed poets, musicians, visual artists and filmmakers to live in close proximity to each other, resulting in avant-garde contributions that would go on to influence music, fashion, film and literature for decades to come.

Apart from his early years with the Velvets, Cale is also an accomplished producer, with credits including Patti Smith’s landmark 1975 debut Horses. After leaving the Velvets in 1969, he explained that he felt “unproven” as a performer, which pushed him to begin working in a producing capacity. When pressed on his worst producing experience, he hesitated before revealing that his work with UK acid-house band The Happy Mondays was a bit of a disaster. “Sometimes you’re chosen for the wrong thing,” he admitted. “It was totally chaotic.”

As talk turned to his numerous collaborations and his future projects, Cage was quick to praise Chance the Rapper, and revealed he’d love to work with the Chicago rapper. “He has an unruly way of doing things,” he explained, “which is something I’m always looking for.”

At 74 years old, Cale admitted that he keeps so busy because he’s impatient, eager to jump onto the next project that excites him. From the myriad of interests he discussed during this talk, one thing is clear: we can always expect the unexpected from the ever-evolving Mr. Cale.