Seraphina Lotkhamnga on September 14th, 2011

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“The rumors are true,” Annie Clark, aka St. Vincent, told Jason Bentley during an interview as part of KCRW’s Berkeley Street Sessions taping in Santa Monica on Monday night. Confirming a small segment of her recent SPIN cover story in person, she proudly admitted that she and David Byrne have been working on an album together during the last year – and to expect a collaborative release next year.

Clark went on to gush about Byrne, calling him “the coolest person on the planet. Period.” However, Bentley didn’t let her stray too far from the night’s purpose. With her new album, “Strange Mercy,” out Tuesday on 4AD, the show was an intimate pre-record release celebration.

With the title track being the first song she wrote for the album, Clark also shared the fact that she went the opposite direction from her previous album. After writing the soulful “Strange Mercy” on her guitar, the 28-year-old multi-instrumentalist decided not to fuss with too many instruments this time around. Since she had spent time heavily orchestrating “Actor,” every song on the new record started out on guitar in order for it to be “less cerebral and more tactile.”

Her two-part performance (which will be broadcast on KCRW’s “Morning Becomes Eclectic” on Oct. 6) boasted sets with brand new songs such as the catchy yet dark “Cruel,” the lush “Chloe in the Afternoon” and “Year of the Tiger.” Considering how last year was the actual Year of the Tiger in the Chinese calendar, Bentley naturally asked whether that was the inspiration for the song. Although she did validate the assumption, Clark was rather aloof by leaving her explanation at “It was just a rough year.”

A few old songs were slipped into the end of each set (“Save Me From What I Want” and “Marrow”). But it was when she played “Surgeon” during her brief encore that her romantic eccentricities as an artist shone through. Guitar riffs that bounced from sludgy to psychedelically slick, ethereal synths, riveting rhythms and yearning vocals – all made for a seductive fusion. It’s hardly a fair chance for fans on their first listen. Clark ironically doesn’t provide any mercy when it comes to the new album.

Photo by Jeremiah Garcia courtesy of KCRW