Kurt Vile makes guitars sound like they’re half-asleep and dreaming — long, unspooling lines that wander off and somehow always find their way home. On Friday, June 19, that gorgeous drift lands at Higher Ground in South Burlington, Vermont, when Higher Ground hosts Kurt Vile & the Violators on the KV’s Been Good to Me Tour. The Sadies open. It’s worth pointing the car north for.
About Kurt Vile & the Violators
For nearly two decades, the Philadelphia singer-songwriter has built one of indie rock’s most unmistakable catalogs — hazy, sprawling, funny in a way that sneaks up on you. This run supports Philadelphia’s been good to me, his tenth studio album, released May 29 on Verve Records. He’s framed it as a homecoming record, a return to the city that’s threaded through everything he’s made.
The lead single, “Chance to Bleed,” tells you where his head is at. Vile has called its sound “hillbilly techno,” which is exactly the kind of cheerfully unbothered genre-mashing that makes him fun to follow. The track features backing vocals from Natalie Hoffman, Greg Cartwright, and Ethan Buckler, with Cartwright trading lead-guitar lines alongside Vile. It’s loose and warm and a little strange — a good preview of the night.
Live, Vile leans on the Violators, the longtime band that gives those meandering songs their spine. Opening the night are The Sadies, the Canadian roots-rock outfit riding shotgun on a string of dates across this tour — a genuinely strong pairing rather than a tacked-on opener.
About Higher Ground
Higher Ground’s Ballroom sits at 1214 Williston Road in South Burlington — Vermont’s go-to room for touring acts a notch below arena scale, the kind of space where a guitar player who works in long, patient builds actually gets the air to do it. It’s close enough to the stage that Vile’s quieter moments register, and loud enough when the band leans in. If you’ve never made the drive up I-89 for a show, this is a good excuse.
Tickets & Pricing
Tickets are on sale now, starting around $66. Higher Ground shows in this size routinely sell through, so don’t leave it to the day before. Get your tickets here.