Sufjan Stevens

[JG]

- Great quality / Highly Recommended!!!


From Obscure Sound:

"While the extreme popularity of Sufjan Stevens has often become abrasive, there is no denying he is one of the most talented songwriters currently making music. Though literally thousands of blogs has posted material from Sufjan, I would never miss the opportunity to post something that is very new and exciting. While Stevens is no stranger to lengthy songs, 'Majesty Snowbird' is one of his most significant epics, reaching over ten minutes in length. Though no studio version is available yet, the quality for this live version is phenomenal.

Stevens' vocals are introduced over a simple strum of an acoustic guitar, until a quick twinkle of keys signals the brilliant strings to take part. That's certainly not all though, as some very effective brass stomps itself in as some heart pounding percussion momentarily appears. The most impressive parts of the song are the musical solos after Stevens' initial verses, especially in the latter section of the song where Stevens creates an excellent vocal melody to blend in with the musical highlight. The conclusion to the song is also fantastic, as every single instrument previously introduced breaks free for two minutes of breathless awe. I'm really looking forward to hearing the studio version of this one, as the live performance is great."

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[Pubrick]

From Obscure Sound:

"While the extreme popularity of Sufjan Stevens has often become abrasive, there is no denying he is one of the most talented songwriters currently making music. Though literally thousands of blogs has posted material from Sufjan, I would never miss the opportunity to post something that is very new and exciting. While Stevens is no stranger to lengthy songs, 'Majesty Snowbird' is one of his most significant epics, reaching over ten minutes in length. Though no studio version is available yet, the quality for this live version is phenomenal.

formula for the annoying style of this paragraph: While something, something else. Though something, something else. (repeat)

thanks for the hook up

[samsong]

amazing show.  i got an inflatable santa.

[JG]

here's a better video: 

this song is pretty amazing. 

admin edit: fixed link

[Reinhold]

http://www.bam.org/events/08SUFJ/08SUFJ.aspx

World Premiere

THE BQE

COMPOSED AND PERFORMED BY SUFJAN STEVENS
NOV 1—3 AT 8PM
BAM HOWARD GILMAN OPERA HOUSE
RUNNING TIME: APPROX 90MIN
TICKETS: $20, 25, 35, 50

A prolific singer/songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and composer with a penchant for storytelling, Sufjan Stevens reveals the epic in the everyday in songs infusing the vernacular of Midwestern folk with a distinctly orchestral grandeur. Stevens pairs orchestrated selections of both new and old material with the 25th Next Wave Festival commission/world premiere of The BQE—a symphonic and cinematic exploration of one of New York's least celebrated monuments: the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway.

Robert Moses' controversial 11.7-mile roadway tears through neighborhoods in Brooklyn and Queens with the brute force of modern urban planning, and in Stevens' hands becomes an evocation of the intersection of intimate experience and the American Dream. Merging a virtual road trip shot on film with a live band and orchestral ensemble, The BQE discovers abstract patterns and stories in the snaking traffic, potholed pavement, billboards, badly marked exits, and beautiful city views, revealing what happens when Manifest Destiny converges with urban blight.

Commissioned by BAM

[picolas]

oh my god this is outstanding. it's such an evolution.. the first track is like a farewell to his old style, then the rest perfectly follows from where 'you are the blood' left off. lyrically, sufjan can be a little limited for my tastes, but i don't even care because this sound is just.. virtuosity defined. cutting edge. and it paints a picture of a world that i want to visit. i've pretty much just been listening to this on repeat for the last few days.

just give this a listen:



if i had a lot of money/influence i would make a really expensive music video for that. so cinematic, down to the sync sound reference at the top.

and this:



the flute flourishes alone...

[tpfkabi]

http://www.thebuddyproject.com/news/sufjan_tapeop_0309/sufjan_tapeop0309_1.html

(click on the page to go to the next - there are 4 in all)

There is an interesting interview he did with Tape Op a year or two ago. Apparently he recorded most of the early albums only using 2 SM57's. At the end he kinda foreshadows Adz.

I wonder if he really recorded it fast and just put it out there, or if there is a ton of material from the past 5 years or so. He recorded some with The National and apparently none of that ended up on the record. The credits are pretty null and void in the album booklet unless I'm overlooking it. Not even mastering, etc.

[diggler]

it really is a remarkable album. his voice is a lot cleaner and more soulful (lots of boys II men style ooo's and ahhh's). he's found a way to make his voice stand out in a big production.  i wonder how he's going to do this stuff live (if at all)

[tpfkabi]

sometimes the vocals sound too processed for me. at the end of I'm Not Well i'm not even sure it's him, it sounds so weird - and not weird like a vocal effect or auto-tune.

i haven't read too much about the live show, but apparently he's playing the whole album besides I'm Not Well.

[RegularKarate]

i wonder how he's going to do this stuff live (if at all)

I saw him night before last.  He opened with Seven Swans and Closed with Chicago then the encore was three older songs as well... the rest was all new stuff from both the EP and the LP.

I still haven't heard the new album, I don't know why, but I wanted to hear the new stuff live.

It was fucking great.  I don't normally like to listen to new stuff live for the first time, but this was just a crazy-good experience.  I loved it and really want to get the new album now.

Obviously, I can't compare what I saw to the way it sounds on the album, but it's very creative and he played a fucking 25 minute long song that ended with crazy autotune/Kanye West/1980s synch dance specatacular.

He did a good deal of talking between songs and said with this album, he started with experimenting with different sounds and laid them down then came back to focus on melody. 

go see him

[tpfkabi]

Wow, opening with the song, Seven Swans? That is a crazy/epic way to open. I saw him in Nashville after Illinois came out. The venue had a lot of problems and things were very delayed, so it was bad on that part.

Is there still a large amount of backing players, or is it all done via laptops/keyboards?

[ᾦɐļᵲʊʂ]

This is pretty amazing new stuff, since to be totally honest, I never really connected to much of his material other than Enjoy Your Rabbit.  Not to just be a contrarian, but that album is incredible experimentation that's hard to find elsewhere but because it's so unlike his other stuff, a lot of my friends just neglect it. 

I'm liking the instrumentation but I'm not convinced his lyrics are totally necessary.  Still, this new album is an amazing bridge between fully orchestrated music and experimental noise.  Good, good stuff. 

[RegularKarate]

Oh, there was still a huge backing band.  Including him, I think there were about ten people on stage at any given time (except during the final John Wayne Gacy).

I just listened to the album and I'd say it's even better live (though I love the album).

Also, he did a good deal of breakdancing.

[tpfkabi]

http://fuckyeahsufjanstevens.tumblr.com/

this has a video of impossible soul from Austin - you may not want to watch it if you don't want stage things spoiled. what i watched just stays on sufjan the whole time.