Kurt Vile has announced his ‘Philadelphia’s Been Good To Me’. Check out the catchy lead single ‘Chance To Bleed’ below, along with new 2026 tour dates.
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The new record is set for release on May 29 via Verve Records, and will be Vile’s first since 2022’s ‘(Watch My Moves)’. Visit here to pre-order.
Capturing a blend of meandering ballads and feel-good road songs, the album was written by the Philly singer-songwriter as a love letter to his home city, and explains why he never wanted to leave the state even after his career took him around the world.
“This is my ‘bringing it all back home to Philly’ record,” he said. “I’m treating it like my last record. I put everything into it. It’s my best vocal record. It’s my best electric guitar record. It’s my most organic record, made in the comfort of my own zone.”
Today (Tuesday April 7), Vile has shared the lead single ‘Chance To Bleed’. The track sees him look back at his early days in the underground Philadelphia music scene, and is described by him as “hillbilly techno”.
Centred around a warm, shoegaze-inspired guitar riff, the laid-back song builds up towards the laid back, charismatic chorus: “You got a chance to bleed now/ With that old time, lo-fi, DIY, rock n’ roll nights.”
Guest vocals come from longtime collaborators Natalie Hoffman (NOTS, Optic Sink), Ethan Buckler (King Kong, Slint), and Greg Cartwright (Reigning Sound, The Oblivians), with the music video featuring a cameo from comedian Jim E Brown.
‘Philadelphia’s Been Good To Me’ was made between late 2023 and early 2026, and is set to reflect both Vile’s life at that particular moment, as well as his wider understanding of how music connects people across time.
It also sees the singer returning to his home-recording roots while also coming finding his footing as a producer.
“I’ve been waiting for that natural element to show up again in my recordings, like the old home recording days,” he said. “I think I finally caught that again, but in a higher fidelity; it’s never overly polished, but it’s still pretty damn shimmery.”
As well as new music, Vile has also confirmed new 2026 tour dates, which include stops in the UK, Europe and North America.
Dates kick off in Toronto in June, and continue with stops across the US in the summer – wrapping up with a homecoming show at Philadelphia’s Dell Music Centre on July 15.
From there, the European leg begins in August and includes shows in France, Germany, Denmark and more, before Vile heads over to the UK and Ireland for nine performances in September. The latter see Ryan Davis & The Roadhouse Band join as support, and include a stop at Troxy in London.
Afterwards, Vile will head back across the pond in November for more North American tour dates. Visit here for UK tickets, and here for international tickets.
Hey! My new album ‘Philadelphia’s been good to me’ is out May 29th on Verve Records. It’s got a never before seen William Eggleston photo on the cover. It’s gotta lotta my band of bros the Violators on there. And it’s gotta lotta my extended musical family up in that… too. It’s… pic.twitter.com/LgtMNzeumO
— Kurt Vile (@therealkurtvile) April 7, 2026
Kurt Vile’s 2026 tour dates are:
JUNE
16 – Toronto, ON @ History
17 – Montreal, QC @ Beanfield Theatre
19 – Burlington, VT @ Higher Ground
20 – Greenfield, MA @ Green River Festival
21 – Asbury Park, NJ @ Stone Pony (North to Shore Fest)
22 – Pittsburgh, PA @ Mr. Smalls Theatre
23 – Cleveland, OH @ The Roxy
25 – Detroit, MI @ Saint Andrew’s Hall
26 – Chicago, IL @ Salt Shed
27 – Eau Claire, WI @ Blue Ox Music Festival
28 – St Paul, MN @ Palace Theatre
JULY
1 – Vancouver, BC @ Commodore Ballroom
2 – Portland, OR @ Revolution Hall
3 – Seattle, WA @ 5th Avenue Theatre
5 – South Lake Tahoe, CA @ The Hangar
7 – San Francisco, CA @ The Castro Theater
8 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Novo
9 – San Diego, CA @ The Observatory North Park
10 – Phoenix, AZ @ Van Buren
11 – Santa Fe, NM @ The Bridge at Santa Fe Brewing Co.
13 – Austin, TX @ ACL Live at The Moody Theatre
14 – Houston, TX @ Heights Theater
15 – Dallas, TX @ Longhorn Ballroom
17 – Atlanta, GA @ The Eastern
18 – Nashville, TN @ Ryman Auditorium
19 – Asheville, NC @ Orange Peel
20 – Saxapahaw, NC @ Haw River Ballroom
22 – Washington, DC @ Howard Theatre
23 – Brooklyn, NY @ Brooklyn Paramount
24 – Boston, MA @ Royale
25 – Philadelphia, PA @ The Dell Music Center
AUGUST
13 – Paredes de Coura, PT @ Paredes de Coura Festival
15 – Saint-Malo, FR @ La Route du Rock
17 – Hamburg, DE @ Mojo
18 – Copenhagen, DK @ Vega
21 – Trondheim, NO @ Pstereo
23 – Hasselt, BE @ Pukkelpop
24 – Amsterdam, NL @ Paradiso
25 – Nijmegen, NL @ Doornroosje
27 – La Tour-de-Peilz, CH @ Nox Orae
28 – Paris, FR @ Rock en Seine
29 – Luxembourg, LU @ Den Atelier
30 – Köln, DE @ Gloria
SEPTEMBER
1 – Munich, DE @ Muffathalle
2 – Prague, CZ @ Archa+
3 – Berlin, DE @ Huxleys Neue Welt
4 – Maastricht, NL @ Zero for Three
6 – Dorset, UK @ End of the Road
7 – Bristol, UK @ The Crane
8 – Brighton, UK @ Chalk
9 – London, UK @ Troxy
11 – Manchester, UK @ The Ritz
12 – Birmingham, UK @ XOYO
13 – Glasgow, UK @ SWG3 TV Studio
14 – Dublin, IE @ Vicar Street
15 – Leeds, UK @ Project
NOVEMBER
4 – Buffalo, NY @ Asbury Hall
5 – Columbus, OH @ Newport Music Hall
6 – Louisville, KY @ Headliners Music Hall
7 – St. Louis, MO @ The Sovereign
8 – Milwaukee, WI @ Turner Hall
10 – Des Moines, IA @ Wooly’s
11 – Lawrence, KS @ Liberty Hall
12 – Omaha, NE @ The Waiting Room
13 – Fort Collins, CO @ Washington’s
14 – Denver, CO @ Summit
16 – Fayetteville, AR @ George’s Majestic Lounge
17 – Memphis, TN @ Minglewood Hall
18 – New Orleans, LA @ Joy Theatre
20 – Athens, GA @ 40 Watt Club
21 – Charleston, SC @ The Music Farm
22 – Charlotte, NC @ Neighborhood Theatre
23 – Richmond, VA @ The National
24 – Baltimore, MD @ Ottobar
Last December, Vile reunited with The War On Drugs for a live cover of R.E.M.’s ‘Country Feedback’. Vile was a founding member of the band, and played with them between 2005 to 2008.
His ninth album, ‘(Watch My Moves)’ was given a four-star review from NME when it was released back in 2022, and praised as a “sprawling dream-pop adventure”.
“Vile has always been the epitome of someone comfortable in their own skin, but he displays that more than ever,” it read. “We’re transported to leafy suburban American backstreets with one meandering vocal melody, and even placed in a great American forest on his reflective ode to his Philadelphia, ‘Mount Airy Hill (Way Gone)’. Nobody can transport you in quite the same way this outsider can, and the world’s a much better place for his unwavering presence.”
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