Sufjan Stevens - Illinois

[Eikman]

someone wrote about it in another thread, and all i can do is to second the recommendation. this probably is Sufjan Stevens most ambitious work to date, and he has already done a lot of amazing work.
when i first heard it i thought it was a bit over the top, all those endless tracknames, 22 track all in all (lots of interludes tho) and the sound was a bit too pompous to my ears.
but after the second time, it suddenly caught me....it's not pompous at all, although there a quite a lot instruments (mostly played by Stevens himself) involved and Stevens' lyrics may appear awkward at times. i really love how there is a second, female, voice besides Sufjan on most of the tracks and how it combines melancholic piano tracks with uplifting steel guitar songs.

i read somewhere that it can be called as "neo-americana" or "neo-folk" and i think it is right; it's an ode to Illinois, and a very beautiful too. sufjan stevens is one of the most talented young songwriters (and musicians) right now. highly recommended!

picks:
Concerning the UFO Sighting...
Come on feel the Illinoise
Chicago
The Man Of Metropolis...

more info: Pitchfork review, Official Homepage , Tracks preview

[groovypanda]

sounds intriguing - i'll give it a listen...

[Dave]

I read this interesting interview with him last night: http://www.theonionavclub.com/featur...php?issue=4128

[Leon]

I REALLLLLLLLY LOVE "All The Trees Of The Field Will Clap Their Hands". It's so sweet!!!! Definately recommended.

[Caprice]

My friend who plays the guitar really good has been on Sufjan Stevens for the past, half a year. Seriously he wouldnt shut up about this guy.

Then he finnaly bought Illinois the day it was released over the internet. Me and him drove into the city and listened to the whole album in the meantime. It really is a good album. I like the banjo alot.

My friend went to Los Angeles and bought Michigan from sufjan while there and me and him listened to the whole CD

Illinois is better. More songs i like.

If i did buy a sufjan album, it would be illinois.

cheers

[den]

After one listen, I agree, it's quite good. Maybe I'm a little attached being from Illinois. It's nice to hear something that reminds you of home. Immediate stuck-in-your-head favorites: Chicago, Decatur. John Wayne Gacy Jr. is pretty chilling.

Mr. Stevens seems to be generating a lot of buzz about this album, especially in the college radio/indie scene and beyond. I'm sure it's even worse in Illinois. In Chicago, I bet WXRT (the best commercial radio station) is playing this to death Is there any other big press for it?

[Claire14]

[COLOR=black]Hey did you guys hear? Sufjan Stevens is nominated for the New Pantheon Music Prize for his Illinois CD. The award show has now been rescheduled for March 2006 with 10 finalists. Some finalists are Arcade Fire, The Decemberists, Fiona Apple and more.

Who do you think is going to win? Check out all the finalists at[/COLOR] [COLOR=#0000ff]www.newpantheon.net[/COLOR].