Pretentiousness is something into which you have to throw yourself. Give into entirely. Not pretentiousness as in the arch cynical theatrics of someone who has simply studied how the eccentric behave, but true commitment to an ostentatious display of self-belief.
And at Sufjan Stevens’ gig, we were treated to a soundtrack to the apocalypse, songs about the inner body and outer space, and a lesson on how sound is more important than language. During one of many such talks, Stevens explains how noise is the more potent form of communication, used by the screaming baby fresh from the womb, but how language becomes dominant as you grow up.
As you read this, it probably reads like cod-philosophical gubbins but like a psychedelic experience it all made sense at the time. And unlike the meanderings of an acid-fried mind, it all makes sense afterwards as well. Why? Because we saw theory become application.
Dressed in a pair of angel?s wings he opens with Seven Swans playing the acoustic parts of the original version before enormous controlled sound bursts forth from the players. Most of tonight?s ?performance is based around his Age of Adz album; a collection which many feared would be his Metal Machine Music (respected performer experiments with sound at the expense of what everybody loves about them), but it was closer to his Kid A (artist(s) simply interpret their vision with different sounds). With 11 people on stage painted in Day-Glo surrounded by 3-dimensional image, it's more akin to watching an orchestra in a planetarium than a band.
He wisely broke up the intensity of their interpretations of the long and complex album tracks with simple acoustic folk songs (including a sublime cover of REM?s The One I Love), like breaks on a road (space) trip. The album tracks are presented visually throughout; during Vesuvius, for instance, the band appeared to be consumed in a burning hell. Before they played Get Real Get Right, Sufjan told us all about Louisiana artist Royal Robertson. It's a fascinating story in its own right but the purpose is to provide some context for the themes of the album in general and the song specifically. Robertson?s work is then animated for the backdrop.
The main set, like the album, finishes with the 25 minute Impossible Soul. A 25 minute song? This idea would ordinarily fill us with horror, but it is essentially five songs, with changes in tempo, costumes and the stage-set itself.
Before the start of the night we had been desperately hoping he might at some point play something from his 2005 masterpiece Illinois. By the time the band came on de-costumed (thereby providing a deliberate separation from the main set) and played three songs from it, we were already satisfied, making it a welcome over- indulgence. The evening was one of most atmospheric, uplifting and engaging performances we have ever seen- a treat for fans, but, importantly, accessible if you are unfamiliar with, or undecided on him.
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