♥ jesus saves, i spend.

image found here.

a couple of weekends ago,

i was lucky enough to tag along

with my boyfriend and a gaggle of teenagers

to the virgin mobile festival at

baltimore's merriweather post pavillion.

it was an all day outdoor musical extravaganza

under the blistering sun,

in the final dregs of summer,

that left cranky little me in dire need

of a baby pool, a parasol,

& a pair of shorts.

one of the many musical

saving graces came in the form

of a pixie.like performer

whose booming voice and

thundering guitar sound

are a whole lot bigger

than she is

in person.

a walking contradiction– annie clark,

who performs under the name, st. vincent,

is a multi instrumentalist singer/songwriter

who just so happens to be a berklee college of music drop out,

and cannot formally read or write a lick of music.

she has toured with the likes of

polyphonic spree and sufjan stevens,

but has been working solo for the past few years.

her most recent album, actor,

was heavily influenced by a myriad of films

(ranging from disney classics to wizard of oz),

for which she attempted to create imaginary scores.

and oddly enough,

the album was written in a backwards sort of fashion,

with whimsical melodies made solely on the computer first,

and with lyrics and actual instrumentation added in second.

in the new york times, annie asserts,

"i wanted to make something that has the whimsy and the sweet of something

very pure, like disney films, but also something that was kind of bloody and gory

and disgusting."

i just love what pitchfork has to say about her cartoon.princess inspired

"album cover [which] may showcase her pretty face, but her blank expression and the tight framing leave the images feeling uncomfortably ambiguous.

her voice and the arrangements are often mellow and soothing, but those sounds may serve as context as she exposes undercurrents of anxiety and discomfort hidden beneath a gorgeous face."

orginally from tulsa, oklahoma

annie clark grew up in dallas, texas,

where more is more and

"women put on their ladyfaces."

all images via myspace.

her signature red lips, fairer than fair complexion,

and curly black hair only add to her indie chic style,

which is rife with whimsical separates.

some of which are from rachel comely,

whose spring 2010 fashion show st.vincent just played

today on a new york city rooftop,

to kick off fashion week.

so, while the living doll belted out songs

like "actor out of work" and "the strangers"

and covers of tom petty's "free falling"

and the steve miller band,

tossled hair, maine inspired mavens

trampsed down the runway

with st. vincent.like swagger.

here's a sneaky peak at st. vincent's

disgusting version of the beatles' song, "dig a pony."

she's super cool.

and for your listening enjoyment,

here are a few choice songs that may just

bring out the actor in you.