Sufjan Stevens - Seven Swans (20th Anniversary Edition)

Released 21st June 2024

The follow-up to 2003s Michigan, Sufjan Stevens Seven Swans was released originally in 2004. The Guardian dubbed it a record of remarkable delicacy, and Billboard called it a consistently moving, subtly beautiful experience.

The folk songs of Sufjans Seven Swans occupy a singular space in his catalogue. The quiet, psalm-like music arrived less than a year after his 2003 breakthrough album, Michigan and his much-publicized announcement to write an album for each of the 50 states. Just as wider audiences were becoming acquainted with the ever-evolving artistwho had, by this point, released a lo-fi folk-pop collage (2000s A Sun Came), a Zodiac-inspired electronic suite (2001s Enjoy Your Rabbit), and a grand, orchestral epic to kickstart his exploration of the country (Michigan)he re-introduced himself in hushed tones.

Despite cultivating a vast influence that spans genres, Seven Swans is defined by its sense of i