Kurt Vile live in Bristol, November 2018 (Jessica Bartolini / Live4ever)
When Kurt Vile spoke to Rolling Stone last month he explained his goal is ‘just to get a little more healthy all the time’; if the successful delivery of his seventh studio album Bottle It In and this show are anything to go by, Vile must be in rude health.
Vile’s career is a study in good things happening to those who wait. As he becomes more successful, the tactic of building slowly but surely is paying off, and tonight’s (November 6th) show is a celebration of his creative transformation. With a setlist focused around the last three albums, the crowd is treated to a multi-layered, clearly defined set oozing substance, completion and a fully realised execution of songs.
There’s some rougher, more edgy work of the era influenced by Pavement/Stephen Malkmus, and there’s his later period taking more inspiration from the likes of Neil Young and Tom Petty, whilst not forgetting his collaboration with Courtney Barnett; certainly, establishing himself as a cosmic guitar god dedicated to ayurvedic herbs keeps things intriguing. In London, he cements this position in a ninety-minute show crammed full of guitar-led instrumental brilliance, all sprinkled with story-driven lyrics and a clever, dry wit.
Dressed in a yellow and grey lumberjack shirt and worn jeans with his signature wavy long hair hanging loose, Vile makes things feel cool and familiar. Not one for warming up and getting things right mid-set, the standard, pace and tone is pitched and defined from the start in the shape of Loading Zones, followed by the piercing tone of Jesus Fever. By the time Bassackwards begins the crowd’s ecstasy is building; although Vile’s music does not invite moshing and jumping there is a sense that everyone would do it, if only it felt natural.
Whilst Vile expresses his love and gratitude to the crowd several times throughout the set, he does not offer chit-chat – it works a real treat and creates a sense of a no-nonsense, let-the-songs-do-the-talking vibe that also serves to strengthen the feeling of substance being the overarching driver.
Surrounded by guitar racks and with multiple instrument changes, Vile creates different sounds and effects, giving both sonic variation, complexity and range. This is obvious during the round and velvet-like textures of Cold Was The Wind, which contrasts with the rough and rudimentary nature of Peeping Tomboy, solely performed on an acoustic guitar. A further intriguing juxtaposition comes with the breezy summer day atmosphere of Yeah Bones next to the bombastic and explosive synth-layered Check Baby.
Completing the set with with Skinny Mini and Wild Imagination, an encore of Pretty Pimpin (44 million Spotify streams and counting), Downbound Train (a Springsteen cover) and Baby’s Arms only serves to confirm Kurt Vile as one of the most gifted guitarists and songwriters in rock today.
That isn’t going to change any time soon.