St. Vincent rebukes crowd during Pearl Jam cover, adds First Ave. show

Photo by Tony Nelson

St. Vincent at the Walker Art Center

​Those of you who didn't get a chance to see St. Vincent's entrancing sold-out performances at the Walker in October (and even those of you who did) now have another opportunity to see Annie Clark and company bring the songs of Strange Mercy to life, as St. Vincent have just announced a stop at First Avenue's Mainroom on May 12. In addition to her ever-increasing back catalog of stirring songs, Clark just covered Pearl Jam's "Black" on Saturday night at the Bowery Ballroom in New York as part of the roving Portlandia Tour in support of the IFC sketch comedy show.

And while her solo cover version is rather straightforward and stays perhaps too faithful to the original (especially given how inventive her own songs have been as of late), Clark still brings her own unique emotional resonance to the number. The raw passion of the track is only heightened by her playful chiding of the audience towards the end of her performance, "Don't fucking make me sing this song alone." The crowd complies rather feebly, so it's up to Clark to carry the song home strongly, which she does to some degree. 

Chances are this cover won't regularly see its way into future St. Vincent set lists, but here's to hoping that it does, at least during their stop at First Ave. But even if Clark's version of "Black" ends up being strictly a one-off performance, Strange Mercy is a strong enough album that anything Clark decides to play from it (or her other two splendid records) will surely be captivating enough.

I just hope that this time around, St. Vincent not only fills First Avenue (which Clark decidedly didn't during her disappointing stop there in 2009), but that the band brings the creative spirit and fiery originality (along with the dazzling, somewhat disorienting light show) that colored their rousing recent show at the Walker.

St. Vincent 2012 U.S. Tour Dates

04-14 Indio, CA -- Coachella
04-17 Tucson, AZ -- Rialto Theater
04-21 Indio, CA -- Coachella
04-24 Oakland, CA -- Fox Theater
05-03 Providence, RI -- Lupo's  
05-05 Buffalo, NY -- Town Ballroom  
05-07 Pittsburgh, PA -- Altar  
05-08 Columbus, OH -- Newport Music Hall 
05-09 Cincinnati, OH -- Bogart's 
05-10 Indianapolis, IN -- Deluxe at Old National Centre  
05-11 Chicago, IL -- Vic Theatre 
05-12 Minneapolis, MN -- First Avenue 
05-14 Omaha, NE -- Slowdown 
05-15 Tulsa, OK -- Cain's Ballroom 
05-17 Memphis, TN -- Minglewood Hall  
05-18 Birmingham, AL -- The Bottletree  
05-19 Atlanta, GA -- Variety Playhouse  
05-21 Nashville, TN -- Cannery Ballroom  
05-22 Knoxville, TN -- Bijou Theatre  
05-23 Carrboro, NC -- Cat's Cradle  
05-24 Richmond, VA -- The National