Sufjan Stevens is one of the most talent people working in music today. Fact. I'm not going to hide my admiration for the man and his work, and so this review may contain some extremely pro-Sufjan views......
On this, his sixth album proper, Stevens drops the concepts about US states, their historical figures and such, and concentrates on baring his soul - to a certain extent.
Also missing for the most part are the banjo and acoustic guitar, replaced by electronica and programmed beats. However, this is unmistakably a Sufjan Stevens record, despite Stevens's croon and whisper being replaced with a more pleading, close-to-breaking voice.....the beautiful melodies and harmony continue to shine through.
Ostensibly an album dedicated to the artist/prophet/sci-fi loon Royal Robertson, questions could be raised about the "I" in most of these songs - is it Sufjan as Royal, Sufjan as a character, or simply Sufjan as Sufjan finally spilling on what makes him tick?
Who knows, but as opening track "Futile Devices" tells us:
"It's been a long, long time since I memorized your face
It's been four hours now since I've wandered through your place
And when I sleep on your couch I feel very safe
And when you bring the blankets I cover up my face
I do love you
I do love you"
This is nakedly personal stuff from Stevens, and the tune is appropriately gorgeous. The title track "Age of Adz" embraces the glitchy electronica wholeheartedly, telling us of the end of the world, death and rotting in the ground - yet it ends with one of those triumphant choruses of voices that Sufjan does so well.
The two highlights for me, "I Walked" and "Vesuvius", best carry off the marriage of electronics to Sufjan's songwriting, and as such are the most affecting tracks on the record. On the latter, the vocal sounds like it's pleading thus:
"Sufjan, follow your heart
Follow the flame, or fall on the floor
Sufjan, the panic inside
The murdering ghost that you cannot ignore"
The album ends on the 25minute opus "Impossible Soul", a blend of the electronica, a bit of R&B, a touch of autotune, that triumphant chorus of voices, before fading out with some lovely finger-picking on the acoustic guitar - which in fact bookends the record with an acoustic intro/outtro.
The crescendo of voices that's found on a few of the songs seems to pull Sufjan out of the emotional introspection he finds himself in on the majority of songs, and points him towards hope.
This record seems like it was close to never being made during moments of existential crisis suffered by Sufjan Stevens over the past year, but it seems that his belief in his own talent, belief in his own higher power, and belief in the power of the long-playing record pulled him through - and gave us this record; a magnificent achievement and evidence once again that Sufjan Stevens is an immensely talented individual and we should treasure him greatly.
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