''Childish Prodigy'' is the third studio album by American

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the mu ...

musician

Kurt Vile Kurt Samuel Vile (born January 3, 1980) is an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and record producer. He is known for his solo work and as the former lead guitarist of rock band the War on Drugs. Both in the studio and during li ...

, released on October 6, 2009 on

Matador Records Matador Records is an independent record label, with a roster of mainly indie rock, but also punk rock, experimental rock, alternative rock, and electronic acts. History Matador was created in 1989 by Chris Lombardi in his New York City apart ...

. Upon the album's release, Vile stated, "I tell people it’s my masterpiece. It's pretty epic. I put a lot of money into it. It cost in the thousands." Produced by Vile, Jeff Zeigler and bandmate

Adam Granduciel Adam Granofsky (born February 15, 1979), better known under his stage name Adam Granduciel, is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter and record producer. He is the frontman and primary songwriter of the indie rock band The War on Drugs, wit ...

, ''Childish Prodigy'' was Vile's first album to be released on

, and was preceded by the EP, '' The Hunchback'' (2009), and the single, " He's Alright".

Background and recording

Kurt Vile's previous two albums, ''

Constant Hitmaker ''Constant Hitmaker'' is the debut studio album by American indie rock musician Kurt Vile, released in 2008 on Gulcher Records and Woodsist. Self-produced, and recorded between 2003 and 2007, the album is primarily composed of lo-fi home record ...

'' (2008) and '' God Is Saying This to You...'' (2009), were primarily composed of

lo-fi Lo-fi (also typeset as lofi or low-fi; short for low fidelity) is a music or production quality in which elements usually regarded as imperfections in the context of a recording or performance are present, sometimes as a deliberate choice. The ...

home recordings, recorded over five years from 2003 to 2008. ''Childish Prodigy'', however, marked Vile's first attempt at crafting a cohesive, studio-based album. Vile noted, "It was more involved than anything I had done and it was the first time I worked on something as a whole actual album, as a single piece. The other ones were compiled." Vile recorded the album with producer Jeff Zeigler, prior to signing to

, and noted, "The time I went into the studio with Jeff eigler I knew he was into more far-out stuff and kind of crazy gear. It was also more laid back. I didn't have a label knocking on the door to get it done or anything like that, and so we got to know each other and our styles." Despite being predominately a studio-based album, ''Childish Prodigy'' features two home recordings, "Blackberry Song" and "Overnite Religion" recorded with bandmate and frequent collaborator

Writing and composition

Regarding the album's overall aesthetic, and the increased involvement of

backing band A backup band or backing band is a musical ensemble that typically accompanies a single artist who is the featured performer. The situation may be a live performance or in a recording session, and the group may or may not have its own name, such ...

The Violators, Vile noted, "It's way more of a full-band-style arrangement, and I think at times it gets a little darker. I think it's gonna be more of a fall kind of feel, with some pretty

psychedelic rock Psychedelic rock is a rock music Music genre, genre that is inspired, influenced, or representative of psychedelia, psychedelic culture, which is centered on perception-altering hallucinogenic drugs. The music incorporated new electronic sound ...

numbers that are pretty catchy, then just some good

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

songs. ..There's definitely a lot more electricity, a lot more rock. ..It's pretty raw, though, and there's two home recordings on it. I actually said in one interview that it's my '' Loveless'', but I only said that in comparison to my more stripped-down home recordings. It's all relatively simple, even if there are a lot more tracks on each song."

Track listing

''All songs written by

and arranged by the Violators except where noted.''

Personnel

Kurt Vile & the Violators

– vocals, guitars, resonator guitar (''1'' and ''6''), 12-string guitar (''3'' and ''7''), space guitar (''3''), piano (''1, 5, 6, 7'' and ''8''), drum machine (''4''),

Korg , founded as Keio Electronic Laboratories, is a Japanese multinational corporation that manufactures electronic musical instruments, audio processors and guitar pedals, recording equipment, and electronic tuners. Under the Vox brand name, they ...

s (''4''), banjo (''7''), electronics (''8''), trumpet (''8''), sampler (''9''), synth (''9''), harmonica (''9'') *

– electric guitars (''9''), baritone guitar (''1'' and ''6''), fuzz guitar (''4''), ambient 12-string guitar (''8''), tremolo guitar (''9''), string synth (''3''), sampler (''5''), electronics (''8''), drums (''8''), percussion (''8''), lap percussion (''5'') *Jesse Trbovich – fuzz guitar (''1'' and ''6''), baritone guitar (''9''), saxophone (''4''), vibrato guitars (''10'') *Mike Zanghi – drums and percussion (''1'' and ''6'') Honorary Alumni: *"Cousin" Dan Bower – drums (''4''), snare drum (''3''), percussion (''3'') *Michael Johnson –

Korg MS-10 , founded as Keio Electronic Laboratories, is a Japanese multinational corporation that manufactures electronic musical instruments, audio processors and guitar pedals, recording equipment, and electronic tuners. Under the Vox brand name, they ...

(''4''), caveman drums (''9'')

Additional musicians

*Jeff Zeigler –

Korg Mono/Poly The Korg Mono/Poly (MP-4) is a 44 key "mono-polyphonic" analog synthesizer manufactured by Korg from 1981 to 1984. This keyboard is the sister synthesizer to the Korg Polysix. It has four highly stable voltage-controlled oscillators (VCOs), ...

(''4'') *Mikele Edwards – backing vocals (''8'')

Recording personnel

*Jeff Zeigler – producer (''1, 2, 4, 6, 7, 8'' and ''9''), recording, mixing *

– producer, recording (''3'' and ''5'') *

– producer (''1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8'' and ''9''), recording (''3'' and ''5'') *Jesse Trbovich – producer (''1, 4, 6'' and ''9'') *Mike Zanghi – producer (''1'' and ''6'') *Michael Johnson – producer (''9'') *Tom Cason – additional recording and mixing (''3'' and ''5'') *Alan Douches – mastering

Artwork

*Boyd Shropshire – art design, art direction *Greg Kletsel – art design, art direction *

– art direction *Kellie Jo Tinney – live Violator pictures *Robert Robinson – forest and organ photograph *Tiffany Yoon – Mike Zanghi photograph

References

External links

Kurt Vile's Official Site

Kurt Vile at Matador Records
{{Authority control 2009 albums Kurt Vile albums Matador Records albums Albums produced by Adam Granduciel