St. Vincent Compares Stavinsky to Dr. Dre

Posted on Apr 30th 2009 3:00PM by Mike Ayers
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When Annie Clark -- St. Vincent -- told Spinner that she was concerned with writing about losers for her sophomore album 'Actor,' it didn't necessarily mean she was listening to losers for inspiration. Take for example the electronica-infused tune 'Marrow.' With a cursory glance, one would think she's channeling French duo Air, but not so.

"That was one of the first things I wrote," Annie Clark tells Spinner. "I was listening to a lot of Stravinsky at the time. I know people mention classical music and it sounds like a pretentious thing, but man, Stravinsky, he grooved. He's like the Dr. Dre of the orchestral world as far as I'm concerned. Seriously, like the chronic."

In trying to channel a Stravinsky/Bollywood thing on the track, she first started writing the horns, then the clarinet parts, but soon realized it was missing something. "I realized 'Oh wait, I'm a guitar player.' I want to put some sort of Robert Fripp, gnarly guitar on it."

Clark also cites other sources as well, including, well, Disney. "I think I'm mostly a fan of the things I saw as a kid," she says. "'Snow White' and 'Sleeping Beauty.' The second you hear those scores or see the films, any kind of adult cynicism you have just melts away. That stuff just kills me."

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