Music Review - Sufjan Stevens “Songs For Christmas”
GRADE: A
I have been a fan of Sufjan Stevens for over a year now. In that time he has released his early collections of work “Michigan” and “Seven Swans”. Both of these came out due to the enormous success of his last album “Illinois”. You might know his hit “Chicago” off of that c.d., which is also on the “Little Miss Sunshine” soundtrack. “Illinois” and “Michigan” are a part of a project Stevens is doing where he will release a c.d. for each state. This is pretty ingenious and brave for a musician these days.
I think “Illinois” is one of the best c.d.’s of the past 20 years. It is eclectic and broad in its scope, there really has never been a collection of tunes ever recorded like it before. It is one of the c.d.’s I push on people who are looking for new, exciting artists to listen to. “Chicago” off of “Illinois” is a great pop song, and shows he can do mainstream music.
I have always been a cheesy guy, so Christmas music and traditions are right up there with some of my favorite things. This collection of new treats like; “It’s Christmas! Let’s Be Glad!”, “That Was The Worst Christmas Ever!” and holiday favorites; “Silent Night”, “Oh Holy Night” and “Joy To The World” are an awesome treat for any holiday music enthusiast.
Sufjan Stevens has the voice of an angel, he truly knows how to craft a song. (And he is not hard to look at, he is pretty hot!). And here on this c.d. he is given a wealth of familiar material to work with, yet it all sounds brand new and refreshing. I enjoy the bulk of material in this collection of songs. It is nice to put one c.d. in for a bit of holiday mood music, and to hear such a fun, eclectic sound with a running time of almost 2 hours.
I am glad that Stevens decided to put this c.d. out. We get the impression that there are big, special, unique things to come from this artist in the future. His vocal choices and instrumentation are flawless. Sufjan plays many instruments on this album; the piano, the banjo, the guitar and organ to name a few. His deep Christian roots are prominently on display with this music selection of course, but I don’t mind. This c.d. reminds me of a cozy, safe, warm time around the holidays when I was young. A time when Santa Claus was still real and my imagination took off to the classic Christmas songs we all know so well. This c.d. is a must for holiday music fans!
December 13th, 2006 at 5:08 pm
Even better is the 5 disc box set (tee hee). This set, be it 2 CDs or 5, is absolutely yummy. His rendition of ‘O come, O come Emmanual’ is beautiful. Be prepared to be wisked away into a shimmery, fantasy land.