The most (re)inventive album of the year. To summarize: over the last decade, Sufjan has (1) recorded his eclectic debut (A Sun Came), (2) composed an electronic album devoted to the animals of the Chinese Zodiac (Year of the Rabbit), (3) regenerated the immaculate beauty of his home state (Michigan), (4) recorded a quiet folk album of dialogic devotion (Seven Swans), (5) orchestrated the greatest American album of the last ten years (Illinois), (6) released the magical detritus from the Illinois sessions (The Avalanche), (7) shared several years of private Christmas recordings (Songs for Christmas), (8) honored the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway in a symphonic and cinematic tribute (The BQE), and (9) collaborated with countless artists and musical friends.
Despite his substantial output, Sufjan did not release a proper album for more than five years. We waited and worried. He surfaced last year and said he had lost faith in the album, even faith in the song. He was obviously wrestling with the weight of impressive achievements and enormous expectations. The D Man pleaded with him to remain, to reconsider, to recuperate and reinvent, if necessary. We needed the album, we needed the song. Especially from him.
Enter 2010. Sufjan released the lengthy All Delighted EP, and right on its heels, the fascinating album Age of Adz. While the All Delighted EP consisted of rococo pleasures consistent with Sufjan's previous efforts, Age of Adz was a departure in many ways, certainly from the soaring symphonic folk of the much-beloved Illinois. Age of Adz was an intergalactic exploration of the Self, an electronic and orchestral attempt to find a heartbeat again. And, gratefully, it did. The album succeeded on cosmic levels, and it instantly became another iteration of Sufjan's creative and cognitive abilities.
Age of Adz, in Sufjan's words, is "really obsessed with sensation and has a hysterical melodrama to it." This is readily apparent when listening to the record (easily the best headphone experience of the year), and especially after seeing the new songs performed live. The D Man previously shared his feelings from that indelible concert, and now offers up the Sufjan live experience as the ultimate expression of the album.
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