A Glimpse into the Future

With Kurt Vile's newest record Childish Prodigy (Matador), it's as if we're looking into a glowing crystal ball in order to see what lays ahead. It's also like being bashed over the head with the crowbar of greatness; this LP is a near-perfect synthesis of Vile's heart-rending, echoey fingerpickers ("Blackberry Song", which moved me to tears), penchant for sprinklings of vocal and electronic effects, and his ability to unleash wailing jams at a moments notice. Indeed, he effortlessly takes seemingly arcane or hackneyed things such as old-school fingerpicking, as in "Heart Attack" or thick effects ("Overnite Religion"), and makes them completely new, completely ear-opening.

In my August interview with the guy, he gushed about the workings of the album, talking about how he had thrown together his older albums in a rush, but had really pieced this one together and fleshed it out:

"It’s just my ultimate album. I’d say it’s my first ALBUM album, it wasn’t just compiled. There’s a lot of layers and you can keep uncovering stuff in there. . .it's definitely more tripped out. . .it’s the closest thing I have so far to my masterpiece."

You can hear all of that. It's the most realized thing he's made; it looks forward while existing as an ode to everyone and everything who's influenced him. One thing I also like is Vile's fearlessness when it comes to reworking songs over and over and letting everyone HEAR the process. On his March release The Hunchback EP (Testostertunes) with his band the Violators, Vile made the title song into a majestic, Neil Young-inspired tune that could've extended until forever. On Prodigy, he's gutted the tune and made it rough around the edges, choppy, and plodding. Somehow, it still works as an almost punk version of the former tune. He sneers and jeers like never before; suddenly it sounds like a completely new song.

He's playing a show at Hemlock Tavern on October 21, and it's with the Violators. This, no one should miss, because I hear they absolutely kill on stage.


Dead Alive
Blackberry Song
Heart Attack
Inside Lookin' Out