The Thousands

Before he landed a job travelling the world playing music Kurt Vile drove a forklift at a brewery. There is still a bit of that forklift driver in Vile. You can hear it both in his songs and his phone manner. Loose, easy and free of bullshit. With a nod to classic rock, acoustic folk and a touch of psych, his music – like his conversation – is warm and familiar.

In a time of auto tunes and Nicki Minaj it’s nice to hear an album with a few tics. The small cracks in his voice and the occasional mis-cued strum makes Kurt and his music all that more personable. Vile is a great songwriter but as a person he comes across as a regular guy. Yeah he’s a new father but he’s still the kind of guy who can pass out on a couch at a party with cupcake wrappers on his chest and people striking goofy poses next to him.

To say The Thousands are excited to be presenting Kurt Vile and the Violators on their debut Australian tour would be more than an understatement. With two extra shows announced in Sydney and Melbourne and a Friday night sunset spot at Meredith, this is going to be a pretty special tour. On the eve of his arrival I had a chat with him about fatherhood, his music, Springsteen and J Mascis.

What are your expectations of Meredith?

I’ve heard about it from touring a bunch recently. There seems to be a lot of Australians in Berlin for some reason and they have all been telling me about it. I mention that I’m playing Meredith and they immediately get homesick (ha). But any festival that has Grinderman and Mudhoney is going to be cool. You know it’s not just going to be some indie fest. 

You mention Berlin and quite a few Australian musicians have moved to Berlin or London to further their career/audience. Would you ever consider moving away from your hometown of Philadelphia to pursue music?

I definitely wouldn’t move to some other city. I just wouldn’t have it in me. I moved to Boston when I was younger for two years while my wife – well she was my girlfriend then – went to grad school. But we then moved back to Philadelphia. When I was younger I needed the city. Now I wouldn’t mind moving out to clear my head. Move to the country or some nice outer  suburban area. Well in a few years. I have a daughter and stuff now she’s 17 months old.

Congrats! What’s her name?

Awilda. It’s my wife’s best friend’s middle name. It’s definitely a unique name. Awilda Vile (laughs).

Has being a father changed the way you write songs? Is Awilda the only girl you are writing about now?

(laughs) This new record is definitely more hippy, lovish and self deprecating. It definitely has more adult contemporary undertones. Right before the record I was going to take a hiatus because I knew I was going to become a father. I wrote the song ‘In My Time‘ and while I’ve never really been a straight-up literal type of songwriter I know that song was a direct result of becoming a father.

Becoming a father changes your outlook. You look at your friends who still live alone and you wonder about the things they think about. I just think about her. Even when I’m on tour I now know that I’m going back to her.

You will have to buy some crappy stuffed marsupial plush toys when you are out here.

(Haha) I like that stuff. It’s funny how when you have a kid all of a sudden you are surrounded by toys and stuff. Before I had a room dedicated to my music and now it’s the baby’s room and it’s full of colourful toys. But that’s cool!

The cover of your new EP So Outta Reach is pretty interesting. You passed out on a couch with people posing next to you.

Yeah they were taken at a party. My friend put them up on his Flickr account. My manager saw them and said, “There’s your album cover.”

You’re lucky nobody drew a dick on your face!

(haha) Yeah but my friends are all pretty cool.

On So Outta Reach you cover Springsteen’s ‘Downbound Train‘. It was on Born In the USA but I believe he wrote it around the time of the Nebraska album.

Yeah that’s what they say but I didn’t know that until later. I first heard it on Born In the USA but I went back and heard the original and the recording is way darker and the chords were completely different. It’s the one I prefer. When I pick a song to cover it has to speak to me. It was the same when I covered Dim Star’s ‘Monkey’, which was a pretty song, but ‘Downbound Train’ is amazing. I have similar songs such as ‘Hunchback’ which are pretty minor riffs. Simple but slightly ballsy classic rock riffs that usually start with me on an acoustic guitar. I sat down and I started playing a riff then realised it was ‘Downbound Train’ so I quickly looked up the lyrics online and I just played it for days on my couch.

You played on J Mascis’s latest record – excuse me for a second – HOLY FUCKING SHIT!! I want to make a set of those Russian matryoshka dolls – it would be you, inside of J Mascis who is inside Neil Young.

(Hahah). That’s cool. I look up to J like I do Neil Young. I’m lucky to have been on tour recently with a lot of my teen dream heroes – people such as Sonic Youth – but J Mascis is the one guy who is most like Neil Young. There’s one song from the first Dinosaur album it’s kind of long and proggy. He played it acoustic (starts singing song) it fucking just grabs your heart in such a Neil Young kind of way. It’s just a couple of choruses but it hits you in the gut. There’s another song on the Hand It Over album called ‘Alone‘ that is just awesome. He is the one. He’s got the sad lyrics and the sincere lyrics.

What’s he like to hang out with?

He’s the kind of guy who won’t give a lot away especially to someone who he has just met. But he genuinely likes us and we like him so when we toured together it was cool. I’m so honoured that he asked me to play with him. He laughs at our stupid jokes and we sit around and talk about pedals and stuff. (laughs)

KURT’S MIXTAPE TRACKLIST (WITH LINER NOTES)

1. John Lennon – ‘Bring on the Lucie (Freeda Peeple)’

Slang for ‘free the people’ get it? Because.

2. RTX – ‘Speed to Roam’

Sick pop metal anthem from our brothers and sister. This shit gives me mad chills (it’s in my headphones, this second!)

3. Mercury Rev – ‘Frittering’

From their first record this song puts me in a beautiful, beautiful trance. It’s nice and long too.

4. The Feelies – ‘For A While’

This one has been making grown men (and young) cry for decades.

5. Lou Reed – ‘Charley’s Girl’

From Lou’s cult classic Coney Island Baby: “If I ever see Sharon again… I’m gonna punch her face in.”

6. Richard Hell – ‘Time’

From the RIP tape (later reissued on Matador), pre-Destiny Street a raw and heartfelt gem of a performance.

7. J Mascis – ‘I’ve Been Thinking’

New single from J. Beautiful and heartbreaking as usual. No skin off his teeth.

8. Royal Trux – ‘Dirty Headlines’

“You’re so rank!!!”

9. INXS – ‘Beautiful Girl’

I picked up the “best of” on cassette recently and the piano on this song as well as the vocal melody in general, and delivery etc., really hit me hard. It takes me back to when I was younger and it was on the radio all the time. I always dug it. It’s one of their less-played “hits” these days, at least in the States.