Recently struggling to sleep, I turned to Convocations – Sufjan Stevens’ 2021 49-track instrumental album, written in the wake of his father’s death. I was taken aback by this subtly inventive two-and-a-half hour, five-part song cycle. It came only one…
If you’re looking for someone to blame for the new album by Sufjan Stevens and Angelo De Augustine, A Beginner’s Mind, blame Bryce Dessner of The National. After all, it was his house in New York’s Catskills mountains where the two…
After years of sonic adventure and leftfield swerves, Sufjan Stevens’ 2015 career highpoint Carrie & Lowell saw the restless songwriter drop anchor in the wake of his mother’s death. It’s barely-there arrangements cradled Stevens’ bleak grief with remarkably life-affirming results.…
Matthew & the Atlas are ready to return with their fine new record Temple, which is due out on April 22 via Communion. Written in his home studio in Farnborough but recorded in East Nashville with electronic folk duo Foreign…
It’s 3pm, a couple of days after the glorious End Of The Road Festival 2015 and I’m online buying early bird tickets for EOTR 2016. I’m diligently clicking and refreshing waiting for the link to explode into life so I…
Sufjan Stevens’ latest record arrives half a decade on from his last, The Age of Adz, an unprecedented break for a man who once promised he would keep himself busy for a lifetime by recording an album about every US…
Sufjan Stevens has announced a new album ‘Carrie & Lowell’ and says the record will be a ‘return to his folk roots’. The album, which will be released on Asthmatic Kitty on March 30th, is named after Sufjan’s mum and…
When sister site of the Yellow Bird Project, analog.am approached us and asked us if we’d like to pick our favourite albums for an FFS-themed vinyl shelf, it was a foregone conclusion. There is nothing Team FFS likes more than…
This is freaky, folkers. Breakfast this morning was accompanied by the sweet sounds of Sufjan’s Illinois and thoughts of how much I’d love to see him live, and lo and behold a string of UK dates are announced. The UK…
In all the Christmas album hoopla, I’d almost forgotten to tell y’all a bout our Christmas radio show. I recorded it last week in sludgey Hackney with Bitter Fingers presenter and generally nice chap Mark Higgins. We delved into the…