ALBUM REVIEW: Simple Moments Fuel the Daydream of Kurt Vile’s ‘(watch my moves)’

Kurt Vile has always been a master of the stream-of-consciousness songwriting style, but his latest album, (watch my moves), is peak daydream. Listening to it is like letting your mind just wander. The places it will go are unpredictable, sometimes heady and strange, other times beautiful and surprising.

Created in his woodsy Philadelphia home studio, (watch my moves) is filled with the intimate moments of discovery that happen when you’re homebound for two years. Vile — known for being a workhorse, a prolific songwriter, collaborator, and tourer — recounts seemingly throwaway moments like staring out the window into his backyard or noodling on the guitar in his underwear as if they’re little revelations toward a more blissful existence.

Vile imagines life beyond his hometown in these songs, ultimately preferring to remain there amid the comfort of the familiar — his daughters and wife. “Flyin’ (like a fast train)” and “Goin’ on a Plane Today” capture the burnout and chaos of the before-times, the latter with piano keys as persistent as an alarm clock. Vile captures the disenchantment with being in constant motion and the joy of staying in one place with some of his hookiest melodies. “Mount Airy Hill (Way Gone),” named for his own neighborhood, and “Hey Like a Child” hang around in the air, their guitar loops on constant rotation in your mind until you hear them again. Both are moments of exploration for Vile, literally in his own backyard and emotionally, as he grounds and reconnects with himself.

Still, even from home, Vile finds ways to bring people in. Cate Le Bon pops up on the sunny “Jesus on a Wire,” James Stewart (Sun Ra Arkestra) brings saxophone, and Sarah Jones and Stella Mozgawa play drums and percussion. Vile’s pop sensibilities have always been there, but (watch my moves) shows a prowess — a true love even — for a catchy melody and earworm chorus.