An Interview with Kurt Vile: A Very Serious Man

image of Kurt Vile from band MySpace

Editor's Note: This fantastic interview was contributed by guest writer and aspiring music journalist Ruth Griffin.

From fork-lifter to critically acclaimed singer-songwriter, Kurt Vile seems to be the role model of every kid working a day job, just hoping to make it big someday. After jumping from label to label, Vile finally found sanctuary in Matador Records. With his latest, and most cohesive album, Smoke Ring for My Halo, this guy has built a masterpiece from the ground up, destined for greatness from the beginning. His entrancing swoons of sincerity coupled with his harmonious yet melancholy aesthetic have put him at the forefront of the indie music scene, and has earned him a much anticipated Friday afternoon ACL performance. Seemingly unfazed by such a glowing reputation, the lovely Kurt Vile got a chance to give the Austinist some updates on his venture into the spotlight, enlightening us on his counterparts, the Violators, his admiration for Matador, and, naturally, some good old 90210.

I was reading an interview from a couple months back. It was in Timeout Chicago, that in your previous records critics would get your lyrics wrong and try to use it against you.

Oh, yeah, people do that. You know who did that? Tiny Mixtapes [about the song “On Tour”]. First of all, it's a song about the band on tour and stuff, inner turmoil on tour in the van, psychological warfare. So I'd say, “watch out for this one, they'll stab you in the back for fun.”
And then reviewer said that I said, “watch out for this one standing in the back, for fun.” Then he's like, “oh, yeah, so it's like saying thanks to the people for coming out. Like thanks, but no thanks”, as if it was about, an extension of himself, the writer, and the people coming to the shows. So they totally used it against me. It’s fine if people don't like the record, but read the lyric sheet.

That is unacceptable.

Yeah, I know.

So how did “The Violators” contribute to Smoke Ring For My Halo?

Well, they contributed a lot, depending on the song. I definitely have the song written, for most of them. I just figure a couple out in the studio [and] finish them in the studio, like “Puppet To The Man” and “Society is My Friend”. There's like sketches, and once we laid it down real rough, we fine-tuned it. Sometimes it’s just ideas, but, it’s not like anybody has a set part. But, if everybody just puts their part in, we all see eye to eye in one way or another, enough so that there’s freedom.

So how do you like playing shows with The Violators versus shows with just yourself?

Oh, I prefer it. And I don’t mind playing solo. I’ve done it enough in my life. But after five or six songs, it’s a little low energy for me.

You could always start dancing ridiculously and then people will be entertained. Maybe that will bring the energy back?

People get clever being solo. They could get samplers and all kinds of different rigs, which I tried in the past when I was younger. But, if I played solo now, it just ends up being solo acoustic. Maybe one day I’ll get clever once I have a big crew working for me who will set it all up, but in the meantime, if I was going to play solo it’d just be solo acoustic more or less. I don’t mind it. I did a whole bunch of in stores when the record came out and I’ve done plenty of solo shows and solo tours in my life. But you’ve got to bounce off people and the energy of the band and have that mix.

Well, I look forward to hearing, seeing you improve your cleverness in that aspect. Anyway, in my experience with people that I’ve met, when they don’t find lyrics to be confusing or a challenge to comprehend, they tend to throw it out and assume that it doesn’t have merit, because it’s too easy. I was wondering how you feel about overly complex lyrics in songs versus the way that you write which is very literal, like in Smoke Ring for My Halo, as well as your past albums

Everybody tries to get clever with lyrics and after a while it just depends. I mean, you shouldn’t say Bob Dylan’s lyrics are simple. They’re still incredible. Or Leonard Cohen. I guess I tend to go for the really simple and straight and try to be honest even if it’s abstract. At least it’s honest to myself. Like John Lennon, all the songs on Plastic Ono Band, like “Mother”, then “Love”, or whatever. The lyrics are so simple, and so beautiful, and so direct. You know what I mean? He just got way introspective and sang from his heart, more than anybody else. That’s what I like about all the greats. They’re all the greats for their reason, like Bob Dylan. He was a lyrical genius. But John Lennon, he can have an honest, beautiful song that makes you want to cry more than everybody else. Neil Young, he has those types of songs too, but I have never almost cried to Neil Young. It’s close…but yeah, I agree. I get really tired of people over-complicating lyrics just to make them, I don't know, sound good. If it's over-complicated then they're probably trying too hard, but there's some complex lyrics. It's almost like playing in a band with a drummer who fills up every space with fills. It's like there's no space, no breathing room. So if somebody has too many big words and clever rhymes, alliterations, it's like it sounds frustrating or annoying.

Some people could classify your voice sounding kind of country. And I was wondering what you thought about that? How did your voice develop?

You mean the way it kind of bends a little…I grew up on old time music and not much country, but I am vocally inspired by Townes Van Zandt or Gram Parsons, the way they kind of [singing "Oh my land is like a wild goose..."]. They just try to do their little bendy thing, which I didn't even realize I was inspired by it until I looked back. I'm like “wow, I heard that song so long ago, but it really inspired me.”

How do you feel about Smoke Ring From My Halo versus Childish Prodigy?

I think Smoke Ring From My Halo was the professional record. Childish Prodigy actually came out, and most of those songs were two and a half, three years old before that record came out, but they both capture certain things. This [Smoke Ring for My Halo] captures me going in with a producer who’s like one of my best friends now, and knowing that I have to deliver something for my second record for Matador. Because Childish Prodigy caused a buzz in the underground, but it’s not like it exploded and I got across the board great reviews. But it didn’t matter because Childish Prodigy is cool because that was me still working on my ultimate studio record before anybody was even putting my stuff out. And so it’s got a very punk rock and D.I.Y. attitude and edge to it. There’s nobody from the outside telling me what they think. It doesn’t matter because I’m just doing my own thing, so that’s why that’s cool. So it’s just two different things. The new record is very musical. Childish Prodigy, is punk edge at times, or even if it’s pretty, it’s still psychedelic and raw and nobody was telling me what to do. Not that they were on this one. This one is just more musical.

You had a lot of people come in and help you.

I got lots of encouragement. I knew how to make a good record. I would, anyway. If I didn’t have a producer, I feel like I wouldn’t have been able to do it. I mean I have friends of mine, like Adam, who’s my band mate sometimes, but now he’s out with the War on Drugs. He knows recording equipment pretty well, so he works on stuff at home. And I did for a little while, but I was never great at it, so I realized I need a producer. I need somebody I can bounce off of. Same with like friends or band mates. I need to find someone I can bounce off of too. I can’t do it all on my own.

Exactly. I have a random question for my own indulgence. I was looking up to see if any of your songs were played on TV shows, and I saw that “My Sympathy” was played on 90210. How do you feel about that?

Well the first thing I ever almost got was a label was trying to sign me. They were nice but I wasn’t going to sign with them, but they tried to impress me by giving my song “Freeway” to a Toyota commercial, and I was impressed. I was like “Oh these guys are cool.” So I already went through that inner “figure it out for yourself, is this right to do?” And usually you hear how much money you’ll get and you say “What’s the big deal? It might turn on some total dorks that are watching”, but anyway, that was funny. And at first I was like “Oh really?” and then I was like “Oh whatever.” But then I got one more thing on TV which was my song “He’s Alright” which was on the final episode of the last season of Eastbound and Down, so that was really awesome. It was in this cool, emotional part at the end of the season, and I got so lucky to have my song on there, because the song is kind of emotional too. So I think TV and all that is a good thing. Not that it was a McDonald's commercial or something.t