Shifting effortlessly from entrancing accoustic banjo hymns to bombastic life-affirming-full-horn-section-anthems (usually within the same song), Sufjan Stevens makes amazing music, and that’s all there is to it. Last night Sufjan brought his entourage of violinists, tromboners, choir-girl-cheerleaders, christmas-bell ringers and musical saw wobblers to Vancouver for an incredible performance.
The atmosphere didn’t hurt: The show took place among the cathedral pillars and stained-glass windows of St. Andrew’s-Wesley United Church. His music swelled through the church pews with tangled majesty, and whether he was plucking on his banjo, or telling a childhood story about the monstrous half-bird Predatory Wasp that tried to eat him at summer camp, Sufjan kept the sold-out crowd completely captivated and delighted from start to finish.
Surprisingly, the highlight of the evening was a new song, Majesty Snowbird, which can be heard here, or seen here. These recordings aren’t from last night’s show, but they give a pretty good idea of what it was like.
Tags: Music
