St. Vincent | The First Unitarian Church, Philly| 2/27/08

Holy girlcrush, Batman! I can honestly say I’ve never been in the presence of a more adorable, more talented lady than Annie Clark, AKA St. Vincent. The entire night consisted of her saying something cheek-pinchingly cute (“The theme for the evening is a psychedelic forest,” in reference to the odd green stage decorations) then absolutely killing any number of songs off of her 2007 release Marry Me (Beggars Banquet).

Before Clark actually took the stage, I was skeptical as to her ability to recreate Marry Me‘s intricate sound in a live setting. She apparently rarely tours with a full backing band, and I couldn’t imagine how the orchestral, highly arranged music could transfer to just a chick with a guitar and a looping machine. Once St. Vincent actually started playing, Clark and her backing band quickly proved me silly. Clark herself is such a proficient guitar player and vocalist that the show would have been impressive with just her; the multi-instrumentalist musicians that made up her band made the sound almost perfect. The girl can shred it! There were a few interludes between songs that she filled with random guitar soloing, and it was clear why Sufjan Stevens wanted her for his touring band.

Read more after the jump.

Highlights of the night included “You Lips Are Red,” which had Clark go from a deep, almost growl to a floating, ethereal chorus, and the singalong “Marry Me,” (which I have listened to approximately 32,000 times since first hearing). Clark closed with a solo acoustic cover, the title of which I have been going nuts trying to find. It was beautiful.

One of Clark’s major strengths was her ability to connect to the crowd. Not only did she profusely thank everyone for being there multiple times (and really meant it), but she knows exactly how to create a dramatic, engaging live show without going over the top. Some other similar female artists (cough, Cat Power) are known for being brilliant on album, but failing to impress on tour. Plus Clark complimented Philadelphia’s bubble tea, which is the way right to our hearts.

Now that I’m done gushing, pictures!