It's a very long album and, as a result, it's rather overwhelming for the first couple of listens. On the flip side, you can listen to it many times and half of the songs still seem new. It really does grow on you. There are some fantastic songs on here but the most rewarding experience comes from listening to the entire thing because it flows so well as an album. Some of the musical arrangement is quite bizarre (Nick Gross said it sounds like music from a musical - which I think is an accurate description) but it quickly becomes normal and you have to take a step back to realise how weird the album actually is. The highlights for me are 'John Wayne Gacy Jnr.", an almost uncomfortably sad song about the serial killer, and 'The Predatory Wasp of the Palisades Is Out To Get Us!', which I think summarises the genius of the album, and is almost a mini-album in itself. But these songs really sound better if you hear them within the context of the whole CD. Another point of note: Sufjan Stevens is a Christian and you can hear traces of his faith in his lyrics but he's not some sort of Michael W Smith type. This is 'Christian music' that won't make you cringe.
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1 comment:
I've been wanting to buy this for ages.
Please engift me.
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