Live Review: St. Vincent @ Palais Theatre, Melbourne

Dallas, Texas, rock musician Annie Clark, AKA St. Vincent, brought her All Born Screaming tour to Melbourne last night at the Palais Theatre in St Kilda. Hot off the release of her new record, All Born Screaming, St. Vincent ripped into a set of new tracks and old favourites alike. With a brilliant band and excellent stagecraft, the show was one of the best to grace the Palais in recent years.

Opening the show was Aussie singer-songwriter Lotte Gallagher. Performing tracks from her fantastic new EP, A Better Feeling, released through Mushroom earlier this year, Gallagher showed off her skills as a writer and performer. Her best track was, without a doubt, Gray – with a truly memorable chorus that shows off her superb range.

Teasing us with one unreleased track Can We Talk When It’s Over, Lotte Gallagher left the Palais Theatre convinced – with a clearly original spin on the indie singer-songwriter sound.

After keeping the crowd waiting almost too long, St. Vincent blew the house down from the moment she took to the stage.

Opening with the track Reckless, Annie Clark presented herself with her back facing the audience, a silhouette. Powerful, present and beautiful, St. Vincent revealed herself to us through the music – continuing into mega-hit Los Ageless – with its huge chorus and an appearance of Annie’s iconic Ernie Ball Music Man guitar.

With a visual language all her own, St. Vincent moved like a passionate robot, if that’s possible. Showing her influence of Bowie and Byrne, every indirect action showed intent and bizarre power.

Virtuosic both vocally and through her instrument, Clark’s unending talent promoted worship – and just about the whole seated venue stood to attention throughout the concert. Cheers were heard of “Annie, you’re the best of us!” and “Annie, we love you!” all of which St. Vincent beamed back approval to her devoted fans.

Huge tracks from her latest album, All Born Screaming, such as Flea and Broken Man, oozed with sensuality and anger, while more intimate moments like Candy Darling and encore track Somebody Like Me felt like there was no one in the room but the listener and the artist.

Often sitting on the edge of the stage and even once travelling into the crowd to share hugs with delighted fans, St. Vincent seemed both rock goddess and humble champion – a truly rare combination in American performers caught down under.

A fantastic backing band is essential to a rock show, and St. Vincent’s was no chopped liver. Without showing off, each member clearly demonstrated their skills and joy for the music in their playing and dancing – especially bassist Charlotte Kemp Muhl, whose presence was unforgettable.

Overall, the best tracks of the night were Flea, Candy Darling, New York and the fantastic cinematic closer All Born Screaming. An absolutely unmissable live show, even in brevity, St. Vincent is a classic act and a brilliant performer.