7. “St. Vincent” by St. Vincent

Annie Clark’s “St. Vincent” is a chaotic amalgamation of skillfully controlled elements — a mixture of rough, grungy guitar riffs and a voice that is ethereal yet warm — that produces a full, satisfying sound without ever becoming unattractively cluttered. It’s Clark’s confidence that is most catching: Here is a musician who knows what sound she wants and exactly how to extract that from whatever unsuspecting instrument is within her reach. She manipulates her voice and guitar with equal dexterity through a romping series of songs that also play around with unpredictable, roving synthesizer melodies and entertainingly processed percussion, punctuated by lively staccatos of brass. This album is a great example of what we might have to look forward to from the complex genre of art-indie-pop — a little bit of weird virtuoso masked by more familiar material, all tinged with the candy-sweet taste of pop. It’s smart, playful with an edge and unabashedly fun.

– Rachel Huang, Senior Staff Writer