Weekly Release Spotlight: St. Vincent

Posted on 5/31/2009

St. Vincent

Actor

[4AD]

Annie Clark (a.k.a. St. Vincent) said she wanted to make the songs on Actor, her second album, "Technicolor animatronic rides." Given both the album's name and Clark's previous gig as a member of The Polyphonic Spree, it comes as no surprise that Actor is theatrical in nature. Each song begins a new act containing its own drama, and the continuous building and releasing of tension is captivating, just like a great play, film or musical should be.

From the first horn and string-filled minutes of the opening track, "The Strangers," Actor feels both Technicolor and like the beginning of a ride (whether it's animatronic or not is subjective, I guess). While Clark is an accomplished guitarist, her shredding is not what's showcased here. The lush instrumentation (present on her debut, Marry Me) coupled with her rollercoaster voice is what drives the record. The straightforward percussion also accomplishes exactly what it should - grounds the songs and keeps them from venturing too far into the ethereal fantasy land of sweeping strings and Clark's voice.

The visual element of Actor is also strong - Clark (who reportedly loves close-ups of her own face) appears bright-eyed on the album's cover, just as she did with Marry Me. She recently told the New York Times that she began writing the album in 2007 by "drawing notes one by one, until they sounded how they should sound" using GarageBand and a pair of headphones in her hotel room. She later had a friend translate her "drawings" into standard notation so she and her band could learn the songs. While listening, you can't help but visualize the millions of scenarios to which Actor could be the soundtrack.

The standout track is "Actor out of Work," which combines Clark's great guitar work with heavy drums and odd, sometimes atonal harmonies - sometimes evoking Ms. Ethereal herself, Kate Bush. "Black Rainbow" builds to theatrical heights before stopping cold and giving way to the calmer "Laughing with a Mouth of Blood," which seems to start the second act of the record. Actor is similar to Marry Me, yet different enough to stand on its own. Both those who have heard her debut and those who are discovering St. Vincent for the first time will be impressed.

Stream: St. Vincent - The Strangers

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St. Vincent is playing at the First Avenue Mainroom Thursday, June 4.

Written by Dana Raidt, Radio K volunteer.