November 2011 \ Features \ Artist Interview \ St. Vincent: All-Star Dropout

St. Vincent: All-Star Dropout

Shawn Hammond

Indie-rock Renaissance woman Annie Clark—aka St. Vincent—muses about her vintage Harmony Bobkat, her Silverface Princeton Reverb, and having the guts to leave Berklee jump-started her career and landed her new album, "Strange Mercy," at No. 19 on the U.S. Charts.
Premier Guitar November 2011
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With her Harmony, Silvertone, Music Man bass amp, and pedalboard in full view, Clark straps on her Hagstrom Super Swede and leads her band through the new tune “Surgeon” at New York City’s Metropolitan Museum of Art. BONUS: She replaces the studio version’s closing synth solo with a jazz-rock guitar freak-out.


At the 2005 All Points West festival in New York, Clark begins by launching into a Hendrix-inspired “Star-Spangled Banner,” stops and says, “Just kidding,” and then dives into an amazingly bluesy version of the Beatles’ “Dig a Pony.”


In this 2009 studio performance for Lake Fever Sessions, it’s just Clark, an Epiphone Masterbilt slope-shouldered dreadnought, and a couple of fantastic mics capturing her lovely voice and deft fingerstyle work.

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Comments

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Michael
on 05/05/2013 		Annie Clark may not be for everybody. What art is? However she has intersting things to say with music which is an accomplishment in its own right. She has a really nice pallet to draw from and uses it to good effect. Her voice, composition, phrasing, voicings and musical sensibilities have a lot to offer. I can't help but but root for her on some level. Hasn't the guitar athlete been done half to death? It's not always about how fast you can say something but whether you had something meaningful to say to begin with. And don't under estimate being nice, pleasant or just likeable. Music is made by people and you tend to want to work with people whose company you enjoy.
Michael
on 05/05/2013 		Annie Clark may not be for everybody. What art is? However she has intersting things to say with music which is an accomplishment in its own right. She has a really nice pallet to draw from and uses it to good effect. Her voice, composition, phrasing, voicings and musical sensibilities have a lot to offer. I can't help but but root for her on some level. Hasn't the guitar athlete been done half to death? It's not always about how fast you can say something but whether you had something meaningful to say to begin with. And don't under estimate being nice, pleasant or just likeable. Music is made by people and you tend to want to work with people whose company you enjoy.
Lily
on 01/19/2012 		@Mark
I agree with you 100%. I also came across Annie Clark a couple weeks ago, and it really was a breath of fresh air. She doesn't make art, because she is art, and I love how her music make me feel every step of the way. I felt like she hit every single one of my emotion. Nothing needs to be added or taken out. She reserves her skills because she only plays "when and what the music demands". I love it. Her music: painfully beautiful... and with so much anticipation. It's calming, yet driving. It's Art.
Chris
on 12/16/2011 		Well..I liked it/her. The sounds and flavor of guitar just are not always about shredding. Let's face it - we all love the guitar for various reasons, and people have different taste. ..and to those who say you could go "anywhere" and hear under appreciated male guitarist, bro that is music in general in our age of over the top commercialism/industry/machine created "stars." I am sure you can find many under appreciated female guitarist as well. For me..I love the feeling some guitarist give you. At times some of the most "technical" are boring. As for the guy whom said Lita Ford would eat her "face" off (something) like that..well..that was mature. Personally I think Lita Ford is just like many guitarist (male/female) in her era/genre - predictable solos & progressions. BUT..people like what they like..and that's what it is all about at the end..right? Peace to all...
Mark
on 11/05/2011 		I came across Annie's music only a month or so ago and it immediately caught my attention. It was something very fresh, unique, and catchy - something I rarely encounter nowadays. I'd much rather listen to her music than Joe Bonamassa or one of the other over-worshipped rock guitarists nowadays who bore me to tears. Contrary to many of the other comments, I enjoy her guitar playing; it's far from traditional and typical, and reminds me Adrian Belew at times. And the fact that she does not shred or that she takes breaks from playing the guitar during songs impresses me more; as I've learned from Robert Fripp, a great musician is reserved in their playing and only plays what and when the music demands. I'm pleased to find an interview with Annie in Premier Guitar.
cassius
on 11/02/2011 		OK, TODD: I'm a Man. I'm a Guitar Player. And I'm an Artist. St. Vincent is the only Artist, who's working in Music, that I can tolerate. And I'm nuts about Her. And Her Work. What passes for creativity, currently, is some sort of jock-driven, drivel-drenched, derivative clap- trap, rip-off, self-indulgent pecker-waving, not Art. Annie is Art. And She is WAY over your head, "Bro'".
cassius
on 11/02/2011 		This stooge Interviewer just wouldn't shut up about the Girl thing, even when Annie hinted that he was being stupid. Loved her "artist, not an athlete" reference. She shines.
LPH
on 10/30/2011 		Sir, this interview sucks. If you have ever taken a journalism course, and I'm sure you have, you would know that interviews are for gaining insight into another person - not for gaining insight into the writer. Your loaded questions are more about inserting your own opinions than listening to hers. Annie Clark is a genius human being. And that's it. We want to hear what SHE has to say, and what SHE thinks is important. The End.
Todd
on 10/29/2011 		If I wanted to read about Musicians, I'd get a Musician magazine. If I wanted to read about jazz drummers, I'd buy a drumming magazine. If I wanted to read about "Women doing amazing things!", I'd pick up the newspaper or turn on the television. I subscribed to a magazine calling itself "Premier Guitar". Those two words, especially together, represent something that this women isn't. Regarding her Berklee career, I would imagine, like most formerly male dominated enclaves, it's not nearly as tough to get in if you are a female. Also, the vast majority of the world's current ills were delivered to us by people with college educations. And the greatest guitar players have/had little or no education. Just a whole lot of playing, listening and talent. Classical piano? Go to Berklee, excellent idea! Guitar? Grab one and play it until your fingers hate you. I think we've got some "White Knights" here and that has absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with guitar playing.
grillco
on 10/27/2011 		Joni Mitchell is better than Yngwie thinks he is and she always will be, just like her good friend Neil Young. I'm more annoyed by having so many male guitarists shoved down my throat based on technical prowess playing music with minimal to no substance. Good music is what matters and Annie's playing it. That said, I realize that music is and forever will be a solely subjective art form. There are a fair amount of folks that actually think that Shrapnel Records has released some of the best music ever and I can't deny them their opinions. Millions of people think Lady Gaga's amazing even though Madonna did it already 25 years ago (and it wasn't that great the first time around). And WTF is with American Idol, X Factor, America's Got Talent, etc...just steeped with ow level mediocre (at best) talents getting hours of air time and even records deals when Annie actually got accepted to and attended Berklee for three years. You can't fake your way through Berklee or just get by on how you can be packaged and the potential for fame. But I'm done ranting. I love Annie.



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