Hailing from Philadelphia, indie rocker Kurt Vile spent a couple of decades properly honing his earnest, lo-fi sound before rising to fame, first gravitating towards music in his teens, writing on a gifted banjo, and distributing self-recorded bedroom tapes, before early years of bouncing around labels and organically growing a modest following. After a couple years in Boston and upon a return to Philly, Vile teamed up with friend Adam Granduciel to help found The War On Drugs, concurrent to his long-simmering solo career, and found some modest success for the group’s early work, before departing to focus on his own music full time (though, notably, Granduciel remained a member of Vile’s backing band for a few years after). Though technically his third LP, Vile’s 2009 effort Childish Prodigy was notably his first album to feature backing band The Violators in the studio (and for that matter, his first true studio endeavor), and also his debut for Matador, where he’d remain for a decade.
Followup Smoke Ring for My Halo, in 2011, earned Kurt even more attention, but it wasn’t until 2013’s Wakin on a Pretty Daze that Vile finally found breakthrough, worldwide acclaim, landing on countless year-end lists (including our own), and swiftly propelling the performer to larger stages, festival appearances, and universal praise. Vile’s lo-fi, folky, eclectic, and introspective sound continued to resonate with 2015 followup b’lieve I’m goin down…, another critically lauded and widely successful LP, and helped cement his status as one of the most important and buzzworthy acts in the indie scene, a legacy furthered by 2017 teamup with another modern indie darling, Courtney Barnett, for a joint album called Lotta Sea Lice. Kurt capped off a prolific 2010s- which also featured a heavy, global touring schedule- with 2018’s guest-filled Bottle It In, before taking a longer-than-usual break between full-length releases (coinciding with the pandemic)
Vile returned in 2022 with(watch my moves), his first for new label home Verve Forecast, largely recorded at his home studio during the Covid-19 lockdowns. Ramping back up to more prolific recording and touring, two EPs followed, ahead of this year’s tenth album and love letter to his hometown, Philadelphia’s Been Good to Me. His first LP since the death of longtime bandmate and collaborator Rob Laakso, Vile “treated the recording process like it was his last album” (even though he hasn’t formally confirmed that it is his last album), pouring all of these years of musical evolution and artistry and influence into what lands as perhaps his most earnest, warm, and thoughtful effort to date. In support, Kurt and the band are currently on the road, and will return to the Nashville venue they’ve frequented the most, The Ryman Auditorium on July 18! Austin indie rockers Being Dead open, and tickets are still available right here while they last!
However, we’re excited to announce that we’re also giving away a pair of tickets to one lucky fan! Preview the lineup and enter below.
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Kurt Vile and the Violators and Being Dead will perform Saturday, July 18 at The Ryman Auditorium. The show is all ages, begins at 8:00 p.m. (doors at 7:00 p.m.), and tickets are available for $53.95-65.15.
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