On a gorgeous late-summer evening in the heart of downtown Brooklyn, Anne Erin Clark (better known as St. Vincent) performed a second consecutive sold-out show at Brooklyn Paramount this past Wednesday, September 11.
Touring in support of her seventh studio album dubbed All Born Screaming, released on April 26, Clark not only self-produced the LP featuring a bevy of special guest artists, but also released it on her own Total Pleasure Records label.
Originally opened in 1928 and having hosted seminal artists the likes of Miles Davis, Buddy Holly, Frank Sinatra and Ella Fitzgerald, the 2,700-capacity Brooklyn Paramount reopened its famed doors this past March after years of restoration, and since doing so, has been a destination spot for industry veterans and rising stars alike.
With a constant stream of genre-spanning musical talent gracing its stage for the last six months, tonight was no different. Providing opening support for St. Vincent on this 12-date tour of North America, which launched in Boston, Massachusetts on September 5, was experimental electronic musician Yves Tumor (born Sean Lee Bowie). Taking the stage at exactly 8:00 pm, the 34-year old musician who was born in Miami, Florida and raised in Knoxville, Tennessee immediately launched into an eleven-song set with a heavy dose of tracks taken from their fifth and most recent studio album titled Praise A Lord Who Chews But Which Does Not Consume; (Or Simply, Hot Between Worlds).
A self-taught multi-instrumentalist, Yves Tumor’s atmospheric stage lighting was the perfect accompaniment to their tonal palette – ranging from the sonically atmospheric to vibes of hypnotic trance – interspersed with glam cockiness resembling that of Prince. Exuding a kinetic stage presence and energy rarely seen, Yves Tumor was backed by a trio of extremely talented musicians who delivered the rock neo-psychedelia goods, complete with jangly guitar, looping basslines and a 4/4 drum beat signature.
Born screaming in Tulsa, Oklahoma, but a New Yorker at her core, I was introduced to St. Vincent a decade ago when she released her self-titled fourth studio album to critical acclaim. Like many of her fans, I was drawn to her melodic, distortion-rich guitar playing. Certainly not underrated, she is often cited as being among the best guitarists of all time, including a nod from Rolling Stone last year. Armed with her Ernie Ball Music Man signature guitar in Stealth Black, St. Vincent brought the packed house to its knees on multiple occasions, often with humor:
I have to tell you about the first night that I ever met this woman [touring bassist Charlotte Kemp Muhl]. I went over to her house, and she put an albino snake around my neck. And she said ‘Hey, I’m Charlotte.’ On that same night, I had taken mushrooms for the first time. And then, we walked home at 4:00 in the morning and we were walking by construction, you know, ConEd doing stuff down below. And we were like ‘Hey, can we go down there?’ And the dude was like ‘yeah.’ So, we crawled through the bowels of this city, and I can tell you that the bowels of this city are as beautiful as its face. And let that be said at all of our funerals. I love you so much New York.
St. Vincent
The 100-minute long show featured twenty songs spread across fifteen years of St. Vincent’s discography, with “Birth in Reverse” and “Surgeon” substituted for “Krokodil” and “Year of the Tiger” the night before. The only album not represented in tonight’s setlist was her 2007 debut studio offering Marry Me.
After interacting with lucky fans in the first several rows center stage, falling backwards into their arms, the emotionally charged show culminated soon after with St. Vincent alone onstage for the encore, “Somebody Like Me” (Daddy’s Home, 2021). After the thunderous applause finally subsided, St. Vincent thanked Yves Tumor for opening the night and commenced the final number. Not a minute in, she exclaimed “Oh, I fucked this song, I fucked it so bad. I’m so sorry.” Erupting in a roar of laughter, the fans could not care less about the false start, but St. Vincent did – a testament to her professionalism as a musician. Retreating to her original position beneath the arch-framed stage design, St. Vincent came forth again to the edge of the stage apron and finished the show with style and grace, as if it could have ended any differently.
Following an appearance at Riot Fest in Chicago, Illinois on September 21, the next leg of St. Vincent’s tour resumes in Dublin, Ireland on October 13, concluding in Southbank, Australia on November 28.
Yves Tumor Setlist: God Is a Circle > Echolalia > In Spite of War > Gospel for a New Century > Jackie > Meteora Blues > Parody / Heaven Surrounds Us Like a Hood > M~~S B~~~~~E > Operator > Secrecy Is Incredibly Important to the Both of Them > Ebony Eye
St. Vincent Setlist: Reckless > Fear the Future > Los Ageless > Big Time Nothing > Marrow > Dilettante > Pay Your Way in Pain > Digital Witness > Sweetest Fruit > Flea > Cheerleader > Broken Man > Birth in Reverse > Surgeon > Hell Is Near > Candy Darling > New York > Sugarboy > All Born Screaming > Encore: Somebody Like Me
UPCOMING TOUR DATES
September 13 – Washington, DC @ The Anthem
September 14 – Toronto, Canada @ Massey Hall
September 16 – Ann Arbor, MI @ Michigan Theater
September 18 – Chicago, IL @ Metro Chicago
September 19 – St. Paul, MN @ Palace Theatre
September 20 – St. Paul, MN @ Palace Theatre
September 21 – Chicago, IL @ Riot Fest
YVES TUMOR
ST. VINCENT
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