The talented man who performs chamber pop/folk music gets latest album leaked a month before official release date & he's gonna be really pissed off.
I'm just gonna joke a bit here. Plus I have a reason to gloat. Thanks for this excellent album, Sufee. I've initiated my pre-order already...can't wait!
Sufjan Stevens should write songs about the states of my country. I wouldn't know what he'd conjure up but if he gets his research work done just right, I'm pretty sure it will be about the legendary 'orang minyak', grandfathers who rape their young nieces in villages, backpackers that opt to crossover to hopefully mine-friendly Cambodia instead of Penang to renew their social visas, the notorious Kalimuthu bandit, the almost non-existent freedom of press, polygamy in Muslim marriage, and for the sake of humour - the tongue-lashings of current Prime Minister vs. ex-Prime Minister.
Someone as talented as Sufjan will most likely end up with say...40 songs? 'Come On I Feel Malaise!' would then be divided into two parts, like a Smashing Pumpkins double-album, minus the budget. Sufjan would definitely need to see if his first release of 21 odd songs gather/generate enough publicity on various hipster sites like Pitchforkmedia and Stereogum. If all goes tremendously well, it makes it even more interesting. One wonders...what leftovers does Sufjan's great mind have in his sleeve that would make an appearance on a small 'outtakes and b-sides' project? Sure, not all songs would be celebrated opuses but the mere fact that someone is talented enough to write a decent pop/folk song about the history of my country will surely get a thumbs up in my book.
Ok, enough crocking around. 'The Avalanche' is made up of 21 songs, clocking in at roughly 1 hour and 16 minutes. All kick ass. All talked about in the blogosphere in the past 2 months.
Tracklisting:
01. The Avalanche
02. Dear Mr Supercomputer
03. Adlai Stevenson
04. The Vivian Girls Are Visited In the Night by Saint Dargarius and his Squadron of Benevolent Butterflies
05. Chicago (acoustic version)
06. The Henney Buggy Band
07. Saul Bellow
08. Carlyle Lake
09. Springfield, or Bobby Got a Shadfly Caught in his Hair
10. The Mistress Witch from McClure (or, The Mind That Knows Itself)
11. Kaskaskia River
12. Chicago (adult contemporary easy listening version)
13. Inaugural Pop Music for Jane Margaret Byrne
14. No Man's Land
15. The Palm Sunday Tornado Hits Crystal Lake
16. The Pick-up
17. The Perpetual Self, or "What Would Saul Alinsky Do?"
18. For Clyde Tombaugh
19. Chicago (Multiple Personality Disorder version)
20. Pittsfield
21. The Undivided Self (for Eppie and Popo)
I shan't write much because of that...I know how irritating it is to read one too many reviews of an album that's hardly even made it into Insound.com warehouses yet. Although, one would agree that the excitement of a Sufjan Stevens 'leaked track' is always a no-brainer in any indie music fan's mouseclick. So, for a limited time only, download the different versions of 'Chicago' and 2 bonus tracks, presented on 'The Avalanche: Outtakes and Extras From The Illinois Album' right here.
Sufjan Stevens - Chicago (Adult Contemporary Easy Listening Version)
Sufjan Stevens - Chicago (Multiple Personality Disorder Version)
Sufjan Stevens - Chicago (Acoustic Version)
BONUS: Sufjan Stevens - No Man's Land | Adlai Stevenson
(*) definitely different than ones floating previously around the Net.
