His sixth album, B’lieve I’m Goin Down…, finds Vile at his most loose and bleary-eyed, with a hazy, vertiginous feel on the darkest and most spontaneous collection of songs he’s released to date.
With less of the experimentalism of his previous LP, B’lieve I’m Goin Down is just another example of him displaying his wares and showing his ability as the true modern great that he is.
No one has told the tale of Kurt Vile except Kurt Vile, and there is a diversity of expression on b'lieve I'm goin down.
It should come as no surprise that follow-up b’lieve i’m goin down… finds Vile continuing to self-deprecate, amble, and sigh, despite the new tier of success. Neither should it be a surprise that all those qualities remain entirely charming.
Vile’s music is deeply emotionally evocative, inviting the listener to use their own wild imagination to dissect the shades of joy, sadness, and confusion dotting Vile’s portrait.
Vile’s twenty-first century post-folk formula was already gestating long before 2011’s enchantingly moody Smoke Ring for My Halo cut through the distortion, and it’s a testament to the madness of the artist that his method continues to ring true on b’lieve i’m goin down….
Vile has charm, character and imagination enough to elevate his fully reclined, dusty-haze style to something really special.
That this familiar template still manages to sound so completely compelling is testament to both the malleable nature of his craft and the skill with which it's delivered.
With b'lieve i'm goin down..., Kurt Vile finally has gotten down to the essence of what he's been searching for since the beginning.
B’lieve I’m Goin’ Down is a quietly unexpected album. It feels very much like another Kurt Vile album, but close listening—or even not that close—will reveal some serious blues and some complicated dealing with it.
B'lieve I'm Goin Down... is an impeccably arranged album beneath its soothing, sleepy surface, with every element assisting in an illusion of deep, shimmering, and alluring melancholy.
From a purely musical standpoint, Vile’s at his most varied here, dabbling with piano and banjo in places and eschewing the gold-toned guitar that dominated his fifth full-length, 2013’s fawned-over Wakin on a Pretty Daze.
Much of b’lieve remains mellower and more cognizant than Vile’s previous works, blending organic and inorganic sounds.
He makes no huge stylistic leap on the album, but instead allows for an organic refinement of his already unique and provocative style. It’s well aware of its influences, and well aware of itself.
His latest LP is an endearing collection of slow-burning, dreamy arrangements, which find the singer wistfully contemplating the shifting nature of identity.
b’lieve i’m goin down… is a winding hour of self-reflection that can drift by without much impact. But its textured arrangements and Vile’s sneaky wit very much reward close listening.
Perhaps a bit too reticent for its own good, B’lieve I’m Goin Down still rewards close listening, steadily developing into an album that’s as multifaceted and profound as its mysterious creator.
b’lieve i’m goin down is further evidence of Vile’s conclusive authenticity, and his position as one of songwriting’s most understated commodities.
Few songwriters’ sonic output is so consistent while also adding depth to a narrow framework.
On the whole, B’Lieve I’m Goin’ Down is a more upbeat and polished album than any Vile has released before. It’s also far less compelling.
Philly singer-songwriter and folk rocker Kurt Vile comes through with a more skeletal, intimate album on B'lieve I'm Goin Down...
A great singer songwriter album… I really like the folky stripped back arrangements a lot. I’m really tired. Imma sleep
Pretty Pimpin - 5/5 ❤
I'm an Outlaw - 5/5 ❤
Dust Bunnies - 5/5 ❤
That's Life, tho (almost hate to say) - 5/5 ❤
Wheelhouse - 5/5 ❤
Life Like This - 5/5 ❤
All in a Daze Work - 5/5 ❤
Lost my Head there - 5/5 ❤
Stand Inside - 5/5 ❤
Bad Omens - 4/5
Kidding Around - 5/5 ❤
Wild Imagination - 5/5 ❤
B'lieve I'm Goin Down - 3/5
Bad Omens (No Faders) - 3/5
Might need to re listen a few times to get the rating right. Did you know he is 43 and has a wife and kids because I didn't
A great singer songwriter album… I really like the folky stripped back arrangements a lot. I’m really tired. Imma sleep
Such an amazing album. Kurt vile is a very creative and talented guitar player, and he really shows it on this album. There are songs ranging from psychedelic to country to even Ikea store-type piano on Lost my head there. I think the real charm of the music is how on the surface it feels relaxed and lazy, easy to listen to, while it’s actually really complicated and rich. The experience of listening is so full, while simultaneously being just so easy to feel. Some people say that the ... read more
1 | Pretty Pimpin 4:58 | 100 |
2 | I'm an Outlaw 4:21 | 98 |
3 | Dust Bunnies 4:38 | 98 |
4 | That's Life, tho (almost hate to say) 6:26 | 100 |
5 | Wheelhouse 6:14 | 98 |
6 | Life Like This 4:04 | 98 |
7 | All in a Daze Work 4:59 | 96 |
8 | Lost my Head there 6:55 | 100 |
9 | Stand Inside 5:12 | 100 |
10 | Bad Omens 2:50 | 84 |
11 | Kidding Around 4:27 | 98 |
12 | Wild Imagination 5:50 | 100 |
#4 | / | FLOOD |
#7 | / | Q Magazine |
#9 | / | The Skinny |
#11 | / | NME |
#12 | / | A.V. Club |
#13 | / | Paste |
#14 | / | American Songwriter |
#15 | / | Under the Radar |
#19 | / | Rolling Stone |
#21 | / | Magnet |