For most, the time-honored tradition of the American road trip
is an exercise in freedom, a chance to explore the limitless
irresponsibility of the highway. Sufjan Stevens is making his way
across the United States, one album at a time. The Midwestern folk
musician has just completed the second installment in his ambitious
“50 States” project, the album titled
“Illinois.”
Stevens will be playing the new material at the El Rey on July
16. He began the series with his native Michigan, but picking the
next state took some work.
“I was working on several states simultaneously ““
Rhode Island, New Jersey and Illinois,” Stevens said.
“The songs for Illinois seemed more exciting, more
challenging. It seemed to lend itself more to the kind of pageantry
in the songs.”
While “Michigan” was an often somber, reflective
affair, the reference-laden “Illinois” is more eclectic
and theatrical, making heavy use of his backing band, the
Illinoisemakers. Stevens is credited in the liner notes with
everything from guitar and piano to vibraphone and sleigh bells.
The versatile musician had a hand in every aspect of the album,
engineering and producing it himself.
“I work on a lot of things simultaneously as an
exercise,” Stevens said. “I think right now I’m
at my most productive and my most prolific, so I would like to
sustain this as long as I can.”
With three albums in the past two years, including “Seven
Swans,” a break from the State series, such creative drive
isn’t born in a vacuum. Stevens, a self-described “avid
reader,” was inspired by exhaustive research into the people
and places of the Prairie State. To prepare, he read the poetry of
Carl Sandburg and Chicago author Saul Bellow’s novel
“The Adventures Of Augie March.” The song
“Chicago” is the heart of “Illinois” and
one of the album’s strongest tracks, but it sprang out of a
much more desperate need than one may expect.
“It was when we were touring around trying to play some of
the more complicated songs on “˜Michigan’ and we were
struggling,” said Stevens. “We needed some material
because we were being asked to play live, so I wrote a few simple
four-chord songs.”
The band adjusted quickly to Stevens’ direct new sound,
allowing the content of the songs to shine through. He claims they
ultimately used only 40 percent of the songs and material attempted
during the “Illinois” sessions, so with only two of the
50 “50 States” albums finished, the hardworking Stevens
has no intention of stopping anytime soon.
“After about 10, when I run out of ideas, I’ll
either collaborate or commission other bands,” Stevens said.
“That’s partly kidding, but I might be serious. … For
me, songwriting is very natural. It’s sort of my instinct, my
inclination. It’s the kind of language I use to communicate
particular things I can’t communicate in
conversation.”