The Ascension (Sufjan Stevens album) explained

The Ascension
Type:studio
Artist:Sufjan Stevens
Cover:Sufjan Stevens The Ascension Cover.png
Border:yes
Alt:An elaborate and colorful pattern like a stained glass window making a circle in the center and top of the image with the album title and artist name running along the side in white text on black bands
Length:80:30
Label:Asthmatic Kitty
Producer:Sufjan Stevens
Prev Title:Aporia
Prev Year:2020
Next Title:Convocations
Next Year:2021

The Ascension is the eighth studio album by American musician Sufjan Stevens. It was released through Asthmatic Kitty on September 25, 2020.[1] The record was influenced by a range of artists, particularly Ariana Grande and her 2018 song "Thank U, Next".[2]

Music and lyrics

NPR's Lindsay Zoladz describes The Ascension as "an 80-minute meditation that revisits nearly every one of the grand themes he has explored during his two-decade career: Love, death, faith, desire, place, country, apocalypse, resurrection."[3]

Release

The album's lead single, "America", was released on July 3, 2020.[4] A second single, "Video Game", was released on August 13 along with a music video choreographed by Jalaiah Harmon.[5] [6] A third single, "Sugar", and its music video were released on September 15.[7] [8]

Critical reception

The Ascension received positive reviews upon its release. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized score out of 100 to ratings from publications, the album received an average score of 80 based on 25 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Music critic Tom Hull gave it an A-minus and said "singer-songwriter" may be "too self-limiting" a designation for Stevens, who "is a pop composer of grand sweep and delicate bearing, an heir to Brian Wilson working on if anything a broader canvas. His is not a style I'm fond of, but half of these songs click for me, and the others seem to be lurking in the depths, awaiting their moment."[9] Pitchfork's Sam Sodomsky, however, was more tempered in his praise, noting: "But despite its allusions to pop music escapism, The Ascension is, by design, kind of a drag: a dark and emotionally distant mood piece whose lyrics rarely touch on the specifics necessary to anchor the music, and whose music is rarely exciting enough to elevate his words."[10]

Year-end lists

Publications' year-end list appearances for The Ascension!Critic/Publication!List!Rank!Ref
Consequence of SoundTop 50 Albums of 202019[11]
Double JTop 50 Albums of 202030[12]
Exclaim!Top 50 Best Albums of 202020[13]
MojoTop 75 Albums of 202050[14]
The New York Times (Jon Pareles)Best Albums of 20201[15]
Slant MagazineTop 50 Albums of 202017[16]
Under the RadarTop 100 Albums of 202013[17]

Personnel

Charts

Chart performance for The Ascension
Chart (2020)Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[18] 28
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[19] 96

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Sufjan Stevens Announces New Album The Ascension . Monroe . Jazz . . June 30, 2020 . June 30, 2020.
  2. Web site: 2020-09-24 . Sufjan Stevens on Making Pop Music in a Crisis . 2022-05-18 . Vanity Fair . en-US.
  3. Web site: Zoladz. Lindsay. Sufjan Stevens' New Album 'The Ascension': Fifty States Of Grey. NPR. September 24, 2020. December 14, 2020.
  4. Web site: Sob Through the 3rd of July with Sufjan Stevens's New Track, 'America' . Alter . Rebecca . . July 3, 2020 . September 20, 2020.
  5. Web site: Sufjan Stevens Shares New Single "Video Game" . Gregory . Allie . . August 13, 2020 . September 22, 2020.
  6. Web site: Sufjan Stevens Teams Up with 'Renegade' Dancer Jalaiah Harmon for 'Video Game' . Hughes . Will . . August 14, 2020 . August 14, 2020.
  7. Web site: Sufjan Stevens Unveils New Song "Sugar": Stream . Graves . Wren . . September 15, 2020 . September 22, 2020.
  8. Web site: Sufjan Stevens shares new track 'Sugar' . . September 15, 2020 . September 22, 2020.
  9. Web site: Hull. Tom. Tom Hull (critic). October 6, 2020. Music Week. Tom Hull – on the Web. October 7, 2020.
  10. Web site: Sodomsky. Sam. Sufjan Stevens: The Ascension Album Review. Pitchfork. September 25, 2020. December 14, 2020.
  11. Web site: Top 50 Albums of 2020. December 10, 2020. Consequence of Sound. December 1, 2020.
  12. Web site: The 50 Best Albums of 2020. Double J. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. December 9, 2020. December 10, 2020.
  13. Web site: 50 Best Albums of 2020. Exclaim!. December 2, 2020. December 10, 2020.
  14. Web site: Pearis. Bill. MOJO's Top 75 Albums of 2020. BrooklynVegan. December 10, 2020.
  15. News: Pareles. Jon. Caramanica. Jon. Zoladz. Lindsay. December 2, 2020. Best Albums of 2020. The New York Times. December 10, 2020.
  16. Web site: The 50 Best Albums of 2020. Slant Magazine. December 9, 2020. December 10, 2020.
  17. Web site: Under the Radar's Top 100 Albums of 2020. Under the Radar. January 15, 2021. January 29, 2021.
  18. Web site: ARIA Top 50 Albums Chart. Australian Recording Industry Association. October 12, 2020. October 10, 2020.
  19. Web site: Top 100 Albumes – Semana 41: del 2.10.2020 al 8.10.2020. Productores de Música de España. Spanish. October 15, 2020.

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