Kurt Vile And The Violators

Philadelphia’s Kurt Vile might scare off listeners who are skeptical of trendy folk-pop and kiddie-pool-of-reverb production, but his 2009 Matador debut, Childish Prodigy, straddled proto-punk and psych-folk with a maturity that makes claustrophobic, homemade pop sound full of possibilities again. The buzz and fuzz have been peeled away by producer John Agnello (Sonic Youth, Dinosaur Jr.) on the band’s latest, Smoke Ring For My Halo, providing the most direct exposure to Vile’s hook-and-scowl approach yet. 

Updated 07/06/2011