From her Ernie Ball signature model to a pair of Eventide H9s, St. Vincent has always been as deliberate about her tools as she is about her music.
Few guitarists working today are as immediately recognisable as Annie Clark, widely known as St. Vincent. Clark has spent the better part of fifteen years building one of the most distinctive sounds in modern rock, with sharp, angular, and technically gutsy guitar work. As one of the most compelling live performers currently, St. Vincent was named the 26th greatest guitarist of all time by Rolling Stone in 2023. Her first self-produced record in 2024, All Born Screaming, earned some of the strongest reviews of her career, and three Grammys. Here’s some of the gear that has shaped her sound across more than a decade of releases.
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Guitars
Fender Thurston Moore Jazzmaster
On her 2014 self-titled album, Clark recorded with producer John Congleton’s Fender Thurston Moore Jazzmaster. She was drawn to its simplicity (it only has a volume knob), as well as its characteristically bright tone.
Ernie Ball Albert Lee HH
Before Clark had her own signature model, the Albert Lee HH was her live weapon of choice, regularly appearing on the road during the St. Vincent album touring cycle.
Ernie Ball Music Man St. Vincent Signature
Built in close collaboration with Ernie Ball Music Man and inspired by Clark’s technique, visual style, and performative presence, the St. Vincent Signature has become as iconic as the player herself. Released in 2016 and available in several finishes, including the striking Vincent Blue, it remains one of the most distinctive signature guitars on the market.
Ernie Ball Music Man St. Vincent Goldie
The latest evolution of Clark’s signature model, the Goldie takes its name from its gold foil pickups – a nod to the gold foil pickups found on the Harmony Bobkat. It became her primary guitar for All Born Screaming and is the instrument most closely associated with her current sound.
Mike McCready’s Signature Fender Stratocaster
Pearl Jam’s Mike McCready gave Clark one of his signature Strats, which she used on parts of the record. She has spoken about historically avoiding Strats due to their baggage, but found specific songs on All Born Screaming that simply called for one.
Strings
Ernie Ball Regular Slinky Nickel Wound
Clark’s loyalty to Ernie Ball extends to her strings, with Regular Slinkys the natural choice to pair with her signature instruments. Precision manufactured for consistency and long life, they’re a straightforward choice that lets the playing do the talking.
Amps
Kemper Profiler Rack Guitar Amp System
Following St. Vincent, Clark moved to a Kemper for live performances, with her entire effects setup programmed show by show. For an artist whose live production is as considered as her records, the reliability and consistency of the Kemper make it a natural fit on the road.
Marshall
For All Born Screaming, Clark deliberately stepped away from digital guitar tones in the studio. “I’ve done enough direct guitar sounds,” she said. “I wanted to move some air again.” A Marshall handled the dirty tones across the record, heard most prominently on ‘Broken Man’, delivering what she described as a punchy, slightly spanky aggression rather than full-on fuzz.
Roland JC-40
The Roland JC-40 provided the clean, funk-driven tones across the record, a solid-state amp well suited to the tight, pocket-driven guitar parts Clark was after.
Pedals
Eventide H9 Max Multi-Effects Pedal
Two of these sit on Clark’s board, giving her access to the full Eventide library, and her synth sounds, tremolos, delays, and reverbs are all programmed and ready to go for live performances.
Boss VB-2 Vibrato
On All Born Screaming and Inverse To This, Clark recorded her Roland JC-40 with a Boss VB-2 – the original version, famously Prince’s vibrato pedal of choice.
Hologram Microcosm
One of the key textures on All Born Screaming, the Microcosm combines pitch-shifting, delay, and looping. Clark used it for the kaleidoscopic delay trails heard across the record.
Cooper FX Outward
The other sampling-based pedal is central to the album’s sound, used to generate what Clark described as a melted, gnarly, and deliberately unsettling quality on certain tracks.
Sitori Sonics Tapeworm
A delay pedal with two built-in synth oscillators, used on the solo in ‘Northern Lights’ – one of the more inventive pedal applications on the record.
Bixonic Expandora EXP-2000R Distortion Pedal
Used on ‘Regret’ from St. Vincent, Clark borrowed John Congleton’s unit during the studio session before liking it enough to buy her own.
Electro-Harmonix Micro Synthesizer
Responsible for the remarkable sustain on St. Vincent, the Micro Synthesizer gets a particularly good workout in the solo on ‘Rattlesnake’ – one of the more inventive uses of the pedal you’re likely to hear.
