Sufjan Stevens has just announced a new full-length album, The Ascension, and it’s particularly exciting for fans – it will be his first solo studio album since the critically acclaimed Carrie & Lowell (2015), considered by many to be his best record.
Since 2015, Sufjan has released a few collaborative albums (Planetarium, The Decalogue, Aporia) and a mixtape (The Greatest Gift), contributed to the “Call Me By Your Name” film soundtrack, and put out a single inspired by and named after ice skater Tonya Harding.
Sufjan’s diverse discography, over the years, has demonstrated his musical prowess. While we don’t know much about The Ascension as yet, Rough Trade’s pre-order page calls it “musically expansive and sweeping in thematic scope.”
We got the first taste today, with the 12-minute long single “America”. The rest of the album will be released via Sufjan’s label, Asthmatic Kitty Records, on September 25.
Stream and purchase "America" via Bandcamp, iTunes, and Spotify.
Here you can pre-order The Ascension, featuring covert art designed by Sufjan, and receive a 16-page booklet of his drawings with CD and vinyl orders.