Illinois
Sufjan Stevens

4.0 + This album was the critical darling of its day and I dutifully put it in my regular rotation for a couple of months. My only takeaway from all that listening is "Chicago" with its soaring and achingly sad chorus ("all things go/know/grow"). Revisiting this record years later, I can see why I left with an overall positive impression but with a cloudy memory of its details. "Chicago" is one of the few deeply personal and introspective moments. Much of the rest is either: a) songs about Chicago history like the World's Fair that sound like they belong in a student-written high school musical, b) lovely instrumentals with a vaguely "old time-y" feel. Not to say that any of this is bad, and in small doses it's charming. But mostly I find it a little too quirky. I'd also share just one other (small) criticism and that's with the album cover. It's silly looking and doesn't do the album justice. And WHY the awful Quiet Riot pun ("Come on feel the Illinoise")?? Oh and (I actually will add one more gripe) why such long song titles?? I hate those, too.

4