It’s been a while. Today Sufjan Stevens released a new, eight-song EP, titled All Delighted People, on Bandcamp. You can stream the tracks for free below, or download the whole thing for $5. According to Asthmatic Kitty, the album will be on other digital retail sites on August 23, and will be out in physical form later on. The title track was the centerpiece of Stevens’s fall 2009 tour — it’s the lengthy epic that gently references Simon and Garfunkel’s “The Sound Of Silence.” Listen:
All Delighted People EP is out now via Bandcamp. The tracklist:
01 “All Delighted People (Original Version)”
02 “Enchanting Ghost”
03 “Heirloom”
04 “From the Mouth of Gabriel”
05 “The Owl and the Tanager”
06 “All Delighted People (Classic Rock Version)”
07 “Arnika”
08 “Djohariah”
Who are the best ‘delighted people’ on the EP cover? My favorites are Danielson’s Daniel Smith, and Leonardo DiCaprio.
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this is amazing
It truly is.
I don’t see Leonardo Dicaprio.
It’s just a shot of his head a bit below the “S” in Sufjan. He’s looking very Inception.
shouldn’t this be called: Wisconsin, Rhode Island or Idaho… or something like that?
Nice joke, 2005.
Pretty great. I think it might be better then the majority of anything he has ever done. The emotion isn’t drowsy or odd, as it can be in Illinois.
Yes, it’s a lot more focused than Illinois. Here’s my review of it: http://thestrangulation.wordpress.com/2010/08/24/all-delighted-people-ep-sufjan-stevens/
OH SNAP!
awesome…but where is majesty snowbird?
hopefully the next lp
Agreed
this is fantastic music! Wonderful surprise.
Djohariah – gorgeous, gorgeous song.
so incredible
Is that Regine? No it cant be. Well anyway the EP is really beautiful.
Vesper of Sound’s Familyre’s Ben + Vesper
http://soundsfamilyre.com/musicians.php?artistID=22
Sooo good!
Take it easy, Sufjan, you don’t need to try impress me by writing the BIGGEST SONG EVER. “Heirloom” is my favourite here.
Yeah, they’re a bit long, but at the same time the musical complexity of his songs keep me pretty interested.
All the delighted people who signed a release form raise your hand!
real good
Sure, some of these songs are long, but I challenge anyone to say that “Djoharia” couldn’t have continued for another 15 minutes without getting old. I feel bad for the people that will turn this song off before the 10 minute mark.
Just so we are all on the same page here, Djohariah is his sister’s name. And Sufjan is on the cover of the EP between the D and P, wearing a classic christmas sweater.
I had dinner with Sufjan once, and he is one of the most humble, non-presumptuous people I’ve ever met. He’s just one of those blessed artists who is constantly bombarded with ideas, fed by genuine feeling, a harsh and confusing childhood, and the need to express his wonder of the sprawling American landscape. A truly precious American composer. This stuff is shockingly beautiful, and I cherish his entire catalog.
My friend’s ex is on that cover! He plays in Sufjan’s backing band.
Oh, and I love his vocal work in this. He sounds bolder, more engaged on this track than in most of his other stuff, which is beautiful but… more detached, maybe? More subdued.
I could easily be on that cover, seeing how I’m all-smiles right now.
His vocals are amazing, much more confident and unrestrained, just great.
Here’s a good album review http://www.ology.com/music/album-review-all-delighted-people-sufjan-stevens
also where i found out about the new EP. I’m excited to actually get it in person!
I love that no one here is hating on this
I guess it’s different to the standard releases that are discussed on this forum. Often, people will react negatively to a proponent of a genre or movement, perhaps because that genre or movement has been created to describe the band (uh, witch-house?) or a collection of bands, in which case the negative reaction is in part provoked by the way the release is portrayed, the “scene” it came from, the hype surrounding it, etc., as much as people may be responding to the music itself.
I think that could be seen in regards to Sufjan around the time of the “50 states” project, when there was a reaction / backlash against him once the project was revealed to be, in some senses, a gimmick. What I think people react badly to is hype and bluster surrounding bands and releases, where they are told something is innovative, worthy or, worst, “cool”. A lot of the “hating” that goes on seems to focus on these elements of the music media, but gets transferred to the artist and the music in question, rather than the total judgement on the artist riding on the quality of the music that they produce. I don’t think this situation will or should change; after all, being an artist is as much about cultivating an image as writing excellent music, and it always has been.
But to get back on point, a release like this, an unassuming EP with no fanfare and solid, consistently high-quality music, is not likely to rankle with anyone, because they aren’t being in any way deceived. Even if Sufjan did attract some flak for the “50 states” idea and its subsequent demise, there has always been a level of honesty to his work, and the straightforward way in which he chooses to present it, which gives him great dignity as an artist.
Excellent commentary, I agree 100%.
This confirms my theory that Sufjan Stevens is a side-project of the currently living Simon & Garfunkel, or the reincarnation of the secretly deceased Paul and Art.
don’t get the big deal. these songs are sort of boring.
shoot, forgot to change my name to armond white before i made that comment.