St. Vincent, 'Actor'

Release date: May 5, 2009
Record label: 4AD
Official Web site: http://www.ilovestvincent.com/

The buzz: After lending her versatile guitar chops to Sufjan Stevens and the Polyphonic Spree, Annie Clark debuted her St. Vincent solo project in 2007 with “Marry Me,” an intriguing and sometimes brilliant mix of fragile chamber pop, twisted art-rock and the occasional blast of proggy guitar shred. “Actor” is her second full-length effort.

The verdict: As promising a debut as “Marry Me” was, nothing on it really prepares you for the sheer brilliance of “Actor.” Nearly every track is a knockout, full of beguilingly offbeat melodies, haunting vocal refrains and a cagey mix of classical instrumentation, synths and Clark’s endlessly inventive guitar work. Lyrically, “Actor” goes to some pretty dark places; the refrain of lead track “The Strangers” (“Paint the black hole blacker”) could be a thesis statement for the whole album. But the music that accompanies moody meditations like “Black Rainbow” and “Laughing With a Mouth of Blood” is so gorgeous that Clark’s most ominous lyrics (“All of my old haunts are now haunting me”) sound like exorcisms. This is triumphantly original, beautiful music, accessible enough to make Clark a superstar, challenging enough to put her in a class by herself.

Did you know? Clark wrote each song on “Actor” as a “secret film score,” taking inspiration from classic movies like “Stardust Memories” and “The Wizard of Oz.”

Add a comment