Kurt Vile is one of the most compelling rockers of his generation. But he also has a deep admiration for the music made by artists from the decades that preceded his arrival to the scene. His affinity for Neil Young in particular is very well documented. Recently, Vile made an appearance for Sirius channel XMU, he decided to do something a little different and busted out a hazy rendition of Tom Petty’s immortal anthem “Learning To Fly.”
Playing solo, without the aid of his trusty backing band The Violators, Vile dialed in a programmed drum pattern and let loose with a slinky, relaxed take on the song. In addition to that track, he also decided to bust out one of the finer selections from his upcoming album Bottle It In, a meandering, lengthy song called “Bassackwards” that is kind of its spiritual centerpiece.
In a recent interview with Uproxx’s Steven Hyden, Vile talked about the on-the-road approach to recording that spawned his latest full-length work. “I travel for work anyway, so if I’m out somewhere, you can sit in your hotel room, which sometimes you need to do, but you don’t have to get as much rest as you think,” he said. “If you’re out there playing music, you might as well go into the studio.”
Kurt Vile’s new album Bottle It In is set to drop on October 12 via Matador Records. You can pre-order your copy here.
