St. Vincent - a.k.a. Annie Clark;

lol it's impossible to see Brownstein in that thing with a cowboy hat on and not think Portlandia

"control the narrative" i wish that phrase would die in a fire

i'll probably watch that

xxp
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0J8uXxdZ65Y

I think the persona shtick has been pushed by Clark herself in interviews (though she refers to them as 'archetypes' for each album IIRC); other than that I don't see how changing your visual aesthetic to go with a new direction is particularly unusual? Bowie is an obvious point of reference, of course, but so is Björk, or PJ Harvey, or legions of current female pop singers going through their 'eras'.

But dissonance appears on Daddy’s Home whenever Clark’s louche time-traveling character collides with the political tensions of the present day. It’s odd, for example, that two songs on the album refer to calling “the cops,” or 911, in light of the past year’s uprisings against police brutality.

xp yeah just changing up your visual appearance isn't unusual at all but she's been leaning into it more than just that with this album and the last, kind of playing a character and doing some conceptual stuff with it all, just... not very well

This is such a fun record. I read everything above, mostly negative as usual, but I figured most of the complaints—e.g. there are clumsy and obvious 70s references in the lyrics—aren't things that bother me, and I went for it. I like that the admittedly unsophisticated 70s concept allows her to just straight-up play classic rock/acoustic guitar and make out like doing so is art. Honestly, that is a pleasure to me, her doing that. The production is a marvel. Aural excitement bouncing between one or other of my ears and baps and bops between. She will never be a genius songwriter—who will?—but this is brilliant noise for me right now.

I saw her on that tour with Vanderslice mentioned upthread and was absolutely bowled over by her shredding. She's not the only shredder I know to have run in the other direction from "she's really good at guitar" and I don't blame any of them, "a girl! playing guitar!" has to get super fuckin old in shredder world. but I have found her music since she leaned away from shredosity completely without interest -- self-congratulatory theater-kid stuff, ticks a lot of boxes but emerges as less than the sum of its parts. the new one is sort of the natural progression of this movement, weirdly the sense of there being an auteur calling the shots (which seems to be the story being pushed) feels absent to me -- this record feels like everybody on board put in as many ideas as they could though the way JA works it could just be his very fast-working brain and a lot of long hours at the board. probably had a lot of fun putting it all together but it's kind of a mess. that said imo "down and out downtown" is sweet as hell as long as you don't listen too hard to the lyrics. the drums feel corrected to within an inch of the drummer's life, which is what everybody wants now anyway but detracts from the vibe for me. the vocal distressing...I wish people would get over vocal distressing, we've all had our moments with it but it really doesn't accomplish much now. on the whole not as good at the Feb 77 Swing Auditorium sets by the Dead, those are primo

from the credits it seems like it's mostly just her & antonoff getting lost in the studio together

that "who's your daddy" ad is cool. very evocative of an era. graphic design has such a time machine element to it when the pastiche is seamless, even more so than fashion.

Are they really releasing it on 8-track(?)

wow, imagining listening to this album in a diner, with a coffee circle stain on the table! that would be exactly like it used to be, wow

tbh though i'm kind of an advertisement hater

it's how i resist the man

in the 19th century, nostalgia was considered a disease.

in the 20th, a disease of the bourgeoise. the height of decadence. but i can't help liking period aesthetics. not usually when it's too fussy. but like, my kitchen table is danish and from the 50s and it's my favorite thing. i am sitting at it now, swooning.

teakship

the drums feel corrected to within an inch of the drummer's life, which is what everybody wants now anyway but detracts from the vibe for me.

one of the worst developments in the history of rock music

i'm going to give this another shot tonight.

that movie is some rattle and hum ass shit

another beguiling puzzlebox from rock's most fascinating trickster

That Slate review is weird in that the reviewer seems to be actively trying to view the album as a "singer-songwriter" album for some reason? The whole thing reads like, "Despite knowing St. Vincent isn't a good lyricist while enjoying many other aspects of her music, I focused almost entirely on the lyrics when I listened to this album, so my opinion of it is pretty much totally informed by how I felt about the lyrics." Personally I've listened to the album a couple times now and never once felt like I was being asked to pay more attention to the lyrics than I would when listening to any other St. Vincent album.

Anyway, I like this album a lot more than I was expecting to after reading what she said about it being a retreat from "angularity." Mainly I appreciate it because I'm about the same age as St. Vince and I've always really romanticized the idea of my parents' life in the decade before I was born (i.e. the 70s), and I think at least part of the idea here was to create an album/aesthetic/persona that brings her version of that romanticized vision to life. It's a superficial dream version of her dad's world pre-her.

I hadn't really listened to her stuff before, but did check out this album (the commentary made me curious) – it definitely didn't strike me as a super "focus on the lyrics" kind of album. (It also didn't strike me as having much in the way of songs, but that's another story...)

I could still do with less of the ***70s*** stylings but this live version of 'Down' is better for being slightly looser.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vi7hhX_yn5Y

But dissonance appears on Daddy’s Home whenever Clark’s louche time-traveling character collides with the political tensions of the present day. It’s odd, for example, that two songs on the album refer to calling “the cops,” or 911, in light of the past year’s uprisings against police brutality.

so wait we're not supposed to call 911 now

we caved and called 911 the other day but only because there was a dog in a hot car

misread that as 'a hot dog in a car'.

from the soundtrack of Minions: The Rise of Gru
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8_340Lsodug

What a peculiar soundtrack. It's a coherent project - e.g. it's not a bunch of licensed tracks, it was recorded as a single thing - but it has Thundercat and Phoebe Bridgers etc covering light rock and disco from the 1970s. And it was recorded two years ago (the film was held back because of the COVID pandemic). Perhaps they thought it would be the next Guardians of the Galaxy, but hipper. It only got to #192 in the US charts. But there has long been a cross-over between children's entertainment and the avant-garde so perhaps it's not that unusual.

Earlier generations had "pre-war" and "pre-Nixon shock" and "pre-Apollo" etc, my generation has "pre-dot.com bust", "pre-9/11", "pre-great crash", "pre-COVID", and it's hard to keep up. This soundtrack was devised post-great crash, pre-COVID, during a time when travel bloggers were still on an upwards trajectory. A totally different world.

I was going to say "when will she launch an NFT" but it seems that the island chain of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines has actually beaten her. As has MIA, who isn't a landmass, but instead an ordinary 47-year-old human woman. Saint Vincent and the Grenadines doesn't have a regular army, but if push came to shove my money is on the island chain just because they have numbers on their side. Even if she has double-tap and HEAT ammo St Vincent can only engage at most two targets in a single turn. But perhaps she could funnel the enemy into a choke point.

According to Wikipedia "each year, approximately 1169 males and 1224 females reach military age, as estimated in 2010" in Saint Vincent, so I suppose the ultimate question is "can St Vincent kill more than 2,393 people in less than a year without sustaining lasting injuries herself". If the answer is "no" military action would be futile.

Last night I watched The Nowhere Inn. Every viewer seems to have their own personal tolerances for self-reflexive stories, so this is bound to be beyond the pale for a lot of people. I can also imagine that real-life events with Sleater-Kinney, and St. Vincent's slight decline in acclaim and fascination, might darken some of the back story for some people.
I found the first 75% (rockumentary parody) mostly funny, and the last 25% (Persona/Hour of the Wolf nightmares about artistic futility and loss of identity) were not bad. A lot of the self-deprecating stuff about St. Vincent's less-than-massive fame might strike someone who isn't familiar with her less as humility than a reason not to watch.

this is a fun video - Annie just chatting about guitar stuff with Matt Sweeney. can't say I've listened to her music all that much but she really has an interesting approach to the instrument:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IrMgXPLwc9o

oh that's cool! even if he spelled her name wrong :)

That was great! I was a huge fan and for some reason Daddy's Home took the wind right out of the sails for me. I should go back and try it again. The self-titled album is so damn good.

Cosign about the self-titled, the whole Actor > Strange Mercy > s/t run was incredible. Unfortunately both Antonoff-produced albums were misses for me (although I have warmed up to Masseduction a little bit), but she seems to be teasing new music nowadays? There’s a video on her socials of her putting that godawful Daddy’s Home wig back on the wigstand so I guess we can expect something new soon-ish

OTM re: that run. I first heard her in a tiny venue shortly before she released Actor and have been a huge fan since--one of the only contemporary artists I listen to. I felt quite a bit of anticipation for "St Vincent does the Seventies"--enough to preorder the deluxe vinyl that came with a zine--but it didn't do anything for me. I didn't dislike it, but after a few spins nothing really stood out to me and I couldn't recall how most of the tracks went two hours after finishing it.

Still, I'll check out whatever she puts out next and hopefully see her tour again... though I wouldn't mind if her live show loosened up a bit. The clips of the Masseduction tour seemed a bit overly regimented, whereas I recall her cutting loose with the guitar theatrics a bit more on earlier shows.

I really enjoyed the Masseduction tour, although it was a bit odd--just her with pre-recorded backing. Her sense of visuals is off the charts, and on the rare occasions that she did let loose--I think "Rattlesnake" was one of those occasions--she really did shred (and lost part of her outfit).

It sounds urgent and psychotic, in equal parts the most caustic sound and also, I think, the most sonically blooming. It’s high stakes and intentional. The last record, I was approaching tough subjects with a lot of biting humour and wit. I put on a wig, I was prancing around, it was so fun. This record is darker and harder and more close to the bone. I’d say it’s my least funny record yet! There’s nothing cute about it. I think it’s the best thing I’ve ever done.

https://www.mojo4music.com/articles/stories/st-vincent-new-album-exclusive/

Self-produced, so no Antonoff

That sounds like very good news.

I thought she was great opening for Roxy Music. I was honestly surprised, since I hadn't really been jibing with her vibe.

yeah I liked that material live more than I liked the album. she's a great performer always though

this person provokes a strong reaction somehow

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RYJxPg6quL4

oh she's making a nine inch nails album, cool. this is easily the most interested i've ever been in her

Mid '00s/Trent Reznor listening to DFA throwback vibes?

I think I'm officially off the bus.

Back on the bus

that is...fine

Kind of Rattlesnake with different sonics I guess? a cool groove with a very precise build and some fun gonzo guitar stuff. But I am here for that much more than whatever wood-panelled retro 70s shit she was doing previously.

It is quite Peej-y to my ears.

Yee haw this is great