“All Born Screaming” – St. Vincent

Album: All Born Screaming

Artist: St. Vincent

Year: 2024

Genre: Art Rock, Alternative Rock

Grade: A-

In style, sound and stage presence, St. Vincent has often been described as a 21^st century amalgamation of Kate Bush and David Bowie — serious praise, but well deserved. Accordingly, she’s already gone through her Let’s Dance and Young Americans phases (the pop of MassEduction and the R&B of Daddy’s Home, respectively) — enjoyable experiments, but not as enduring as her earlier albums. Now that that’s out of her system, she can return to her alt/art rock roots: All Born Screaming is St. Vincent’s best album since her self-titled LP in 2014.

Her aesthetic this time around is a mixture of ‘90s alternative (à la PJ Harvey and Liz Phair) and ‘80s art pop (à la Peter Gabriel and Prince). Of course, it’s all dressed in a singular 2020s eclecticism that only an artist as versatile and confident as Annie Clark can accomplish. Even though All Born Screaming isn’t a grand statement (à la Strange Mercy), it’s exactly the kind of consistency that her fans can expect at this point in her career. It’s a good album, nothing more, nothing less.

NOTES & CHORDS

• The beat drop in “Reckless” is perfectly timed: two-and-a-half minutes of buildup, a few seconds of silence, and then a heavy blast of electronic alt rock to take us home.

• The reverse is accomplished in the closing seven-minute title track: the first half of the song is a jaunty, joyous indie tune, which abruptly gives way to an ambient, electronic coda that concludes the album.

• St. Vincent’s much-documented guitar heroics receive a stellar showcase in the lengthy instrumental break in the hard-rocking “Flea.”

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