Back in 2009 I bought Annie Clark’s, aka St. Vincent, second album Actor. Even with many positive reviews, I just never really got into it. Perhaps it was because I was going through a relationship break up at the time, it didn’t make a huge impression on me at first and I never got back around to it. I had moved on, I had a condo to decorate. From that time, I admired St Vincent from afar but didn’t hear much of her music for several years.
Released in late February, St Vincent’s self-titled album brought me back into the fold. I wanted to get back into her so picked it up… well, ordered it and it took well over a month to receive. Even after making the decision to come back to her, I was late in doing it. I’m glad I did though, St. Vincent the album is a spiky triumph.
In 2012, St Vincent released an album with David Byrne. A Talking Heads influence permeates through, “Digital Witness”. All herky-jerky funk with synthesized horns. “Prince Johnny” has the feel of a torch song with an electronic choir humming just beneath the instruments. However, lyrics about “the time we went and snorted” and “holding court in bathroom stalls” suggest something darker is on Ms Clark’s mind.
“Birth In Reverse” sizzles with angular beats and guitar riffs. “I prefer your love to, Jesus” opens the ballad “I Prefer Your Love”. With a mournful synth carrying the track, it comes across as an updated version of Sinead’s “Nothing Compares 2 U”. The album ends on a high note with “Severed Cross Fingers” – “We’ll be heroes on every bar stool when seeing double beats not seeing one of you”. Of everything released so far this, St Vincent is a wondrous album that stands taller than most.
9/10
The Light Appears 