Only Annie Clark (dba St. Vincent) could turn being buried alive—my number two fear right behind zombies—into an enchantingly glamorous experience. After listening to last month’s “Surgeon” about, oh I’d say seven thousand times, expectations were high and the delightfully mordant video for “Cruel” off the upcoming album Strange Mercy doesn’t disappoint. Clark again eludes the confines of genre by capitalizing on her perfectly wistful, eerily beautiful, yet somehow energetic style, melding elements of beyond-eccentric 50s cinema kitsch and a would-be morbid, creepy storyline. I could try to get all English-major-analytical on the deeper significance of the video’s message, but I think I’m just going to be satisfied with the weird beauty of the song and perfect shots of impossible bone structure.

The Huffington Post’s original premier of the video features a long explanation detailing the shoot, in case you’re still thinking more WTF than OMG.

MP3: St. Vincent – “Cruel”