Marry Me
Studio album by
St. Vincent
ReleasedJuly 10, 2007 (2007-07-10)
Recorded2007
Genre
Length43:38
LabelBeggars Banquet
Producer
St. Vincent chronology
Paris is Burning
(2006)		 Marry Me
(2007)		 Actor
(2009)
Singles from Marry Me
  1. "Jesus Saves, I Spend"
    Released: July 10, 2007
  2. "Now, Now"
    Released: July 10, 2007

Marry Me is the debut studio album by American musician St. Vincent. It was released on July 10, 2007, in the United States[5] and on September 3, 2007 in the United Kingdom, through Beggars Banquet Records. The album is named after a running gag from the television show Arrested Development.[6] As of 2009, the album has sold an estimated 30,000 copies.[7]

Background

St. Vincent started working on Marry Me before she joined The Polyphonic Spree, and finished it while touring with them. Sufjan Stevens heard it and asked St. Vincent to be in his band and open for him; after a show in London opening for Stevens, Beggars Banquet Records offered St. Vincent a record contract and published the record.[8]

She recorded most of the album's track in her bedroom in Texas. "Half the record" is composed of material that had not been played live prior to the album's recording sessions.[9]

Critical reception

At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received a rating of 78, based on 20 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[10] Critics often praised the ambitious orchestral production of the album,[11][12] while others found it overstuffed.[13]

Giving the album a rating of 8.0 out of 10, Pitchfork compared the album to the works of art rock legends David Bowie and Kate Bush and complimented its unique brand of sonic experimentation, nothing that the album "takes the more challenging route of twisting already twisted structures and unusual instrumentation to make them sound perfectly natural and, most importantly, easy to listen to as she overdubs her thrillingly sui generis vision into vibrant life".[12] Marisa Brown of AllMusic, praising the album's inclusion of disparate elements, called it "one of the better indie pop albums that's come around for a long time"[14] Comparing Annie Clark's "knack for grandiose orchestrations" to that of former bandmate Sufjan Stevens, Vladimir Wormwood of PopMatters notes that she "tempers these more restlessly than Sufjan. Her lyricism is more opaque and sinister and also belies a twisted sense of humor."[15]

In a retrospective assessment of the record for its 10th anniversary, Margaret Farrell of Stereogum commended its ability to question love and marriage as a social institution. She concluded that "Marry Me made it obvious that [Clark] would have a prosperous career exposing listeners to new points of view and cunning soundscapes".[16] Similarly, Joe Marvilli of Spectrum Culture considers that Marry Me foreshadows the acclaim of Clark's subsequent releases, asserting that "her debut may not have the same impact or cohesiveness of latter albums, but it’s a wonderful example of an artist just starting out and carrying themselves with a confidence that will take them far."[17] The album ranked 25 in Consequence of Sound's retrospective "Top 50 albums of 2007", with Lior Phillips describing the album as "playful" and noting that "[Clark's] gift for twisting and subverting, both musically and lyrically, was apparent even on this first record".[18]

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic78/100[19]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[20]
The A.V. ClubA[21]
BBC Collective[22]
No Ripcord8/10[23]
Pitchfork8.0/10[24]
Rockfeedback[25]
Slant Magazine[26]
This Is Fake DIY[27]
Yahoo Music UK9/10[28]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Annie Clark, except where noted

Marry Me – Standard edition
No.TitleLength
1."Now, Now"4:25
2."Jesus Saves, I Spend"3:56
3."Your Lips Are Red" (Clark, Daniel Hart)4:41
4."Marry Me"4:41
5."Paris is Burning"4:20
6."All My Stars Aligned"3:47
7."The Apocalypse Song"3:47
8."We Put a Pearl in the Ground" (Mike Garson)1:10
9."Landmines"5:07
10."Human Racing"3:48
11."What Me Worry?"3:56
Total length:43:38
Marry Me – Japanese edition
No.TitleLength
12."These Days" (Jackson Browne)3:19
Total length:46:57

Personnel

Musicians

Production

  • Annie Clark – production, engineering, mixing
  • Brian Teasley – production, additional engineering
  • Daniel Farris – production, engineering, mixing
  • Mike Garson – additional engineering
  • Jeff Halbert – additional engineering
  • Al Carlson – additional engineering
  • John Golden – mastering
  • Tod Seelie – cover photo
  • Mary Manning – cover photo styling
  • Hanni El Khatib – design and layout

Charts

Chart (2007) Peak
position
US Heatseekers Albums (Billboard)[29] 32

References

  1. ↑ "Marry Me - St. Vincent". Allmusic. Retrieved 13 February 2016.
  2. ↑ "St. Vincent Strange Mercy". Slant. 12 September 2011. Retrieved 19 February 2016.
  3. ↑ "St. Vincent, 'Actor'". The Boston Globe. Retrieved 13 February 2016.
  4. ↑ "St. Vincent: Strange Mercy". Pitchfork. Retrieved 19 February 2016.
  5. ↑ "St. Vincent – Music". ILoveStVincent.com. Archived from the original on 2013-01-26. Retrieved 2007-08-04.
  6. ↑ "Pitchfork Guest List: St. Vincent". Pitchfork Media. 30 August 2007. Retrieved 2013-12-27.
  7. ↑ Ryzik, Melena (May 7, 2009). "I Like Things That Are Unsettling". New York Times: C1. Retrieved January 18, 2014.
  8. ↑ Pinnock, Tom (January 2015). "Album by Album: St Vincent". Uncut: 54.
  9. ↑ Mason-Campbell, Nilina (March 4, 2008). "St. Vincent". Pitchfork.
  10. ↑ Marry Me by St. Vincent, retrieved 2023-01-15
  11. ↑ "St. Vincent: Marry Me". The A.V. Club. 2007-07-10. Retrieved 2023-01-15.
  12. 1 2 "St. Vincent: Marry Me". Pitchfork. Retrieved 2023-01-15.
  13. ↑ "Dusted Reviews: St. Vincent - Marry Me". www.dustedmagazine.com. Retrieved 2023-01-15.
  14. ↑ Brown, Marisa. "Marry Me Review". AllMusic.
  15. ↑ "St. Vincent: Marry Me, PopMatters". PopMatters. 2007-08-06. Retrieved 2023-01-15.
  16. ↑ Farrell, Margaret (July 10, 2007). "Marry Me Turns 10". Stereogum.
  17. ↑ Marvilli, Joe (March 29, 2021). "Revisit: St. Vincent: Marry Me". Spectrum Culture.
  18. ↑ "Top 50 albums of 2007". Consequence of Sound. January 23, 2017.
  19. ↑ "Marry Me Reviews, Ratings, Credits and More at Metacritic". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 2012-04-24.
  20. ↑ Allmusic review
  21. ↑ The A.V. Club review
  22. ↑ Turnbull, Stuart. "BBC – collective – st. vincent 'marry me' review plus full tracks". BBC Collective. Bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 24 April 2012.
  23. ↑ No Ripcord review
  24. ↑ Pitchfork Media review
  25. ↑ Rockfeedback review
  26. ↑ Cinquemani, Sal (5 July 2007). "St. Vincent: Marry Me | Music Review". Slant Magazine. Slant Magazine. Retrieved 24 April 2012.
  27. ↑ This Is Fake DIY review
  28. ↑ Yahoo Music UK review
  29. ↑ "St. Vincent Chart History (Heatseekers Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved May 26, 2021.

Marry Me at MusicBrainz (list of releases)

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