Concert review: Kurt Vile | 06.26.24, The Pageant (with photo gallery)

Photo of Kurt Vile by Laura Jerele

Kurt Vile is a very talented guitarist and singer-songwriter who (jokingly) stated at last night’s show that he’s recently ‘been on a bender,’ but he’s never sounded better. His voice is so clear, so distinct and in true form, his hair is always in his face.  At times Vile seems to hide behind that hair and meld into his various instruments, whether it be piano or guitar. Even so, he is very commanding of attention in an effortless, indie-rockstar-meets-hippie kind of way. He rotated through various acoustic and electric guitars throughout the night and, in true Vile style, sounded absolutely perfect when it was just him, his acoustic guitar, and a very hushed crowd that wanted to absorb all that he poured out to us. 

“Waking on a Pretty Day” was early in the set and he joked that was just what they did this morning behind this place, also mentioning that “they’ve played The Pageant maybe five or six times over the years.” I’ve seen him a few of those times and he does not lose what makes him so effortlessly cool and endearing. He shows up, sounds amazing, doesn’t play the same songs over and over from his vast catalogue and comes across as really humble, yet grateful. Highlights of the night were certainly the John Prine cover “How Lucky” and his indie hit “Pretty Pimpin’.” | Laura Jerele