Yea-Ming Covers The Velvet Underground
If you were fortunate enough to attend the Oakland Weekender in 2024, you might have picked up the tape that featured Yea-Ming Chen‘s cover of “Pale Blue Eyes.” But, while working on the next album (‘rumors’ have it slated for a 2026 release0, Yea-Ming wanted to make sure she got this Velvet Underground cover out into the world. I love how her vocal resonance sounds similar to Lou Reed’s, slightly smoky in its presentation, though clearly grasping to pop sentimentality. Chen recorded the majority of the song herself, so a lot of the VU excess is gone, leaving you a bare-bones version that’s equally as stunning in its own right, with Yea-Ming admitting she embraced some of the imperfections in the recording as a way of connecting with Reed’s spirit. Stream it now below!
Well, I somehow managed to break the streak! This week we only have 23 songs to offer instead of the customary 28 per that last four weeks! Alas, I was sick, so were my kids, and a few of the tunes weren’t streaming. So, what did we cover? The good stuff. I was blown away and waxing nostalgic with the new Royal Headache announcement and accompanying single. It was good to see acts like Oh Boland, Neutrals and Stephen’s Shore give me my pop goodies. Plus, Austin powerhouses Urban Heat and Font were out there backing up hype with great new singles. Oh, and did you catch out great Rock n’ Recipe feature with R.E. Seraphin? Well, there’s still plenty to digest below, so enjoy yourselves!
If you’re looking for a track to put in your pocket and take with you into the weekend, please please please take this track from