| · Former member of reverent and revered The Danielson Famile, his "new" release actually recorded four years ago, is only now seeing light of day.
Sufjan Stevens is often lumped in with Nick Drake wannabes, slowcore legends Low and pop craftsmen such as Mercury Rev. And there is some validity to all of these comparisons – Stevens creates hushed, intimate music that relies on precarious vocal harmonies, thoughtful arrangements and the all-too familiar themes of love and loss, life and death.
The Low comparison is especially apt owing to Stevens’ religious devotion – his publishing company is New Jeresuleum music, and references to God, apostles and the Lord punctuate the entire album. Stevens is not a preacher, however – he spins tales of fiery death and voices in his head rather than celebrating the creator and his pious followers. This is not traditional Christian rock, Christian folk or Christian anything. Rather, it is a man seeking beauty, redemption and meaning by creating music that is all of these things. His quiet-as-to-be-whispered reverence unfolds among songs that strive for power in subtlety anddepth through restraint. The combination is a beautiful, unnerving and thoroughly involving album, the rare type where songs appear to wrap around you or occupy space in the room. Above all else, Seven Swans is unapologetically romantic. This is music for lovers – those with faith, those with flesh and those who have lost and still seek.
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