Kurt Vile is back in our lives, and not a moment too soon.
The Philadelphia musician, songwriter, and producer returns at a time when we maybe need him most, announcing a new album titled (watch my moves), out April 15 via Verve Records, and unveiling a meditative new sun-kissed psych tune called “Like Exploding Stones.” Vile’s new self-produced LP was recorded mainly at OKV Central, his newly-minted home studio in the Philadelphia neighborhood of Mount Airy, with his band The Violators.
“When Waylon Jennings became an outlaw country artist, he liked to record at Hillbilly Central, which was Tompall Glaser’s studio,” says Vile. “OKV Central is my version of that in Mount Airy. I’ve come into my own here, and at the same time I’m getting back to my home-recording roots.”
The 15-track album features special guests like Chastity Belt, Cate Le Bon, and percussionists Stella Mozgawa (Warpaint, Courtney Barnett) and Sarah Jones (Hot Chip, Harry Styles). Vile says (watch my moves) is “about songwriting. It’s about lyrics. It’s about being the master of all domains in the music… I’m always thinking about catchy music, even though it’s fried, or sizzled, out. It’s my own version of a classic thing — it’s moving forward and backward at the same time.”
Vile is taking the record out on the road this spring, and while the run doesn’t have a Boston date just yet (unless we missed something!), the itinerary includes shows at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium (May 1), Los Angeles’ Theatre at The Ace Hotel (May 12), and two nights at New York’s Webster Hall (June 1 and 2). Things wraps up with a pair of homecoming shows at Philadelphia’s Union Transfer (June 3 and 4). Tickets to all the dates go on sale this Friday (February 18) at 10 a.m. local time.
In the meantime, watch the “Like Exploding Stones” video, featuring Sun Ra Arkestra’s James Stewart, below.
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