Iconic Chicago-based artist Chris Connelly has released his new album 'Doo Wop In The Dark: A Portrait of Lou Reed', via Shipwrecked Industries with distribution by Virtual Label. This colossal 21-track offering is a bombastic reflection on artistic inheritance, tracing how Reed’s restless, confrontational sensibility helped shape Connelly’s own creative identity.
The album focus track 'Bye Bye Johnny Viola' highlights a pivotal period for Lou Reed. Connelly explains, "'Bye Bye Johnny Viola' is a postmortem on John Cale being fired from the Velvet Underground. Like 'House of 70's', the timeline whirls with events of the time: it's 1968, Valerie Solanas has shot Andy Warhol, 'White Light/White Heat' was a sonic hammer on the hippie dream, and Lou sent Sterling Morrison round to John's apartment to fire him."
Previewed by 'Nothin' But A Rock Song' with video by Glasgow's Iain Mutch / Walkerandwilliam, and the lead track 'House of 70's' with video produced by Someoddpilot Studios and directed by Chris Eichenseer of Some Odd Pilot, this record presents a unique mix, including Lou Reed compositions -- spanning his career from the Velvet Underground onwards -- and songs penned by Connelly, detailing the creative and often turbulent path of Reed's life from his teenage years through to his death in 2013.
Moving between tenderness, menace, alienation, decadence and damaged beauty, Reed is treated not simply as an influence to be celebrated, but as a catalyst for an entire way of making music. The result is both deeply personal and deliberately expansive: a record about finding your own voice by wrestling with the voices that came before you, and about how an artist’s work can become part of another's emotional and creative vocabulary
'Doo Wop In The Dark' echoes Connelly's acclaimed 2022 album 'Eulogy to Christa: A Tribute to the Music & Mystique of Nico' - one of the most unique, tragic and misunderstood female artists in the history of modern music. Similarly, this new album is dedicated to the wildfire, tempestuous spirit of Lewis Allan Reed (a.k.a. Lou Reed), as well as Chris's dear friend Zak Boerger (1973 -2025).
While mostly produced by Connelly and his Sons of the Silent Age bandmate Alan Holden Berliant, four tracks from this album were produced by Chris Bruce (Meshell Ndegeocello, Seal, Aaron Neville, Bob Dylan, The Waterboys, Sheryl Crow). Mixed by Berliant and Bruce from 2023 to 2026, this record was mastered by James Scott at Populist Recording & Mastering.
ALBUM CREDITS
Chris Connelly - vocals, guitar, harmonium, bass, keyboards, glockenspiel
Chris Bruce - guitar, programming, bass, keyboards, pedal steel guitar
Alan Holden Berliant - guitar, keyboards, bass, programming
Jebin Bruni - additional keyboards on 'Bye Bye Johnny Viola'
Produced by Chris Connelly & Alan Holden Berliant,
except 'Babyface', 'Bye Bye Johnny Viola', 'Doin’ The Things That We Want To' and 'One Too Many Mysteries' produced by Chris Bruce
Mixed by Alan Holden Berliant & Chris Bruce in Chicago & New York (2023-2026)
Mastered by James Scott at Populist Recording & Mastering
Liner notes by Aidan Levy
Cover photography by Derick Smith
Cover layout by Kimberly Blessing
Published by: Sony/ATV Music, Universal Music Group, Sister Ray Enterprises, Concord Music
© and ℗ 2026 Chris Connelly - All rights reserved
Released by Shipwrecked Industries LLC
'Nothin' But A Rock Song' video produced by Iain Mutch a.k.a. Walkerandwilliam
'House of 70's' video produced by Someoddpilot Studios
Directed and edited by Chris Eichenseer
Dancers: Kira Ledholm, Jay Drenkel
Management: Kimberly Blessing at Shipwrecked Industries
Chris Connelly photos by Derick Smith
Publicity by Shauna McLarnon at Shameless Promotion PR
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