new music
Sufjan Stevens - Greetings from Michigan & Illinois
Stevens has been described as a folk-rock act, but I prefer to think of his music more along the lines of Badly Drawn Boy and the like. Interesting composition, and easy on the ears. Michigan is the first in his series of albums about states. He intends to do all 50, but that seems deeply insane. Illinois is the second of the series and also very good.
Who would like it: Jeff and Joshua. Perhaps Jon Klein?
Lyrics Born - Later That Day
One half of Common collaborator with Blackalicious, Lyrics Born has great cadence and tone, while having interesting things to say as well. The production is good overall, though his faster-paced verses sometimes get muddied, and there is too much reliance on backup singers in my opinion. That being said, I like this album enough that I have to actively try to not overplay it.
Who would like it: I’m not sure which of you, if any, like rap, but if you do, this is a must listen.
July 20th, 2005 at 1:14 pm
Sufjan Stevens creeps me out. I’m not sure if it’s his name, or his look, or his religion, or his sound, but he seems to be like he has been genetically engineered to be an indie-pop star. However, I do really like his song “Flint (For the Unemployed and Underpaid)”, even if it’s a little bit of a bummer.