St. Vincent
Actor

That damsel Annie Clark, under the pseudonym St. Vincent, seems to have had new ideas in mind. Usually, the second album is heralded as the most difficult one, but for her, it seems that there were no major problems. Part of Sufjan Stevens' group, the American presents us with her second captivating album, following her debut with "Marry Me".

An album, "Actor", truly unique, born who knows where in that ingenious mind; songs not simple to compose. It’s, on a large scale, about songwriting painted with baroque pop with electronic bases and intrusions and ever-present winds and strings. All of it forms a "landscape" worthy of the best musical cartoon (Annie seems to have focused a lot on Disney classics before recording the album). At times psychedelic, other times majestic, and sometimes purely enchanting.

The first track, "The Strangers", starts chorally and then falls for a distorted ending; then we move on to "Save Me From What I Want", a compelling and redundant song due to the constant repetition of the title; with "The Neighbors" we return to the choral, with a slow pace and occasionally indie-rock (fascinating is the presence of the moog). The first single released is "Actor Out Of Work", delicate synth-pop accompanied by the occasional presence of a curious keyboard. It’s then the turn of "Black Rainbow" with its winds that heavily reference Sufjan Stevens, we proceed in a crescendo until the final turn with the massive introduction of drums and guitar gradually lifting, a very dramatic effect I’d say; almost the same goes for "Laughing With A Mouth Of Blood", but it's more pop and less choral.

One of the tracks that "rock" is undoubtedly "Marrow", again choirs, very gothic, full synth-funk electronic chorus with the main presence of distorted and noisy guitars during the pre-final bridge. Very calm "The Bed", lays out a delicate orchestral veil, accompanied by lullaby singing. Very lyrical, "The Party" presents with an initial piano-bass-drums trio that then flows into a choral and orchestral band-style finale. Dreamy and almost dreamy at the end, "Just The Same But Brand New" presents itself; the curtain falls with the folk-tinted "The Sequel", which we can define as an outro with vaguely western film sounds.

Sorry if I bored you, but the review of this album implied track-to-track. You’ll discover why by listening to it.

"Actor" is a spontaneous album, but not simple, born from Annie Clark’s desire to unleash herself as much as possible. Very soft, halfway between indie-pop, folk, and electronics, with references to our own Cristina Donà, My Brightest Diamond, and the usual Bjork. Well, these names alone should make you want to listen to St. Vincent. Even more so should the tracks do, which take inspiration from musicals and Disney cartoons (all while remaining in song form).

A beautiful talent then this girl, undoubtedly not lacking in inventiveness, as all too often happens unfortunately.