Kurt Vile announces ‘Philadelphia’s been good to me’
Eleanor Petry

Kurt Vile announces ‘Philadelphia’s been good to me’

Today, the Philadelphia indie rock artist Kurt Vile announced his new album, Philadelphia's been good to me, out May 29 via Verve Records. Additionally, he shared his lead single "Chance to Bleed," as well as the dates for an upcoming tour in North America and Europe/The UK.

"Chance to Bleed" comes with a music video featuring a slew of guest cameos, from contributing vocalists Natalie Hoffman (Optic Sink), Ethan Buckler (Slint), and co-lead guitarist Greg Cartwright (The Oblivians), to the comedian Jim E. Brown and Philadelphia's own Schoolly D. Watch/listen to the new track below:

"'Chance to Bleed' is some new kinda higher energy rager," says Vile of the lead single. Recording it in Athens, GA, Memphis, TN, and Los Angeles, CA, the singer-songwriter brought together a whole band of colleagues to give it a jammy feel.

Philadelphia's been good to me is mapped out like a conversation: several people talking to each other, always stopping by for a moment, and finding the right way to get all the instruments in tune. Largely self-produced — albeit with the help of The Violators bassist Adam Langellotti, Matthew Jugenheimer, Kyle Spence, Jesse Trbovrich, and Rob Schnapf — the album aims to present a snapshot of Kurt Vile's life. It's “an inspired state of flux,” he says via press release, alluding to the fact that much of it was written and recorded while travelling to and from his Philadelphia home.

Kurt Vile also revealed his upcoming tour dates, where he’ll be travelling to cities across the United States, Canada, Europe, and the UK. He’ll be supported by the following bands throughout: The Sadies, Ryan Davis & The Roadhouse Band, Alex Amen, Being Dead, Twisted Teens, They Are Gutting A Body Of Water (TAGABOW), and Optic Sink. The artist will also be co-headlining a large hometown show at The Dell as part of Connor Barwin’s Make The World Better concert series with the slacker rock pioneers Pavement. Tickets are available now.

Philadelphia’s been good to me cover art courtesy of Kurt Vile

Philadelphia’s been good to me is out May 29. Pre-order here. Official tracklist:

  1. Zoom 97
  2. 99 BPM
  3. Rock 'o Stone
  4. You don't know cuz it's my life
  5. Chance to Bleed
  6. Philly's been good to me
  7. 99th song
  8. Red Room Dub
  9. Every time I look at you
  10. Piano for Sarah
  11. Avalanches of Snow

Tour dates:

06/16 Toronto, ON @ History +
06/17 Montreal, QC @ Beanfield Theatre +
06/19 Burlington, VT @ Higher Ground +
06/20 Greenfield, MA @ Green River Festival
06/21 Asbury Park, NJ @ Stone Pony (North to Shore Fest) +
06/22 Pittsburgh, PA @ Mr. Smalls Theatre +
06/23 Cleveland, OH @ The Roxy +
06/25 Detroit, MI @ Saint Andrew's Hall +
06/26 Chicago, IL @ Salt Shed +
06/27 Eau Claire, WI @ Blue Ox Music Festival
06/28 St Paul, MN @ Palace Theatre %
07/01 Vancouver, BC @ Commodore Ballroom @
07/02 Portland, OR @ Revolution Hall %
07/03 Seattle, WA @ 5th Avenue Theatre %
07/05 South Lake Tahoe, CA @ The Hangar %
07/07 San Francisco, CA @ The Castro Theater %
07/08 Los Angeles, CA @ The Novo %
07/09 San Diego, CA @ The Observatory North Park %
07/10 Phoenix, AZ @ Van Buren %
07/11 Santa Fe, NM @ The Bridge at Santa Fe Brewing Co. %
07/13 Austin, TX @ ACL Live at The Moody Theatre !
07/14 Houston, TX @ Heights Theater !
07/15 Dallas, TX @ Longhorn Ballroom !
07/17 Atlanta, GA @ The Eastern !
07/18 Nashville, TN @ Ryman Auditorium !
07/19 Asheville, NC @ Orange Peel !
07/20 Saxapahaw, NC @ Haw River Ballroom !
07/22 Washington, DC @ Howard Theatre !
07/23 Brooklyn, NY @ Brooklyn Paramount !
07/24 Boston, MA @ Royale !
07/25 Philadelphia, PA @ The Dell Music Center >$
08/13 Paredes de Coura, PT @ Paredes de Coura Festival
08/15 Saint-Malo, FR @ La Route du Rock
08/17 Hamburg, DE @ Mojo
08/18 Copenhagen, DK @ Vega
08/21 Trondheim, NO @ Pstereo
08/23 Hasselt, BE @ Pukkelpop
08/24 Amsterdam, NL @ Paradiso
08/25 Nijmegen, NL @ Doornroosje
08/27 La Tour-de-Peilz, CH @ Nox Orae
08/28 Paris, FR @ Rock en Seine
08/29 Luxembourg, LU @ Den Atelier
08/30 Köln, DE @ Gloria
09/01 Munich, DE @ Muffathalle
09/02 Prague, CZ @ Archa+
09/03 Berlin, DE @ Huxleys Neue Welt
09/04 Maastricht, NL @ Zero for Three
09/06 Dorset, UK @ End of the Road
09/07 Bristol, UK @ The Crane %
09/08 Brighton, UK @ Chalk %
09/09 London, UK @ Troxy %
09/11 Manchester, UK @ The Ritz %
09/12 Birmingham, UK @ XOYO %
09/13 Glasgow, UK @ SWG3 TV Studio %
09/14 Dublin, IE @ Vicar Street %
09/15 Leeds, UK @ Project %
11/04 Buffalo, NY @ Asbury Hall $
11/05 Columbus, OH @ Newport Music Hall $
11/06 Louisville, KY @ Headliners Music Hall $
11/07 St. Louis, MO @ The Sovereign $
11/08 Milwaukee, WI @ Turner Hall $
11/10 Des Moines, IA @ Wooly’s $
11/11 Lawrence, KS @ Liberty Hall $
11/12 Omaha, NE @ The Waiting Room $
11/13 Fort Collins, CO @ Washington's $
11/14 Denver, CO @ Summit $
11/16 Fayetteville, AR @ George’s Majestic Lounge $
11/17 Memphis, TN @ Minglewood Hall $ ^
11/18 New Orleans, LA @ Joy Theatre $
11/20 Athens, GA @ 40 Watt Club $
11/21 Charleston, SC @ The Music Farm $
11/22 Charlotte, NC @ Neighborhood Theatre $
11/23 Richmond, VA @ The National
11/24 Baltimore, MD @ Ottobar $

+ = w/ The Sadies
% = w/ Ryan Davis & The Roadhouse Band
@ = w/ Alex Amen
! = w/ Being Dead
$ = w/ Twisted Teens
>  = w/ TAGABOW
^ = w/ Optic Sink


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Victoria Borlando

New York, NY

freelance music journalist and critic

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