‘Childish Prodigy’ is Philadelphian Born Kurt Vile’s third album release in the last three years. The label debut on Matador is a mixture of American folk with classic rock, producing a truly unique sound.
Opening track ‘Hunchback’ provides a promising start with a modern Rock style that resembles an early Kings Of Leon, whilst still holding onto Vile’s Bluegrass roots. However, by the second track ‘Dead Alive’, the whole sound changes and begins to resemble an early Bob Dylan.
The Next few tracks sound similar to Coldplay’s dreary sound with tracks like ‘Overnight Religion’ dragging on for an agonising five minutes. ‘Freak Train’ tries to bring the album back from its hideous grave with a good beat and distinctive tune, but once the screechy guitar appears, you’re quite ready for the song to end.
By the time you’ve reached the two bonus tracks, you’re not surprised when Vile breaks into another style of music, this time imitating the sounds of R.E.M but without the crazy blue stripped face. The final track, a three minute instrumental, defiantly has you reaching for the stop button.
The lengths of the songs, along with the change of styles mid song remind me a lot of Green Days more recent releases, without the catchy lyrics and memorisable tunes. It really feels as though Vile is trying too hard to be his idols, but without the some success that they had.
All in all the album, along with the artist himself, does hold some promise, but it is overshadowed by the large collaboration of the many genres that are features, which leaves the listener feeling bombarded by style.
Score: 4 out of 10 stars
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