Released May 4, 2009 Release date 4 May 2009 | Length 39:09 Artist St. Vincent | |
 | ||
Genres Indie rock, Indie pop, Baroque pop, Art Pop, Progressive pop Similar St Vincent albums, Indie rock albums | ||
The strangers lyrics hd
Actor is the second album by musician St. Vincent, released by 4AD on May 4, 2009, in the United Kingdom and a day later in the United States. The first single released was "Actor out of Work" that April. Annie Clark was influenced by scores to films by Disney and Woody Allen. To prevent writer's block, Clark watched films without the sound and composed music for her favorite scenes. After arranging the music using GarageBand, she then wrote lyrics and added gentle vocal melodies.
Contents
The music video for "Actor out of Work" was premiered April 10, 2009 on Spinner. In it, Clark auditions a series of actors who begin sobbing in front of her. The video for "Laughing with a Mouth of Blood" features Clark with comedy duo ThunderAnt as owners of a feminist bookstore.
"This was the first record I worked on with John Congleton. I started it with another producer, but things just went horribly wrong so I called John. I'd spent a long, long time on all of these tracks, all of these beautiful wind and string passages that I was trying to make into songs. I called John and said, 'You know what? I think I need to try again with these songs… I think that if I'm not careful, I'll be making the soundtrack to The Lion King, so can we just rethink this?' I went in and basically re-recorded everything but the wind and strings. It was definitely an eleventh-hour thing, with John and I together in the studio saving the record. When I was writing it, I was watching a lot of films – Disney films from the '30s and '40s. I was going for Technicolor on that record, and luckily we saved it from being the last record I ever made. The way it had been going, I'm not sure if anyone would've given it a listen. John's sonic power is strong and contagious – and, because we were already friends, I felt very comfortable with him. We were able to go about making a record with no ego or strange human relationships. We could be clearheaded about the songs and the best way to present them with the arrangements." – Annie Clark
Background
"This was the first record I worked on with John Congleton. I started it with another producer, but things just went horribly wrong so I called John. I'd spent a long, long time on all of these tracks, all of these beautiful wind and string passages that I was trying to make into songs. I called John and said, 'You know what? I think I need to try again with these songs… I think that if I'm not careful, I'll be making the soundtrack to The Lion King, so can we just rethink this?' I went in and basically re-recorded everything but the wind and strings. It was definitely an eleventh-hour thing, with John and I together in the studio saving the record. When I was writing it, I was watching a lot of films – Disney films from the '30s and '40s. I was going for Technicolor on that record, and luckily we saved it from being the last record I ever made. The way it had been going, I'm not sure if anyone would've given it a listen. John's sonic power is strong and contagious – and, because we were already friends, I felt very comfortable with him. We were able to go about making a record with no ego or strange human relationships. We could be clearheaded about the songs and the best way to present them with the arrangements." – Annie Clark
Reception
The album received wide critical acclaim. In the 2009 Pazz & Jop albums survey, Actor ranked twelfth, and most of the songs on it received mentions for the singles survey. Pitchfork Media gave the album an 8.5/10 rating and a "Best New Music" tag, praising the concept and describing the sound as "melodic and controlled, conjuring abrasive textures that nevertheless have a clean, meticulous quality that complements her immaculate arrangements." It later placed Actor number 13 on its year-end list of albums, and "Actor out of Work" ranked number 52 on its list of the year's top tracks. Pitchfork included "The Strangers" at number 492 on its list of the top tracks of the 2000s.
The A.V. Club's review called the album a departure from St. Vincent's debut, noting an absence of "the coy, conventional pop winks of Marry Me; even Actor's lovelier moments come tinged with down-the-rabbit-hole danger." Clark has "found her own voice—and it's one you wouldn't want reading your kids any bedtime stories."
Other reviewers, such as Entertainment Weekly and AllMusic, praised the album's contrast of melodic pop and distorted guitars with dark lyrics. PopMatters listed Actor number 26 on its list of the year's best albums.
Track listing
All tracks written by Annie Clark.
Personnel
Singles
- "Actor out of Work"
- "Bicycle"
- "Marrow"
- "Oh My God"
Songs
1The Strangers4:04
2Save Me From What I Want3:35
3The Neighbors3:30