Interview: Kenny Vasoli of Vacationer
"...based on the appetite of my ears and brain."
All Blissed Out: A Conversation with Kenny Vasoli of Vacationer
This interview was conducted over email by NAILED contributor Trace William Cowen.
There’s a precise moment on Relief – Vacationer’s second album – wherein Kenny Vasoli’s deceptively simple lyricism reaches a paralleled fever pitch alongside the controlled skitter of a beat beneath him. Thankfully, this realism of emotion – at once sad, happy; stalwart, timid; bravely refrained – returns in exponential doses throughout Relief. The moment – that feeling – is summarized, in a palatable visual sense, around the 1:20 mark in the video for lead single “The Wild Life,” as screencapped below.
This is where Vasoli finds himself now, at 30 – the calm, self-assured frontman of a successfully understated Nu-Hula collective. For those who have followed Vasoli’s career, the narrative arc of which has been a thrilling if not entirely logical example of creative evolution, the victories of Vacationer belt a sweet refrain:
“I’m putting my heart in, just to give it away.”
I spoke with Ken via email – discussing everything from Jay-Z’s gifted cognac to the dire importance of nowness.
NAILED MAGAZINE: After seeing some clips and reading some tweets regarding your Made in America appearance, it would appear that you have entered a new era of calm-and-ease as a frontman. Would you agree? Does Vacationer give you some newfound confidence as a leader of sound?
KEN VASOLI: I appreciate that. It’s definitely been a goal to become completely comfortable up there. It feels very natural to play with Vacationer, so it’s been easy to take ownership of the front position. I get to emulate a mixture of all the influential figures in my life, while busting out not-knowing-how-to-dance dance moves. It’s a lot of fun up there.
NAILED: Speaking of Made in America, could you tell us a bit more about that experience? Jay Z is known for exquisitely accommodating his event guests, and it would appear (i.e. champagne and Cognac) that he followed suit with Vacationer. Any stories or personal favorite performances?
VASOLI: Yeah, the champagne/cognac gift was mind blowing for us. It was really heartening to be treated like that. Jay-Z truly appreciates musicians and I truly appreciate him for that. The whole experience was smooth sailing. Everyone was chill and friendly. I ran into Britt Daniel as he was walking out of his dressing room to head back to the stage (after the rain delay.) I could not have played it less cool. I reached out my hand and stammered “Hi, I’m in Vacationer. We played.” Britt kind of smiled and replied “Vacationer” as he looked at the pass around my neck. I then retorted with “Dude, record of the year.” Then he smirked and I think said, “Ok.” We went on our ways. A great, of many, awkward moments I’ve had meeting people I admire. They killed it after that. Spoon and Bear Hands were my favorites of the day.
NAILED: The narrative arc of your songwriting has been fascinating to watch. As a teenager who grew up with The Starting Line, then followed your work with Person L, I can say that Vacationer definitely “makes sense.” Were these moves intentional or organic? Each band/outlet has its own unique identity, and never necessarily bleeds into the other, which I would say is difficult for most to achieve and maintain.
VASOLI: That’s greatly appreciated. I always feel an internal obligation to honor my influences, which can be tricky due to my influences constantly shifting. I’m not a traditionalist or a purist when it comes to music. I have a handful of records that I love to revisit, but for the most part, I seem to bounce around based on the appetite of my ears and brain. Every venture has felt very organic. The only agenda I have is to create the best music I can for as long as I can.
NAILED: My mother is a tremendous fan of your free-form dancing in the “Wild Life” video. The joy of both the song and the video is contagious, and – for some reason – instantly reminded me of the Paul Simon/Chevy Chase collaboration “You Can Call Me Al.” What are some songs/videos that give you that same sort of unabashed joy?
VASOLI: I love the Four Tets video for “Smile Around the Face.” It’s kind of a bittersweet video in the end, but it’s a reminder of love and it always makes me happy. The song that I can remember feeling the most blissed out for was “All My Friends” by LCD Soundsystem. They played it 4 or 5 years ago at the Naval Yard in Philly. I was primed from two Four Lokos (the OG ones!) I remember crowd surfing during the last chorus and looking around at everybody singing, “I can see all my friends tonight!” I was overwhelmed with joy in that moment.
NAILED: “The Wild Life,” lyrically, could stand as a flagship song for Vacationer, in that its sentiments (i.e. don’t make plans and simply embrace the unpredictable nature of life) are echoed across the entire Vacationer experience. Would you say that the “don’t make plans” concept applies pretty strongly to our generation as a whole?
VASOLI: That chorus definitely rings true for me. I try to make as few plans as possible. The age-old expression of “life does not care about your plans” makes perfect sense to me. That’s not to say we don’t have some control; I still like to think I’m steering myself somewhere during this existence. I just find life to be much more astounding and exciting while I’m experiencing it in the present moment, rather than planning and picturing how life will be. I want to be open to adventure at every turn.
For more on Vacationer, follow Kenny on Twitter (@NUHULA) and Instagram (@Vacationing). Relief is available now.