St. Vincent’s Annie Clark Confirmed herself as one of the Most Exciting Musicians Working Today

After a long hard work week, a Friday night concert can be quite exhausting. Fortunately for my concert buddy and I, the sold out St.Vincent show that we attended this past Friday, March 21^st at the Wiltern proved to be anything but exhausting and well worth our time!

Before St. Vincent took the stage, a computer-processed voice announced: “To maximize your enjoyment of the show, please refrain from digitally capturing your experience. Thank You, St. Vincent.” This was a clever reference to “Digital Witness,” the single from Clark‘s new self-titled album, which discusses social media culture’s emphasis on documenting experiences rather then experiencing them. In any case, the warning didn’t work and the crowd still had their phones out as much as at any other show.

The lead singer of St. Vincent, Annie Clark, definitely knows how to put on a show. She demands your attention and immediately created riveting presence. She danced, she rocked out on her guitar, she jerked around and she even collapsed on the stage at one point. All in all, this was one of the more energetic performances that I have seen in awhile. Standing in the center of a stellar four-piece band, she appeared statuesque in a structured black romper and fishnets. It was a stark contrast to her newly white hair and porcelain skin.

Photo courtesy of Timothy Norris

The show was very angular and visually, there was always something happening. Lighting on the Wiltern stage focused on bursting strobes and shocking flashes. When Clark performed one of her many guitar solos, a bright light shot at her from below, projecting her shadow onto the wall behind her. The set list ranged from songs with gentle melodies to harder intense tracks. During “Bring Me Your Loves,” Clark shredded alongside her bass/moog player, Toko Yasuda, while they pointed their arms and stomped in choreographed unison.

For the tender song “I Prefer Your Love,” Clark unhooked her guitar and laid down on the first tier of a platform pyramid upstage. A few songs later, she scaled the structure for her turn as pure guitar goddess all the way at the top. At the end of this majestic mini-set, she lowered her body down to the stage level, stopping to grind on each step by strobe light, until she was again at stage level. “Hello my Los Angeles friends!” she shouted abruptly.

St. Vincent’s tour continues with another 17 dates through April 15^th before she heads to Europe to start a tour May 15^th in Bristol, England.