St. Vincent has never been a fan of subtlety. Whether it's using plastic surgery to comment on the toxicity of Los Angeles, or sketch comedy to highlight the desperation of being an artist, her surreal visuals always have a statement to make. Here, we take a look at her music videos over the years, from her 2007 debut to her 2021 '70s persona.
"Jesus Saves, I Spend" - St. Vincent (2007)
This (very) early St. Vincent video is centered on the talents of a very peculiar boy scout troop that might also be a metaphor for religion? Unclear, but still captivating.
"Marrow" - St. Vincent (2009)
St. Vincent's simultaneously piercing, yet dead-eyed stare perhaps originated here, in this eerie video that manages to portray what social anxiety feels like.
"Laughing With A Mouth Full Of Blood" - St. Vincent
This video (and Portlandia sketch) is delightfully uncomfortable as our heroine plays a struggling musician.
"Cruel" - St. Vincent (2011)
St. Vincent gets kidnapped by a family, forced into a mom role, and then buried alive in this dark, Lynchian visual. Family issues indeed.
"Cheerleader" - St. Vincent (2012)
A gigantic St. Vincent breaks free from a museum exhibition in this video about the pressures of fame.
"Who" - David Byrne & St. Vincent (2012)
This curious visual from David Byrne and St. Vincent almost feels like being privy to a secret conversation between the two, told through dance.
"Digital Witness" - St. Vincent (2014)
The internet is a prison, and St. Vincent is its wild-haired prisoner in this vivid and off-putting video.
"New York" - St. Vincent (2017)
"New York" was St. Vincent's go at sharp, plasticky-pop: ultra glossy, ultra sterile, and ultra artificial.
"Los Ageless" - St. Vincent (2017)
St. Vincent's covered in bandages, and she's singing about "Los Ageless." Sure, it's heavy-handed, but it's also one of her most eye-catching.
"Fast Slow Disco" - St. Vincent (2018)
St. Vincent writhes in a mass of leather daddies in what's, surprisingly, one of her most normal videos yet.
"Pay Your Way In Pain" - St. Vincent (2021)
Never one to do things half-heartedly, St. Vincent fully channels the '70s with this strobe-filled, VHS quality visual for her new psychedelic musical era.