Musicians certainly hope and try to make each show an unforgettable experience for those in attendance, but few of them might be going about it in such industrious fashion as Kurt Vile.
When he tours, the Lansdowne, Pa. native totes with him a vast selection of guitars — plus a single banjo — that he pulls from to offer a different sound and presentation for every single song he plays. It blows the minds of anyone in the room to see him for the first time and still impresses the many longtime followers he’s gained as one of the most prized and influential singer-songwriters and guitarists of the modern era.
Kurt hit the road this past weekend with his longtime band, The Violators, charting a months-long tour to promote his late-November 2023 EP, an absorbing and introspective nine songs dubbed Back to Moon Beach.
In a telling gesture to the Charm City and its impassioned music faithful, the group began its trek Sunday night with a sold-out performance at Ottobar, playing a stage that Kurt would acknowledge as one dear to him.
Listen to Kurt Vile’s newest EP, Back to Moon Beach, via Spotify:
The March 17 nightcap amounted to a special St. Patrick’s occasion for Vile and his Violators, a posse including longtime collaborator Jesse Trbovich on guitar, bass and keys, drummer/percussionist Kyle Spence, and Adam Langellotti on bass and keys as well. A skilled and dedicated crew, it’s one that suffered a tragic loss last year with the passing of a crucial contributor in producer/multi-instrumentalist Rob Laakso.
Persevering to perform songs from the new EP and from across a catalogue spanning nearly 17 years, Vile and his close pals played popular new releases on stage for the very first time along with an assortment of the well-known, ingenious compositions that showcase Kurt’s electric and acoustic mastery and reveal him to be an artistic freak and poet laureate.
Those on hand heard the live premiere of the new EP’s supernatural title track that recalls his second album, God Is Saying This to You…, as well as the monumental “Another good year for the roses” and, as part of a four-song encore, the colorful TP tribute “Tom Petty’s gone (but tell him i asked for him).”
Watch the official music video for Kurt Vile’s “Another good year for the roses” via his YouTube channel:
But 44-year-old was sure to gift some of his most celebrated tunes to the packed room, and everyone in the place marveled as his hard-working crew fetched what appeared to be a different stringed instrument for him to play for each tune, utilizing the cache that joins him on the road.
Fans relished in the unique grooves of recent masterpieces like “Say The Word” and “Mount Airy Hill (Way Gone)” from 2022’s (watch my moves) and rejoiced to Kurt’s older classics, including a curative take on “Wakin on a Pretty Day” and the spiraling and contemplative “Pretty Pimpin’.”
“I love it here,” he said. “I played here more than anywhere else I think.”
A few feet from his merch table, a mannequin donned an Ottobar T-shirt below what appeared to be the wide-eyed alligator mask Kurt wore on the cover of (watch my moves).
In some capacity, he’s been playing gigs in Baltimore for about 20 years. An original founding member of The War on Drugs with his longtime friend Adam Granduciel, Vile ventured on his own and his solo endeavors now include nine studio albums and a long list of EPs that includes collaborations with the likes of Steve Gunn and Sore Eros.
He’s known to be inspired by 1990s indie rock giants Dinosaur Jr. and Sonic Youth, but country-folk heroes like the late, great John Prine, too, and that’s echoed in his conversational lyrics, his down home voice and can even be heard deep within the psychedelic sounds he achieves with different playing styles on his many guitars.
Kurt realized a songwriter’s fantasy in 2020, when he released the five-ditty EP Speed, Sound, Lonely KV, on which he honored Prine and was even joined by him for the recording of “How Lucky” just a couple years before he died.
Ottobar patrons heard it in person Sunday night as one of two solo numbers Kurt played as his band took a brief respite.
“One for Prine — John Prine,” Vile let out one of his trademark hoots and strapped on the next in a lineup that included numerous Fenders (a Jazzmaster, a Mustang, a XII 12-string), various acoustic guitars, a big gnarly Gretsch, and plenty more. Gold Tone was the brand name on the banjo, and there was yet another keyboard to his right, which he used a few times during the set.
He went back and forth with the audience all night, and though some of his words were mumbled, he was clearly uplifted and warmed by the energy in the venue, finding a perfect start to his and his mates’ long journey.
“You been a beautiful audience,” he said as the lengthy encore ended. “And, I love you.”
Revisit Kurt Vile’s 2022 studio album, (watch my moves), via Spotify:
Setlist
Jesus Fever
Hey Like A Child
I’m an Outlaw
Back to Moon Beach
Say the Word
Runner Ups (Kurt solo)
How Lucky (Kurt solo)
Flyin (like a fast train)
Another Good Year For The Roses
Mount Airy Hill (Way Gone)
Wakin on a Pretty Day
Pretty Pimpin’
Check Baby
Encore
Loading Zones
Tom Petty’s gone (but tell him I asked for him)
Hunchback
Like Exploding Stones
Below are hand-spun, home-developed, home-scanned 35mm film images of Kurt Vile and The Violators along with the night’s opening act, Weak Signal, performing at Ottobar in Baltimore on March 17, 2024. All photos copyright and courtesy of Casey Ryan Vock.
Weak Signals
