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March 29, 2024

Live music in review: Kurt Vile at Ottobar

By DAVID SHI | March 10, 2016

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COURTESY OF KATHRYN BUCHSER Kurt Vile (right) plays guitar in his recent Ottobar show, where he exhibited everything from classic ‘70s rock to skilled banjo.

“Because it was a Monday, no a Tuesday, no Wednesday, Thursday, Friday.” It was a Friday, and Kurt Vile was playing the Ottobar with the Violators. If you are not familiar at all with Kurt Vile, simply turn to the song “Classic Rock in Spring/Freeway in Mind” off the album Constant Hitmaker. It’s a song from earlier in his career but sums up what Kurt Vile is going to do for you quite nicely.

He manages to evoke nearly every sentiment, from ‘70s rock and Americana to banjos and strumming, lightly picked electric or acoustic guitars streaming through a car stereo, quietly affirming to you that it’s still cool to like rock ‘n’ roll. In “Pretty Pimpin,” Kurt Vile is momentarily confused about where and who he is. And that’s something that is firmly expressed consistently through his discography: A sense of slight confusion and a state of being where “far out” wouldn’t seem too clichéd. “Daze” is a word that pops up pretty consistently in his songs.

It’s easy to miss how insightful his lyrics can actually be, especially if you’re just looking at his music as some campy stoner nonsense. But away from the daze and the dream we are reminded that Kurt Vile is a living breathing human being, one who sings about his old, fast-paced, blue-collar job as a forklift driver and his one semester flirtation with community college.

When you think of things in context, you’ll become aware that the daze isn’t a gimmick, and it isn’t something manufactured. It’s not a shoegaze kind of dream where noise is used to contort instruments and voices but rather the sense that something’s missing or aloof. And there’s a kind of authenticity to acknowledging that life isn’t on stable grounding.

Kurt Vile sings in a slightly under-his-breath murmur, but his voice is nasal enough that it cuts through the sometimes dream-like quality of his music.

Kurt Vile comes on stage, and the atmosphere at the Ottobar is what you would expect. The place is dive-y in a non-pretentious, non-decrepit way. The crowd is pretty diverse, and it makes sense. The style of music is one that appeals to a larger fan base.

He opens the show with the song “I’m an Outlaw,” which starts with a looped electronic drum layered with a banjo (a consistent instrument in his discography and the instrument that he first learned).

“I’ve been following him for about four years,” sophomore Tommy Athey says. “I’ve seen him before in York, Pa.... but this show was a lot better since he has more fans and has written some awesome electric songs.”

Next, Kurt moves through “b’lieve i’m goin down”and a scattering of older songs. The atmosphere that Kurt Vile has been known for is still there, but there’s a new sense of energy that’s been added.

His on-stage persona is low-key and lucid, making it easier for you to assign meaning to the words that he’s singing. Though he wastes no time by talking to the crowd, there isn’t the sense that he doesn’t want to talk to you; he’s just ready to rock. His music rocks, and it’s not embarrassing at all for me to use the word. The concert flows by seamlessly. In Kurt Vile’s words, “It’s all in a daze work.”


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