New Single, Album from St. Vincent

"Birth In Reverse"

A while back, I posted the pictures I took at the David Byrne / St. Vincent Count Basie show to an album on Facebook. My friend, after taking a look at them, said, "Like 80% of these are of St. Vincent." It's true. I'm a fan of St. Vincent / a.k.a., Annie Clark.

Last week, Clark (or her "people") started posting a few cryptic images to Instagram that had me thinking that maybe these were pieces of a larger image -- maybe a new album cover. Then, today, Clark announced the February 25th release of St. Vincent, her fourth LP. She also made a new St. Vincent track, "Birth In Reverse," available on YouTube and as a free download (well, it will cost you an email address) from her website.

Annie Clark / St. Vincent has been one of my favorite artists over the last few years. I think she's one of the most interesting and innovative guitar players in indie rock right now. Clark doesn't tie herself down to conventional definitions of indie rock or pop. She combines electronica and a lovely voice with some ferocious guitar work to create almost her own sub-genre, but her work remains accessible.

I think this new track illustrates all of that pretty well.

David Byrne & St. Vincent Played The Count Basie Theatre, 6/28/13 PHOTOS

Love This Giant

I hadn't read anything about an opening act so I wolfed down my sushi deluxe and bolted from the restaurant, telling CoolMom and our friends I'd see them at the theater. I hate to be late. Turns out I had nothing to worry about. David Byrne and St. Vincent (aka Annie Clark) wouldn't actually take the stage until about 8:30.

Prior to the show, Byrne's voice came over the PA to tell us that he and Clark encouraged picture-taking, video-recording, whatever means anyone felt they needed to remember the evening. He asked that we please just be considerate of our neighbors and, maybe, not view the entire show through the screen of our portable electronic device. It was excellent advice, because viewing the entire stage and each of the carefully choreographed movements of every person up there is really the only way to truly appreciate the work that's gone into producing the Love This Giant show.

The pair took the stage with their 8-piece brass band, Clark sporting a new, brass blonde hairdo to complement Byrne's white hair and to complete the overall feel, maybe. They opened with Love This Giant singles "Who" and "Weekend in the dust," and then each performed one of their solo songs: St. Vincent's "Save Me from What I Want" and Byrne's "Overtones."

Throughout the show, every person on stage appeared to have bits of choreography for each song. Byrne danced as only he can. Clark shuffle-stepped around the stage like a windup doll or made boxes with her hands when she wasn't playing guitar. The rest of the band marched, high-stepped, twirled, or bobbed their instruments up and down in time with the music. During St. Vincent's "Marrow," the band, including Byrne, lay on the stage, leaving only Clark standing at the mic with her guitar.

Talking Heads classics like "This Must Be the Place (Naive Melody)" and "Wild Wild Life" got the biggest ovations during the main set. During the latter every person on stage marched in a circle, taking turns at the mic.

The first time I heard Love This Giant, I'd expected Byrne's influence to predominate given his stature as a performer. But the more I listened, the more obvious it became that the record is a true collaboration. The arrangements, and especially all the brass, really do say "St. Vincent" at various points on the album. When Clark performed her own "Cheerleader" last night with the band, it fit in naturally with the the Love This Giant material like "I should watch t.v." and "Outside of space and time."

The crowd stood throughout both encores. The first started with St. Vincent's "Cruel" and ended with "Burning Down the House." The second saw Clark surrounded by the carefully placed horns for "The Party" and closed with "Road to Nowhere."

Following the final encore, the theater erupted in an ovation the likes of which I, personally, haven't seen there before (well, maybe Morrissey). Clark looked truly amazed (I don't think she was "Swifting.") and Byrne -- who'd been fun and down-to-earth all night, executing every wild dance move and playing theremin with his foot -- simply laughed and bowed.

I probably had plenty of time to enjoy my dinner like a normal person, but I would've kicked myself if I'd missed anything.

Here are some pics.

David Byrne / St. Vincent: Love This Giant in Little Old Red Bank

Tickets Still Available

New Wave icon and musical innovator David Byrne joined forces with sweet-voiced guitar shredder Annie Clark to produce 2012's Love This Giant. The album is a full-on collaboration between the two and features a full brass band.

The pair are bringing their elaborately choreographed show to Red Bank's Count Basie Theatre; and, judging from the set lists I've seen for the tour, the show features plenty of Talking Heads and St. Vincent along with the Love This Giant material. It should be interesting to see those well-known songs translated into the Love This Giant format.

A quick check just prior to this post revealed that there are some good seats still available.

If you make it out, come say hi to CoolMom, our friends, and me. I'll buy you a beverage.

If you can't make it, then watch this space for a review. Well, do that anyway, I guess.

St. Vincent

Annie Clark's Full Set from Coachella

The Coachella Festival has been livestreaming all weekend.  Here is the full set from St. Vincent.

Other than a brief guest appearance at the Portlandia Live show in NYC during which she did an ironic cover of Pearl Jam's "Black," I haven't yet gotten a chance to see Annie Clark in person.  She is, absolutely, one of my guitar heroes.

All of her albums -- Marry Me, Actor, and Strange Mercy -- are fantastic, but she's really blown me away whenever I've managed to catch her playing a live set on something like Austin City Limits.  While the albums all contrast the sweetness of her voice and some orchestral arrangements with the darkness of her guitar work, it's during her live performances that she really lets fly with the shredding.

This set also includes a performance of "KROKODIL," a new song St. Vincent will be releasing as a 7" single for Record Store Day 2012.

This doesn't appear to be an official posting, so check it out while it's still up:

Update 4/26:  Above video's been dead for a while.  Here's the official Coachella version of "Cruel."

Guitar Hero Edition

Friday Night

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