Kurt Vile is at his Effortless Best on 'B'lieve I'm Going Down'

Kurt Vile never changes too much. He’s like an old friend who you bump into every few years - a little older and wiser - but the same at heart. Foregoing any radical transformations, his career has instead been a process of gradual refinement, and Vile’s songwriting has become more mature and self-assured with each album.

So to ‘B’lieve I’m Going Down’, his sixth studio album, which was recorded and mixed in a number of locations, including Malibu and Joshua Tree. The layers of reverb and fuzz that characterized his early work are completely absent here, and the tone is a little darker. It’s a nighttime album, moody and introspective, while amping up Vile’s signature brand of dark humour. This makes sense, given that the majority of the album was written and recorded in the early hours, and Vile has stated that “somewhere between midnight and three, maybe the best stuff happens.” ‘B’lieve’ is a tour of his hazy, introverted mind; a collection of late night thoughts that tumble out as Vile attempts to balance the life of an unassuming family man with that of a busy touring musician.

Opener ‘Pretty Pimpin’ is born out of this dislocation. A mediation on dissociation, it tells of the toll a busy life can have on one’s mental health, as Vile “woke up this morning and didn’t recognise the man in the mirror.” Interlocking layers of guitar and synth add to the sense of unease, only anchored by Stella Mozgawa’s steady drums. However, Vile’s always ready with a punchline, and he eventually laughs it off with a “oh silly me, that’s just me.” It’s a tactic he uses often, always undercutting his introspection with a dose of black humour. It helps the hour-long album to be palatable - for example, ‘That’s life, tho’ could be overbearing, with its talk of a man who “left so many loved ones behind”, but Vile just shrugs and says “that’s life, though”.

Musically speaking, it’s a simpler album than his past efforts. Banjos and soft synths have been introduced, and the songs often feel like they’re writing themselves. ‘Lost my Head there” is the most prominent example of this - its elements interlock in such an easy way that you can picture Vile and his band sat around the piano, jamming and accidentally writing a song in the process. He’s long been a master of unassuming but catchy choruses that creep in without you noticing, as seen on ‘Never Run Away’ from his last album. This is continued here, with ‘Life Like This’, a funky strut that morphs into a complete earworm.

‘B’lieve I’m Going Down’ won’t change anyone’s mind; you most likely know by now whether or not you like Kurt Vile. What it is is a charming addition to the discography of a true musician, who most likely won’t change his ways no matter what the reaction to this album is. He’s an avid record collector and music buff who’ll never really be fashionable, but that doesn’t matter. You get the sense that - whether he continues to be successful or not - he’ll just keep ploughing on; writing records at his home in Philly, spending time with his family, and getting wiser.

16/20

By Scott Brown