kurt-vile-sings-to-verve perry shall
photo by Perry Shall (via Kurt's Instagram)

Kurt Vile signs to Verve Records, releasing major label debut in 2022

After releases on indie labels Mexican Summer and Matador (for the last 12 years), Kurt Vile has signed to legendary label Verve Records which is distributed by behemoth Universal Music. Billboard reports that he’ll release his first album for the label in 2022.

“I’ve admired the Verve logo on the back (and front!) of many a Velvet Underground album since my teens,” Vile wrote on Instagram, noting he’s not the first strummy rocker to release records on the label. “In particular the logo on the back of the vinyl boxset of the Quine Tapes has been haunting me for the last several years now… for whatever reason I often find myself staring into it (true story!). So when I was approached by the label to be signed I was surprised and honored to be sure… but I had already felt that subliminal enchantment and I knew it was a, well… sign! I think my previous album Bottle It In is my deepest record and I’m still really proud of it. I’m excited to release its follow-up on Verve. It’s been a crazy fuckin year and I’ve got hundreds of songs and ideas in the can, on paper, and in tape recorders all strewn about the “kv zone”… nuggets recorded before-and-after pandemic times… in studios and from home… music past, present and, yup, we’re still rolling. It’s gonna be heavy, it’s gonna be beautiful… and it’s gonna be out there.”

Founded in 1956 by Norman Granz, Verve is best known for being home to classics from Ella Fitzgerald, Nina Simone, Stan Getz, Bill Evans, Charlie Parker and more, but in addition to The Velvet Underground the label has also released albums by Frank Zappa & The Mothers of Invention, Talk Talk, The Righteous Brothers, and more.

Meanwhile, Kurt produced and plays on Dinosaur Jr’s new album, Sweep it Into Space, which is out this week.

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