Musical Musings

A friend and I were planning to watch Sufjan Stevens at the 9:30 Club this upcoming Tuesday. Those plans were nixed when my friend discovered the show was sold out. Sufjan, apparently, as become a superstar. Of course, he's not a superstar, and yet, he is. While the average music listener will not know him from the next person, because he's not nearly as pop as, oh, Ricky Martin, or JLo, or some other modern equivalent, he is starting to become very popular among those listening to indie music, such as college radio stations.

What's peculiar is that his music is best described as folk music, even though this isn't generally the kind of music that indie types like, who may favor the Brit sounds of Radiohead and their imitators, or punk bands, or certain kinds of rap and techno. Even more unusual is that Sufjan has released two albums with religious references: Seven Swans and A Sun Came.

The second title shows the kind of mind at work, as it can be interpreted several ways. A Sun Came doesn't make so much sense as A Son Came, in that respect, the son of God. And yet, people also worshipped the sun, and so there is a tie to a more primitive (though perhaps no less valid) kind of worship, and then there is the notion of a sunrise as the start of a new day, a kind of rebirth (again, tying back to Christian imagery). And finally, there's the mischevious interpretation, of the word "came". One would imagine all those meanings flitted through Sufjan's mind, and thus, there's a kind of wee bit too precious sense of the title.

It turns out Sufjan's background is somewhat more complicated. Sufjan isn't, say, Rufus Wainwright, whose father (and mother, I think) was a folk musician. There's no indication that folk music is where Sufjan would head to, and in fact, he had been in a rock band. His album Enjoy Your Rabbit is filled with experimental songs on synthesizers, and sounds like nothing else Sufjan has written, but goes to show the extent of music he's interested in.

Sufjan comes across as both earnest and elusive in his interviews. At times, he seems shy and reserved. You never hear him too enthusiastic when he talks. He sounds a little out of it, although he tells amusing stories, such as the one that was inspired by an ex-girlfriend whose clothing tastes were less than inspired, except possibly in its 80s awfulness. He learned the lesson of telling a girl she looks pretty instead of being truthful. (Which, to be fair, is an awful lesson and goes to show how often women place their self-worth on how they look, rather than who they are).

I saw some photos from a recent tour where he was promoting Bring on the Illinoise, his second 50-state album about the state of Illinois. He stages a pep rally, which cheerleaders, pom-pons, and the like. It's difficult to say whether he's paying homage to small-town living, or whether he's making fun of it. At times, he comes across like a red state guy, with flags-a-wavin. At other times, it seems like he's not entirely serious, treating the whole thing like a Halloween party (dress up and have fun, but not really believe that pep rallies were, you know, a good thing).

I'm not sure Sufjan fans are nearly as cynical as I am about him, even though despite this outlook, I find him fascinating, like there's something stirring in his brain that he finds amusing, and he goes and does this or that. I've seen some criticism that says he's pretentious, though pretension is in the eye of the beholder. It's all about criticizing folks who think big. Did Sufjan think big so he could get attention? I'm sure that's part of it.

I'd guess that part of Sufjan thinks that this whole 50-state thing is a bit of a lark. Just calculating how long it would take him to complete the songs, and whether he could produce 50 good albums is almost laughable. And yet, Sufjan is extremely prolific, throwing away many songs that never see light of day. He could probably release five so-so albums right now. And yet, he must realize that if he makes significant progress, it will be one of those huge works that people will talk about forever.

And that creates a dilemma. How egotistical is Sufjan? Most of us are taught to be modest (although, some, like boxers, are taught otherwise). Listening to interviews, he does come across as being modest, and yet, it contrasts with this project. I think Sufjan wrestles with this a lot. On the one hand, fame and the money that comes with it will allow him to pursue whatever artistic endeavor he wants, and that in itself is one reason to forge on ahead, at least, in the near term. On the other, he must occasionally think this is folly, that he's told people he wants to do this project because people will write about it.

I can't say I know the truth, since I just glean what I can from online interviews. Certainly, he hasn't minded the publicity, as he gives interviews. Still, like most interviews, you probably aren't seeing the "real" Sufjan. In one song, he says he's "made a lot of mistakes", which I suspect he feels he has, and yet, I wonder, what were those mistakes? What kind of crisis of doubt did he come across, and is this just another one of those things anguished artists say because it makes them all dark and introspective.

Despite the negativity, I really like a lot of Sufjan's songs. If this project seems like the act of some egomaniac, he certainly doesn't sound like one, except possibly in the elaborate titles of some songs. The music is spare, and yet quite listenable.

From searching for information about Sufjan (whose life, pre fame, seems to be completely undocumented by the web), I discovered an NPR segment about the ivory-billed woodpecker. I also discovered that NPR does a "best of" music, each year. People think of NPR as some elitist kind of radio station, that it seems hard to believe that they would be arbiters of good taste in indie music, and yet, if you want to here some good stuff, you could do worse than head to NPR to get some music suggestions.

For example, I just heard about Jorane. Her album cover looks like female Wolverine. Her French-Canadian background makes me think Celine Dion, and yet, she plays the cello and sings along, and Celine Dion, it is not. Have a listen
here. (You have to visit the link, and scroll down about half way). Also listen to Doug Hoekstra, who also has a kind of country-folk background, and yet his song Diminishing Returns doesn't sound like what you'd call conventional country-folk, from its economic-inspired title, to its Doors like organ sound, to its somewhat hokey, yet story-like lyrics, it's intriguing stuff.

The series All Song Considered is a good way to expose yourself to all sorts of music. To me, this is the equivalent of watching independent films a la Jim Jarmusch, except music is so much broader in its appeal than movies. For example, there are those into the hip-hop musical scene, who'd never listen to, say, Sufjan. And yet, indie music fans seem perfectly willing to embrace music from everywhere, provided it's not too obviously pop, and aimed at the teeny bopper scene.

I'm now listening to Sigur Ros, from their performance at the Strathmore Center in North Bethesda. Alas, they were performing on the day our company had a picnic (Sept 11!), so I completely missed that, not realizing they were even in the area that day.

Someone remind me not to make too many ponderings at 3 AM. I'll have to rely on listening to Sufjan on CD rather than live. Ah well.