Kurt Vile
b’lieve i’m goin down
Matador
If we all could make such sweet music from the sleepy, stoner confines of our living room couch then the word “slacker” wouldn’t exist. In reality, though, we can’t all be Kurt Vile and not every late night strum and scribble is going to result in “Like Like This.” The folk track (complete with super trippy animated video) that flows like the tide into an unlikely pop song is the standout track on Vile’s sixth album b’lieve i’m goin down: a perfect link in the chain between the poetic folk rock of Bob Dylan, the punk poetry of Lou Reed, and the lo-fi heartache musings of Lou Barlow.
A running theme of “anxiety” weaves through the record, but in various states of mind. From angst, to apathy, to dread, to acceptance and always with a sense of humor. If there’s one thing Kurt Vile teaches us it’s that social anxiety can result in some pretty fine tunes, as evidence on “Pretty Pimpin,” “That’s Life, tho,” and “Lost my Head there.”
Vile gets lost in his own mind and channels the poetic psychosis into a mind melding trip that can transform any room into a den of beautiful chill.
