From the Heart? Does It Matter?
A friend asked the other day whether or not I planned on writing an album review for Sufjan Stevens’ Illinois outtakes project The Avalanche. No, I don’t, but the reason why is somewhat complicated and forgive me while I ramble for a bit, exploring.
I love Sufjan’s music and in fact, Seven Swans is one of my favorite albums of the past few years. With Michigan, Seven Swans and Illinois, Stevens has topped “Best of” lists, my own included, since 2003. Whatever his personal theological convictions, he along with Daniel Smith have raised the banner for “indie rock Christians” to a new level, one that does not lower its standards the way David Bazan and others might. Stevens regularly appears on compilation albums, on blogs, in print, he’s been featured on NPR, and maybe that’s part of my problem: he’s become ubiquitous. He’s simply saturated the market.
The problem for me is that it no longer matters how good his music is, it’s reached saturation point and I’ve lost interest. I’m not defending myself, I’m not saying this is rational, I recognize that I tend to towards musical snobbery and elitism, but part of me is simply “Sufjaned” out. It’s all so good that it’s almost become cliché. What’s interesting is that there seems to be a growing “backlash” against the “Sufjan can do no wrong” wave that’s been sweeping through the online music community.
Stephen Thomas Erlewine has written an interesting piece for the online All Music Guide. Erlewine’s piece is titled “A Case Against Sufjan Stevens” and as the blurb notes, the author argues that: “Sufjan’s baroque folk-pop no longer seems charming or engaging.” Erlewine complains that Sufjan has become an “an indie cause célèbre” and that there is a “there is a delicate artifice” to Stevens’ music. It was this last comment that has been resonating with me as I’ve thought about my recent reactions.
Pitchfork recently expressed the same sentiments in their review of The Avalanche, quoting Ryan Irvine of Goodhodgkins.com as saying that Sufjan’s recent albums are nothing more than a “”cold and calculated research project.” Pitchfork laments aloud that Sufjan will “never come to our houses and weep on our shoulders– but he’ll write songs about coming to our houses and weeping on our shoulders.” However, Pitchfork tries to defend Stevens’ “artifice” by saying that “great music comes from the head more than the heart.” I disagree and I’ve come to realize that this has been at the heart of much of my growing dis-interest with Stevens.
While certainly pretentious, Stevens has committed to produce an album for each of the 50 states. Michigan and Illinois mark the first two installments. While both have been critically acclaimed, I can’t help but meditate on the charge that they have been little more than “cold and calculated research projects.” I first began to entertain these notions myself when NPR commissioned Sufjan to write a song about a bird he knew nothing about. Stevens himself has admitted, particularly for the Illinois album to much study, particularly reading. While Michigan conveys more personal experience and thus emotion, Illinois lacks this depth and that’s where I’ve lost interest.
I can’t help but compare Sufjan’s music to the writing of Donald Miller and Andrée Seu (discussed here) because it’s precisely their “real” quality that immediately draws the reader in whereas Stevens often comes across as contrived (I realize that many will disagree here) and surface-level. While the music is beautiful, quirky yet accessible and memorable, the lyrics often come across as mere frosting rather than delivering anything of substance.
While these questions may themselves seem “surface level,” I think they are important for Christians to consider, particularly in the realm of artistic expression. We of all people ought to be the most genuine, precisely because we have the most to share (or at least we ought to). Though we should not be unstable, it should also be obvious that we cannot control our emotions, our work should overflow with passion and a sense of genuineness. I know some will disagree, but this is what makes John Piper’s so effective. No one will ever question the man’s passion and that is part of what makes him so engaging; he is overcome by the subject matter and it shows.
Stevens, Miller, Seu and Piper all present us with differing options at communication. While all may be acceptable, I wonder if some are more appropriate for Christians and does it matter that Stevens’ subject matter is not always “explicitly Christian?” Is it enough that Sufjan’s music is nearly always moving? Can we compare songwriters to page-writers adequately and do the same standards apply? Is what makes a good song the same as what makes a piece of good prose/poetry/fiction? Now I’ve raised more questions than I’m prepared or qualified to answer so I’ll stop and thank you for your patience (assuming you read this far).
If this was 1979 you would be advocating a “Bee Gee-Free Weekend” on the radio. Popularity has always been a double-edged sword, Sufjan’s case is no exception.
I find some of your questions at the end interesting, because I think that you have answered some of them yourself in posts of yore, and because Stevens was a “page-writer” prior to becoming a successful “song-writer” and I may be mistaken on this but I think he still considers himself to be the former more so than the later.
One theme that is missing in your current post is the issue of creativity. Without a doubt, Stevens will move further away from states that he has personal affection for, so maybe some passion will be lost, but will it still be creative? I think of his ability to write fiction and I hope it will sustain him for the remaining 48 although it is an enormous endeavor.
Stevens is ethereal, and that is his greatness. The genius is singing about extinct (maybe) birds with the same gravity as you would sing about your favorite jacket. Its like Seinfeld approaches cereal with the same intensity as he approaches people being deported. We love Stevens because he appears unattached, aloof. As for his ubiquitous media presence, its the curse of indie music. However, dont confuse the “market” of NPR with MTV or Clear Channel. Stevens is still a nobody, so hopefully that gives you permission to like him. Phish may have been on the cover of Rolling Stone (several times) but they remained indie, I think. By this I mean they remained uncontrolled by the industry and seemed to do music on their terms or, as they demonstrated, not at all.
Music snob.
Watch out, I hear the Dirty Three have crack the top 500! Oh, no!
Those calculated sell-outs are just contriving music to be popular!
Brent,
I hope your blog is brining in loads of money for you…because I personally don’t know how you do it….always great content…you must get to bed late.
rhett
Money? You make money on your blog? I am up late. Thanks Rhett, I appreciate it very much.
Eldon calling me a music snob, that’s rich. That’s a good one that is.
Interesting topic. I’m curious to know what kind of connection was forged at the beginning of your experience with Sufjan. Did it feel like temporary fascination at the time or a deep connection?
Your post makes me ask myself whom I would put in the “saturation-proof” category; Whom do I love in thick and thin; as an indie or as a multiplatinum artist?
(The Great Carnac predicts that many are thinking of U2 right now…ha!)
I’ve come to the conclusion that there are a myriad of artists who are worthy of my temporary attention, enjoyment, and study, but very few that I can unequivocably declare to be part of my musical DNA.
That’s why I’ve subscribed to an unlimited music download service, though those files are musical timebombs that expire as soon as I quit paying. I am perfectly happy in this arrangement because I am now free to be a music listener/explorer rather than a music collector.
Plus I get to flatter myself for catching the next Sufjan with Brent long before anyone else does. ;o)
I think my biggest problem with Sufjan’s music (which I own all of his stuff) is that the more I’ve listened to it over time, the more I’ve picked up on predictable patterns of his music, and the sincerity of his lyrics and songwriting has become less personal over time. Consequently, I’ve loved all of his music when I first purchased it, but over time I’ve become less impressed with its overall effect and staying power.
The Avalanche is a perfect example to me. Can’t really fault the production, but listening to it, it doesn’t seem musically creative at all. The Avalanche’s basic chord structure seems and sounds like Michigan’s For the Widows, which was actually the same chord progression as Coldplay’s The Scientist.
The Avalanche is outtakes and extras from the Illinois(e) album, but he’s admitted that he did extensive work on most if not all of the tracks, and yet there is nothing that I find musically creative about it. I also find his lyrics to be less and less sincere the more recent the album. They may sound moving to me, but I doubt that they move Sufjan, expect in how pleased he is that he wrote them.
I also find his gimmick stage presence to take away from the potential to have sincerity in his music. If his design and goal for much of his music is to be moving and stirring, then the cheerleader gimmicks takes away from that ultimate end result.
It’d odd that such baroque and lush music could come across as cold, calculated, and insincere, but that’s what I’ve taken away from his music. I can listen to it now and appreciate it for his academic beauty without believing the conviction behind the words. If he indeed continues with the 50 States project, I only see this problem increasing.
In this day and age of music, Stevens is a sigh of relief, I believe. I have strayed from listening to his albums as much lately and I can admit he uses a lot of the same motifs repeatedly, but give the guy a break. After all, he isn’t Mozart (and wasn’t Mozart belittled in his day as well?) You can’t please them all, and you can’t always put out a magnificent record. He has been overhyped because of the state of the music industry. Now he comes out with something “not-so-perfect” and the backlash flies. Everything gets boring after a while. (even sex) Take a break from him… go listen to Jose Gonzalez, go do step aerobics, and come back with an unattached state of mind.