St. Vincent
Paris Is Burning - Tour EP
Es Tee Vee Records

When seeing Sufjan Stevens' gig in Oslo last month, I only caught the last few songs of opening act, St. Vincent. Under this moniker you'll find 24-year-old Texan Annie Clark, who later appeared as one of Sufjan's "Band of Butterflies" musicians. Annie did an impressing job, as backing and co-vocalist, guitarist and pianist. She's also a member of the Polyphonic Spree! Wow! I just had to check out the EP.

This 3-song Tour EP is presented for the European tour only (?), but one of the tracks, "Paris is Burning", has been available for a while at St. Vincent's myspace-page. The other tracks are "What Me Worry" and a cover of Nico's "These Days" (originally written by Jackson Browne for Nico, for her Chelsea Girl album).

The music is of the fragile kind, and opening track "Paris is Burning" is sort of a cabaret-pop piece, somewhat making me think of a young Kate Bush. Or a ditto PJ Harvey, in a less aggressive tone. "What Me Worry" sounds just like what the title implies, and is a bit calmer than the opening track. It gives me this 1930s-to-1940s-pop-lounge-entertainment-club feeling. Her cover of "These Days" is simply gorgeous. It's just a dazzlingly beautiful song. Sad and melancholic, yet happy and uplifting.

Watch out for a possible debut album from St. Vincent next year. This EP is a nice foretaste.

Copyright © 2006 Håvard Oppøyen