St. Vincent’s face graces the cover of her second full-length, Actor. The winsome singer-songwriter appears mesmerized by a bright light, her pupils white instead of black. The notion of putting on a show plays in several ways throughout the album. Musically, the cinematic textures (the album credits a “score consultant”) and, thematically, the rejection of a life of quiet, suburban desperation, coupled with the urge to force yourself into the creative world, boldly declaring that you, too, have something to prove or to say.

St. Vincent – aka Annie Clark – chases a richer, more symphonic sound than on her debut, Marry Me, flourishing Actor with clarinets, saxophones, french horns, violins and flutes. Thanks to the use of extended “oohs” and “aaahs,” there’s also an eerily church-like quality at times, as in the opening of “The Strangers,” and the backgrounds of “Marrow” and “The Bed.” But as is quickly becoming her M.O., each saccharine moment is confronted with Clark’s love of shredding on guitar. “The Strangers” bursts with a freak-out interlude, “Marrow” alternates between understated singing and cheese-grater guitar punches, and “The Bed” balances fluttering flute with shrieking strings. (more…)