General Music Discussions - 3 Sufjan Stevens tracks over 10 minutes from 2010

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3 Sufjan Stevens tracks over 10 minutes from 2010

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Forum Name: General Music Discussions
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URL: http://www.progarchives.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=134149
Printed Date: February 21 2025 at 23:35
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Topic: 3 Sufjan Stevens tracks over 10 minutes from 2010

Posted By: Logan
Subject: 3 Sufjan Stevens tracks over 10 minutes from 2010
Date Posted: January 03 2025 at 14:30

EDIT: originally I did this as three Joanna Newsom and three Sufjan Stevens tracks over ten minutes long each with "multiple votes" enabled, but I will simplify this to just three Sufjan Stevens tracks over ten minutes long taken from two 2010 releases of his.

Yesterday I listened through the Age of Adz album again, which I think a brilliant album and have seemed to appreciate more with each listen (not all of this long track had appealed from Adz, but now I can appreciate it all), and then I listened through All Delighted EP which came out the same year as Age of Adz, which was magical. It's called EP but it's almost 60 minutes.

Sufjan Stevens "All Delighted People (Original Version)" (All Delighted People EP, 2010)
Sufjan Stevens "Djohariah" (All Delighted People EP, 2010)
Sufjan Stevens "Impossible Soul" (The Age of Adz, 2010)

Both Sufjan Stevens and Joanna Newsom had more vocal admirers at PA back in about 2010, but I tend to be late to the party. And Stevens has released some great albums subsequently.

Replies:

Posted By: Logan
Date Posted: January 04 2025 at 01:01

Not sure if I want to choose between them. Some of "Impossible Soul" gives me goosebumps and I love those other two.

I can understand why the album Age of Adz can be polarising in large part, but I love it and like that it is different from other studio albums of his. All Delighted People EP which came out earlier that year and can in part act like something of a primer for it.

Anyway, I adore plenty of Sufjan Stevens' music. I was not sure how best to go about this topic. Wanted to highlight and discuss music of his and maybe I should have just revived that poll I did which lacked the terrific All Amazing People EP or made an appreciation thread.

Posted By: Lewian
Date Posted: January 04 2025 at 04:21

Generally I'm something of a Sufjan Stevens fan, but I've got to say this period is for me the most difficult to appreciate. It's quite progressive if you want, just most of his melodies from this album and EP do less for me than most of his other work. Also Age of Adz is mixed in a way that I perceive as somewhat messy. I don't really appreciate its sound, but it's all subjective, I'm not saying there's anything wrong with it other than it doesn't really click with me. I acknowledge that it's very creative.

Djohariah beats the other two by some distance for me.

PS I like Joanna Newsom but don't know that much of her, so I was kind of looking forward to checking out her stuff in your poll. Would she be able to beat three Sufjan Stevens songs for me (if maybe not his very best)? Well, of course nobody stops me from still doing that...

Posted By: Logan
Date Posted: January 04 2025 at 13:41

^b thing I like about both The Age of Adz and All Delighted People EP is that they seem quite eclectic to me and also showcase more of Sufjan Stevens', dare I say, genius? Beauty and quirkiness, ebullience, bombastic-ness and sensitivity, gentleness.... I love both albums to bits, and both actually go by really fast for me despite being about 75 and 60 minutes long albums. I adore each of these.

Here are two of the three Joanna Newsom tracks that I originally included (my faves of them):

Joanna Newsom "Only Skin" (Ys, 2006)

Joanna Newsom "Have One on Me" (Have One on Me, 2010)

Of those I especially love, love "Have One on Me".

I originally had asked people to vote for one track of each artists.

While I think Joanna Newsom and Sufjan Stevens are very comparable in many ways, as six tracks these do not highlight the similarities so much. I like contrast anyway.