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Stevens set to assume place in 'American Songbook'
01/18/2006 4:17 AM, Reuters
One doesn't normally expect
to find indie singer-songwriters in the rarefied confines of
Lincoln Center, but the "American Songbook" series made a wise
choice in its selection of Sufjan Stevens.
This singer-songwriter, whose album "Illinois" was one of
last year's most acclaimed releases, is clearly headed for the
pop heights.
Lincoln Center's eclectically programmed series --
including everything from bluegrass (Rhonda Vincent) to opera
(Deborah Voigt) to jazz (Andy Bey) to pop (Fountains of Wayne)
-- is being held in the stunning Allen Room. The setting, with
its glass wall exposing a dramatic view of the New York
skyline, adds natural drama to the music.
Not that it was needed in this case. Stevens, a shy-seeming
but quietly charismatic frontman, creates literate,
sophisticated pop that bears comparisons to Brian Wilson and
Beck. Melodically gorgeous and lyrically sophisticated, his
songs, which often deal with spiritual themes, are dreamily
transporting while never succumbing to torpor.
Singing in a hushed, breathy vocal style and alternating
among guitar, banjo and piano, Stevens led a 17-piece (!) band
that included violins, violas, cellos, glockenspiels and a
three-piece horn section. The complex arrangements gave even
the quietest songs a musical immediacy, and the delicate
harmonies supplied by a trio of female musician-singers added
ethereal beauty to the proceedings.
Such songs as "Jacksonville" and "Chicago," both taken from
Stevens' concept album centered on Illinois (he has ambitious
plans to take on each of the 50 states individually), received
stirring treatments in complex yet never fussy arrangements. In
the solo acoustic encore "Romulus," the singer demonstrated
that his songs are capable of making a strong impact with the
simplest of presentations.
The set lasted little more than an hour, but it displayed a
breadth of musical imagination that belied its brevity.
Reuters/Hollywood Reporter
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