The Auditory

Annie Clark, better known as St. Vincent, is an artist who has made an indelible impact on the indie music world with her dark, other-worldly music and image.  Looking at Clark, you see a small, waif-like woman with freckled, pale skin, chestnut hair, and a face that is dominated by her oversized hazel eyes.  She is not a traditional beauty, but there is something special and ethereal about the way she looks—you’d almost expect that she’d walked straight out of a Tolkien story. 

Clark’s music corresponds perfectly with this otherworldly image.  With her first release, Marry Me, she presented a sound that was unlike anything else on the music scene.  Clark combines elements of jazz, punk-rock, and folk music, which work together with her symbolic, dark, and often bizarre, lyrics to make a major impact on the way independent music is viewed today.  Clark is a breath of fresh air in the genre which I have so aptly named, “hipster music”.  The great thing about Clark is that she truly transcends this genre—Clark isn’t just hip, she’s damn talented to boot.  The chord changes and harmonies she uses are out of the ordinary, she pays attention to melody and phrasing, and unlike many other “hipster” musicians, she doesn’t rely on filters and technology to make her music for her.  If Clark had released any one of her albums fifty years ago, they would have been just as brilliant as they are today—which is really saying something about her talent. 

Strange Mercy, which was released in mid-September, only marks the continuance of her brilliance—with lyrics and music that expand even further in a personal and angst-driven direction than either of her previous albums.  And, not to mention, even more of that famous guitar shredding that I just can’t get enough of.  This is the video for my favorite track off of the album—“Cruel”.  It served as her single release for Strange Mercy—and, in my opinion, it is sure to be named one of the best tracks of 2011.

-Leah