Kurt Vile
Origin: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Top Songs: Pretty Pimpin, Loading Zones, Wakin on a Pretty Daze
Genre: lo-fi indie folk
Label: Matador
Click here to check out his website
When I think of folk music, I tend to only think about the classics. I think about Woody Guthrie, Bob Dylan, and Neil Young. It’s almost as if my brain assumes nobody else could create folk music and once Dylan and Young are gone, folk music will die with them. I was pleasantly surprised to find Kurt Vile and his brand of indie folk music. His music definitely goes against the modern standards of pop music with his very low production value and staggeringly long run times, but I think that’s what makes me like him so much. I typically like music that’s more produced, but even I can get bored of squeaky clean tones and lyrics after a while. He released two albums in the last two years: Bottle It In last year and Lotta Sea Lice in 2017 with Courtney Barnett. He was also in the lead guitarist and founding member of the band The War on Drugs in the early 2000’s before focusing on his solo career.
I discovered Kurt Vile by way of as YouTube recommendation. I don’t even remember what I was listening to. I just remember thinking “With a name like Kurt Vile, He’s either a metal singer or some sort of hard rock guy.” I was then greeted by his song “Pretty Pimpin” which made me consider for a second that he might be a rapper with a song title like that. The song itself is pretty bluesy and definitely not rap or metal.
Check it out below and also check out his latest album Bottle It In.