Customer Reviews

Seven Swans

5 star:		(44)
4 star:		(14)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I caught Sufjan and the noisemakers on Austin City Limits the other night (morning really). I was pleasantly surprised that one of the four songs feautured was "The Dress Looks Nice On You." it is one of the songs that I truly treasure from this disc.

Seven Swans is not Illinoise. Where Illinoise is all about grandeur, beauty and story-telling, Seven Swans is about reflection, mystery and transformation. I find this to be some of Mr. Stevens's most compelling music.

"All The Trees Of The Fields Will Clap Their Hands" is my favorite song here by far. And that is saying something. There is not a weak song on this disc.

This is wonderful music that means something. You can't put a price on that.

I recommend this CD.

And therefore, I love Sufjan Stevens' music. More specifically, I love this album. It has a plethora of banjo. Sufjan was the first artist I've heard who wasn't inclined to keep his banjo playing on a modest level. On "Seven Swans" you could even consider the banjo his primary instrument-almost.

So, I guess you could consider it ironic that my favorite track is "A Good Man Is Hard To Find", because it is completely absent of any banjos. But nevertheless, it has my favorite melody, albeit on an acoustic guitar. Half way through the song, it really picks up, adding organs, a chorus of female vocals and a sporadic beat. It's almost my favorite Sufjan song, but that still remains with "For The Widows In Paradise..." from his "Michigan" album. My next favorite track is "All The Trees Of The Field Will Clap Their Hands." Now this song features no guitar, only Sufjan's banjo. And like most of my favorite songs on this album, this song progresses. Starting with just a banjo and Sufjan's vocals, a little further in a piano melody and female vocals are added, eventually adding a beat. The song just becomes more and more melodic (and hypnotic!) as it progresses. Next I will come to "In The Devil's Territory". This is the most harmonically layered track on the album. Sufjan implements just about every instrument he has ever used in his music, sans his really early work with wood flutes and I guess any wind instruments in general. But it has banjos, guitars, pianos, bass, an instrument I really can't identify acting as a kind of beat, and (unfortunately).... a saw. I cringe every time I hear the saw; I feel it was an unnessesary addition. Some how though, I can usually ignore it. Finally, I will end, like the album does, with "The Transfiguration". This is another song sporting mainly a banjo, but again progressing. As it progresses, horns, drums, xylophones, and another instrument I am having trouble identifying (clarinet?) are implemented. This song leads me to a discussion always addressed when reviewing Sufjan's work: his religious content.

Now, while I am agnostic, and more importantly: anti-organized religion, I can still find the sense to appreciate this music. It is very good, and can be respectable no matter your affiliations and/or beliefs. Sometimes Sufjan can lay his beliefs on pretty heavily, but in no way a preachy manner. It's mostly done through thick story telling, which I can openly dismiss as him and I simply not relating and just enjoying the melody. Other times, he is expressing his love, which he actually presents in a broad manner that you could relate to other things such as a love one. Hell, maybe that's even what he is doing; I'm not too good at analyzing artists' messages.

Overall, this is an amazing, beautiful album, a very worthy purchase. Apart from the aforementioned tracks, other stand outs include: "To Be Alone With You", "Size Too Small", "The Dress Looks Nice On You".

Wow - I was really happy upon listening to this album - I of course had high expectations after "Michigan" - and though I would not say this album surpasses that one, it is certainly quite good - very good indeed. The instrumentation is lovely - acoustic almost exclusively with banjo and guitar - the songs are great and Sufjan's singing is very hushed and sweet - like he's whispering us secrets - reminding sometimes of Iron and Wine...highlights include "the dress looks nice on you", "to be alone with you" - which a had hoped would be a Dylan cover, but it wasn't - but it was a very well, maybe superior song with the same title...also, "he woke me up again" is excellent. Highly recomended - as well as "Michigan". "A sun came" is good too, but Sufjan has certainly honed his skills and become more consistently good since that debut...sorry for rambling, enjoy!

From the banjo on the first song to the lyrics "Son of Man! Son of God!", Sufjan pulls together an album worth remembering. Highlights include: All The Trees..., To Be Alone With You, Abraham, We Won't Need Legs to Stand, and Seven Swans. At times poetic, at times prophetic, and at times just lush and beautiful, Seven Swans will grow on you more and more with every listen. With its gorgeous overt Christian lyrics and folksy songs, Sufjan has proven that he is an upcoming singer/songwriter that means business. In an industry flooded with such perverse imagery, Sufjan gives us the word of God and the observations of an imperfect man who recognizes God's perfect power. Whatever the subject, Sufjan can tackle it head on without compromising who he is. For fans of Iron and Wine, this CD is a must have.

Sufjan Stevens has a way of making a song sound like a prayer. His voice is almost a whisper, not forced, at ease, filled with a grace that is so touching, you want to pray with him. In this age of conservative religious righteousness, it's refreshing to listen to a talent who can share his tender thoughts about God without judging, without jingoism and without preaching. This is a spirituality that is personal and real. Stevens also creates an angelic sound out of all things - a banjo - that plucks and dances with a purity so stark, you'd think the angels traded in their harp and made that quirky country guitar the offical instrument of heaven. From the first track, the majestically and achingly beautiful, "All the Trees of the Field Will Clap Their Hands" - until the last "Transfiguration", Sufyan's deep contemplation of God, his love of his faith, and even the temptations of the devil come into fold. It's a spiritual and intellectual voice that set's Sufyan apart from most artists out there. The songs are so gorgeous in melody and texture, that I tend to wake up in the middle of the night hearing them in my head. Although "Seven Swans" may not be as punchy, and epic as his last album "Greetings from Michigan...", it shows him to be a dynamic indie artist taking new directions, down a path that God has given him. We're lucky to walk down that path with him. This is just a beauty of an album.

Back in the late 1920's and early 1930's, the Great Depression dumped millions of assembly line and factory workers into the streets and roads of America overnight. Caught off guard, thousands of jobless would line up by day for the soup kitchens. At night they would collect under bridges, in alleys, and along countryside camp grounds warming themselves by drum barrel fires. Their clothing becoming tattered and worn, gloves possibly fingerless. Penniless and the possibility of work remote, chance and risk replaced logic and good sense as escape was welcome in any form. Bottles of homebrew were passed around and shared equally. Using available sources, some were made from unknown and illegal distillations, all were potent, some of them lethal. With nowhere to go these homeless were often marked for life, blind, maimed, and crippled by such brews and concoctions. This bleak world of despair was documented historically in black and white but existed mostly in varying shades of gray - depressing, demeaning, and despondent. Any signs of recovery lived on a far and distant horizon, unseen, unheard.

Often an influx of color and surprise would arrive in the form of troubadours wandering into these encampments accompanied only by a banjo, a guitar, and a possible canine companion. In his own way each had formed his own peculiar combination of whimsy and song based in large on stories long ago adapted from the good book. Since most of the downtrodden were illiterate and starved by situation for spiritual comforts, they welcomed these wayward intrusions. These so-called folk balladeers had honed their craft, never relying on snake oil, fire and brimstone, nor quoting from scripture; through song and story they provided rays of hope, a future vision of light from the darkness - parables about the simple life, simple ways that led to lessons learned and a leap of faith into the unknown. They were not preachers or ministers, but good natured artist, adapted to the game of survival, sharing their thoughts and feelings about this or that. If something struck a chord it would translate as a message and gospel from the heart - musical soul food. Their company would lighten burdens and reacquaint humor with joy for even the briefest of long overdue moments.

Jump forward some 70 years later and much has changed, some not. The roads have been paved, electric lines run, fast foods mask as diet, and technology is rapidly advanced as both home entertainment and weapons of rule. Moving at speeds unfathomed as a society and civilization, family focus in sync with environment has become disengaged, desensitized, disenchanted, and disillusioned. Natural born instincts and intuitions have dulled by the mere repetitions. Predictably, the value of capital still moves through the stock markets. Sacred attention paid to it's every flux, protecting against isolation and collapse, never again being possible.

Enter Sufjan Stevens, the modern day chronicler and poet of melancholy and lament. To translate fully and bridge the gap of time it was necessary this material sound very organic. A solo artist in the truest sense, he plays every instrument and writes every song on Seven Swans. With the able help of Daniel Smith and family on production and vocals, Sufjan turns out songs of remarkable wisdom and heritage on the spirit of man from long, long ago. The opening banjo riff on All the Trees of the Fields Will Clap Their Hands evokes an almost civil war ballad atmosphere. Ditto with The Dress Looks Nice on You bespeaking a simpler time when people took the time to express such niceties and languish on the passing of a day. These eloquent and harmonized voices, apparent on A Good Man is Hard to Find, Seven Swans, and The Transfiguration build as a choral crescendo, a Polyphonic Spree without the glad, revealing there are no secrets, no hidden messages. This is the good news, any news available to all.

As a testament of goodwill and intent, Sufjan proves confident and competent on subjects rooted in the biblical that are often hard to share or discuss. This natural ability too soothe and subtly suggest by song and lyric marks Sufjan for distinction. A true native son of the Americana, he has not sought commercial commerce of his product through compromise. Lauding the little labels, Asthmatic Kitty and Sounds Familyre have proved aptly representative and up to the task to date. No one could have predicted the critical acclaim and hunger that has followed his two most recent releases. His sojourn in relative obscurity is all about to end. His talent is too immense to ignore or deny. You should find a copy of Seven Swans (or the equally superb Michigan for that matter) and enjoy the demarcation where old worlds and new ones meet. These riddles have not been solved, but addressed and updated for modern man. No need for extremes, there is medicine for what ails and aches. Take this personal and poignant journey while mystery and discovery still thrive in abundance as companions, ageless and enduring.

There are few albums that have impacted me over the years on the spiritual, mental, and artistic levels like Seven Swans has impacted me. Frankly, this album overwhelms me. It is simple and deep at the same time. Sufjan Stevens has proven himself to be a consummate singer songwriter. This is an album of sparse guitars, banjos, stripped down drums, sprinkles of keys along with open spiritual songs. With Sufjan's Michigan gaining such notoriety, I find it brave that he released a set of songs that were so openly religious and so strikingly honest. At the same time, he is able to do what few artists have done in the past. He is able to express his religious ideals without making his music cliché or over-the-top. He blends his own whimsical, breathtaking style but with a more personal approach on "Swans".

"All the Trees of the Field Will Clap Their Hands" begins the album with slow-tempo banjo and Sufjan's endearing voice. There are beautiful, female BVG's laced throughout the song and hints of piano. Sufjan uses the BVG's to build the song and then adds stripped down drums towards the end. Although the layers of the song are subtle, they are progressively beautiful in their simplicity. Lyrically, this song really sets the listener up for the rest of the LP's content. He expresses his need for a relationship with God and all that entails. Sufjan softly sings, "And I am throwing all my thoughts away / And I'm destroying every bit I've made / And I am joining all my thought to You / And I'm preparing every part for You." "The Dress Looks Nice on You" is a mid-tempo acoustic song with some eastern flavor thrown in. "In the Devil's Territory" is an acoustic layered piece with a classical/eastern feel. Sufjan throws in keys in the bridge giving it an "out of this world" flavor, connecting the spiritual content with that of the music. Lyrically, "Devil's" mixes images of the second coming and those of the beast with the church's longing to see the Christ. Although these images could be used in a cliché sort of way, Sufjan somehow paints the images with beautiful, poetic brushes and really conveys a feeling of anticipation for His coming.

"To Be Alone with You" is probably my favorite track on the entire LP. Here, Michigan makes another appearance in his lyrics. For me, this song embodies the power of this disc and is a pivotal track on the record. There is no crescendo in the music and very little build in that respect. Rather, Sufjan builds the song solely through lyrics, and does so masterfully.



I'd swim across Lake Michigan
I'd sell my shoes
I'd give my body to back again
In the rest of the room

To be alone with you (x4)

You gave your body to the lonely
They took your clothes
You gave up a wife and family
You gave your ghost

To be alone with me (x3)
You went up on the tree.

I never known a man who loved me.


Sufjan is simple, yet poignant. He lets the music really express what he is saying in words. Sufjan not only uses simple relational concepts between him and God as content, but he also takes Bible stories and retells them through song, such as "Abraham" and "The Transfiguration". "Abraham" is only 2:33 minutes in length, yet Sufjan says just enough about Abraham and his willingness to obey God's command to sacrifice his son to be powerful. "The Transfiguration" basically tells the story of Jesus' transfiguration found in the Gospels. This is done over banjo, beautiful female BVG's, xylophone, and horns.

I honestly have nothing bad to say about this album. It is perfect, and I don't say this about just any album.

Sufjan Stevens is a banjo virtuoso. He plays that instrument with the precision and crispness of an electronic sequencer. Stevens' hypnotically rhythmic banjo playing is the first thing that stands out on "Seven Swans." Though the use of such instrumentation may initially seem like novelty, a close listen reveals that the banjo arrangements are essential to the songs' success. It is impossible to imagine songs like "Dress Looks Nice on You" and "In the Devil's Territory" without Stevens' intricately fluid passages. It is the banjo--together with electric and acoustic guitars, female backing vocals, and minimal drum and electric bass work--that infuses these songs with a rare level of textural depth. Stevens' melodies and vocals are solid but undistinguished. Combine them with the harmonic acrobatics that underpin them, however, and the result is something glorious--akin to an acoustic Four Tet with the added benefit of earnest vocals and completed song ideas. Stevens' lyrics range from cryptic to explicitly religious. Whatever one thinks of them, their sincerity cannot be questioned. The sum total is the best album of 2004 so far.

The ability of this guy to gracefully articulate a personal spirituality is on the level of Van Morrison and Leonard Cohen. Banjo and acoustic guitar take prominence here but they often get overshadowed by organ, synths or electric guitar through the course of a song so that what starts out as simple, minimalist 1970s voice & strumming may end in a rousing symphony, with many stages in between. Yet both lyrics and music remain accessible throughout. Fragile at times but never precious, the sound resonates on mystical and magical wavelengths.

Although many of the songs have intricate and complex arrangements, two distinct styles seem to characterize the album. The acoustic guitar type includes That Dress Looks Nice On You, the yearning To Be Alone With You, the somber Abraham, Size Too Small and A Good Man Is Hard To Find. They at least all commence with guitar before evolving into multilayered soundscapes and are generally of a slower tempo, often containing brooding vocals. One hears faint echoes of Nick Drake or even James Taylor - the introspective singer-songwriter archetype.

The Banjo-driven numbers exhibit a more ecstatic type of devotional expression, tending to be on the mid to uptempo side with addictive melodious and percussive textures. The mood varies sharply, from the exultant praise of All The Trees Of The Field through the eerie track In The Devil's Territory with its ominous synth patterns to the hopeful We Won't Need Legs To Stand with its atmospheric synth-scapes. Plus you get the comforting and reassuring He Woke Me Up Again, the intense Seven Swans with its eschatological imagery and the pure ecstatic joy of The Transfiguration.

The melancholy track Sister is in a category of its own: electric guitars with echo and twangs are joined by choral voices for a long instrumental intro on a gently lilting beat until the almost whispered male vocal arrives and the arrangement takes another turn. I was reminded of Michael Gira's first Angels Of Light album.

The absolute highlights are He Woke Me Up with its tender oneiric quality, stirring organ and haunting backing vocals not unlike the track Warm on Great Annihilator by Swans, the title track where the still, small voice of the Lord triggers a rousing choral exuberance, and the majestic Transfiguration.

I love Seven Swans much more than the admittedly brilliant Illinois. This is not rock music and hardly folk either, nor gospel at all. I would say it has a multifaceted devotional essence which expresses itself via a rich variety of styles whilst remaining perfectly cohesive. The effect is uplifting, inspiring and psychologically salubrious, like the Balm of Gilead.

At one of our power meetings at Free Williamsburg at the beginning of this year we were throwing around names of people who might be good people to interview or review. Sufjan Stevens came up. I had never heard of him let alone spell his name. It is detailed folk music. He is famous for the banjo work. Songs like "In The Devil's Territory" evokes the past and looks to the future. Sufjan worked with Daniel Smith of Danielson Famile to get this multi-layered sound. It's good that someone is obsessed with beauty in music. This record is strong and complex. It is not easy reading. The religious themes are an interesting shade. It is a vision of death and despair. It comes off sounding like something Badly Drawn Boy or Elliot Smith cooked up. Stevens may be the heir to Elliot Smith's legacy.