Illinoise

Artist: Sufjan Stevens
Label: Rough Trade
Category: Music

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Format: Import
Media: Audio CD
Number Of Discs: 1
EAN: 5050159825028
ASIN: B0009MWAPW

Release Date: 2005-07-05

Illinoise

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Tracks:

Concerning the UFO Sighting Near Highland, Illinois
Black Hawk War, Or, How to Demolish an Entire Civilization and ...
Come on! Feel the Illinoise!: Pt. 1: The World's Columbian Exposition
John Wayne Gacy, Jr.
Jacksonville
Short Reprise for Mary Todd, Who Went Insane, But for Very Good ...
Decatur, Or, Round of Applause for Your Stepmother!
One Last "Whoo-Hoo!" for the Pullman
Chicago
Casimir Pulaski Day
To the Workers of the Rock River Valley Region, I Have an Idea ...
Man of Metropolis Steals Our Hearts
Prairie Fire That Wanders About
Conjunction of Drones Simulating the Way in Which Sufjan Stevens ...
Predatory Wasp of the Palisades Is out to Get Us!
They Are Night Zombies!! They Are Neighbors!! They Have Come Back from
Let's Hear That String Part Again, Because I Don't Think They Heard It
In This Temple as in the Hearts of Man for Whom He Saved the Earth
Seer's Tower
Tallest Man, The Broadest Shoulders: Pt. 1: The Great Frontier/Pt. ...
Riffs and Variations on a Single Note for Jelly Roll, Earl Hines, ...
Out of Egypt, Into the Great Laugh of Mankind, And I Shake the ...

Album Description

Subtitled Come On Feel The..., Sufjan Stevens & The Michigan Militia have moved to Illinois (dubbing themselves the Illinoisemakers) but this new album is the same Sufjan we know and love. Fingerpicked ballads of delicate twang, tasteful orchestration, and titles that are murder on the ID3 tags. While this album unmistakably owes its inspiration to the sound of Michigan, Sufjan has managed to take his orchestra-like folk template and expand on it, tapping into unexpected genres and bringing unexpected instruments like strings and woodwinds to the forefront, all while relating tales of the state's history as well as possibly fictional stories about its residents. To sweeten the deal, Sufjan's vocals have also improved some: he's managed to make his thin, meek vocal presence a little more noticeable, and while that doesn't stop him from using members of the quirky Danielson Famile as his own personal choir, it's nice to hear him sound more assured on some of this album's mellower moments. Rough Trade. 2005.

Customer Reviews:

Illinois: The 'S' is Silent.......2005-09-12

Leave it to soon-to-be folk legend Sufjan Stevens to proclaim that he will master an album about each and every state. Here, in Come on Feel the Illinoise, Sufjan takes his second small step in the project he has so aptly dubbed, "The 50 States". While his other state-based classic, Greetings from Michigan: The Great Lakes State may have set the standard for contemporary folk music, "Illinois" by far exceeds it.
One thing that makes this record so delectable is Sufjan's pure knowledge of everything he is singing about. Stevens uses pure knowledge and research of the areas he visits to write epic masterpieces. Some songs concern minor events in the state's history that have occurred 200 years ago, and others portray folk legends like the son of Jor-El, the man of steel, Superman. No matter what the track may concern, Sufjan makes it his priority to get the word out there on this great place, this state of Illinois.
Illinois contains 22 tracks of varying length, some as long as over seven minutes, and some as brief as six seconds. The only things that are possibly longer than some of his tracks are the titles of them. The second track's title makes Fiona Apple's album titles look abbreviated. In "The Black Hawk War, Or, How To Demolish An Entire Civilization And Still Feel Good About Yourself In The Morning, Or, We Apologize For The Inconvenience But You're Gonna Have To Leave Now, Or, 'I Have Fought The Big Knives And Will Continue To Fight..." Sufjan shows his versatility by reeling of a beautiful instrumental combining more instruments than one could count, most of which are played by Stevens himself.
But this album is no gimmick. The song titles are just a small part of the album's very concept. One of the better tracks on the album entitled "John Wayne Gacy, Jr.", features chilling lyrics about the infamous serial killer of the same name.

He dressed up like a clown for them
With his face paint white and red
And on his best behavior
In a dark room on the bed he kissed them all
He'd kill ten thousand people
With a sleight of his hand
Running far, running fast to the dead

This is one of Stevens' only songs to demonstrate this cathartic, almost painful tone. The song is as emotionally poignant as it is stellar.
Other standout tracks include "Decatur, Or, Round Of Applause For Your Stepmother," "Chicago," and "The Seer's Tower". Each song on this album displays a different tone and a different theme. Not following the basic concept album format, Stevens' does his part to create his own definition of "concept album". It was hard to find anything that really didn't stand out upon first listen. Everything is different, yet so unique. The shorter tracks serve more as segues between longer ballads than they do stand-alone songs. The longer titles are all instant hits; a bad one cannot be spotted in the bunch.
This album really can satisfy even the most inexperienced listener. Even if you aren't a fan of folk music, it will be hard not to fall in love with Illinois. And if you are a fan of Sufjan's, his music, or just the state of Illinois in itself, this album is a must have.

Music Album:

Music Album

Music Album

Music CD

Salamander Pie ~ Jay Leonhart

Still of Night ~ Bruce Forman

Interplay

Singing Singles ~ Various Artists

Crazy Rhythm ~ Dave Pell

Air Mail Music: China ~ Various Artists

Moon at Sunrise ~ Veronique Bizet & Eric Thielemans

Promenade Française ~ William Sheller

Rankyo ~ Yoko Nagayama

Luck of the Irish ~ The Clancy Brothers With Tommy Makem