Sufjan Stevens – Carrie & Lowell review

American based indie-folk singer is back with his 7^th studio record, Carrie & Lowell. After a five year break from writing, Stevens has returned with what could be his best album to date. He has returned to his folk roots for this album which is comprised of his signature style of guitar playing, layered with his simple yet elegant vocal harmonies to accompany the instrumentals. The album has an overwhelming feeling of almost being at an orchestra with the amount of unique sounds throughout.
Named after his mother and step-father, Sufjan tackles feelings he has not opened up about in the past which puts the album on a personal level with the listener. A major theme of this album is a focus on Carrie, Sufjan’s mother, who suffered from bipolar and schizophrenia while also having a strong drug addiction. He goes into detail about feelings of abandonment and distance to his estranged mother who passed away in 2012, though they had lost contact long before.
Should Have Known Better really gets this album going, rolling off the mood setter of Death with Dignity. It starts with a soft, uplifting guitar followed by an almost whispered vocal style which has layered with it strings and a haunting hum. Throughout the song there are points of Lofi synth used to embody Sufjan’s feelings of letting go of his mother-son relationship. In the track Eugene Sufjan talks about his great love for his stepfather, Eugene Lowell, who thanks and is grateful for what he did for a young Stevens.
This is followed by Fourth of July which looks at a conversation, whether real or fictional, that he had with his Carrie as she was on her deathbed. The two have a contrast on one another. At this point we are going deep into the relationship Sufjan had with both his mother and his stepfather. These feelings are continued in the later track Carrie & Lowell which can be seen from a child’s perspective, presumably his own, which looks at the cracks shown in the relationship. The main theme of this track is his mother leaving, “Thorazine’s friend”, due to her drug addiction/abuse. Carrie & Lowell is as a whole is a beautiful creation by Sufjan and easily will be one of the saddest yet relieving releases of the year. This is definitely his best release to date. Below is Should Have Known Better, written by Sufjan Stevens
By Donovan McComb-Gray