Sufjan Stevens has announced a massive new 49-track album titled Convocations, which is due to be released in segments on a weekly basis up until May 6 through Asthmatic Kitty.
The two-and-a-half-hour album is said to be a "reflection on present times" and comprises five volumes. Those include Lamentations, Revelations, Celebrations, Incantations and Meditations, the latter of which is due to arrive in full this Thursday (April 8) at 12 p.m. ET.
UPDATE (4/8, 12:06 p.m. ET): You can now stream the first volume Meditations here.
Written and recorded in the fall of 2020 following the release of Stevens' most recent studio album, The Ascension, Convocations is an homage to his late father who passed away in September. The album is a response to Stevens' stages of mourning and takes the form of five sonic cycles "exploring loss, isolation and anxiety."
According to a release, the record further explores the sonic palettes of Stevens' electronic and ambient works including Enjoy Your Rabbit, The BQE, Planetarium and last year's Aporia, as well as his score for Justin Peck's The Decalogue.
Today, you can hear the first release from the project, a song titled "Meditation V," alongside its accompanying visualizer by Mexican artist Melissa Fuentes. Fuentes' visual work is a section of a larger long-form generative video art piece that is set to arrive in full alongside Convocations in May.
Listen to "Meditation V" below.
Convocations will arrive as a 5-LP vinyl box set on August 20, and pre-orders will launch on Thursday at 1 p.m. ET.
The two-and-a-half-hour album is said to be a "reflection on present times" and comprises five volumes. Those include Lamentations, Revelations, Celebrations, Incantations and Meditations, the latter of which is due to arrive in full this Thursday (April 8) at 12 p.m. ET.
UPDATE (4/8, 12:06 p.m. ET): You can now stream the first volume Meditations here.
Written and recorded in the fall of 2020 following the release of Stevens' most recent studio album, The Ascension, Convocations is an homage to his late father who passed away in September. The album is a response to Stevens' stages of mourning and takes the form of five sonic cycles "exploring loss, isolation and anxiety."
According to a release, the record further explores the sonic palettes of Stevens' electronic and ambient works including Enjoy Your Rabbit, The BQE, Planetarium and last year's Aporia, as well as his score for Justin Peck's The Decalogue.
Today, you can hear the first release from the project, a song titled "Meditation V," alongside its accompanying visualizer by Mexican artist Melissa Fuentes. Fuentes' visual work is a section of a larger long-form generative video art piece that is set to arrive in full alongside Convocations in May.
Listen to "Meditation V" below.
Convocations will arrive as a 5-LP vinyl box set on August 20, and pre-orders will launch on Thursday at 1 p.m. ET.