Who can save us from the infidels of Christmas commodity?
Look no further, tired shopper, for your hero arrives as the diligent songwriter Sufjan Stevens, army of one, banjo in one hand, drum machine in the other, holed up in his room, surrounded by hymnals, oratorios, music charts, sacred harp books, paper-clipped-photo-copied Readers Digest Christmas catalogs—singing his barbaric yawp above the snow-capped rooftops.
In 2006, it all changed when he released the gorgeous Songs for Christmas box set which contained the previous five years’ worth of EPs. The collection receives more play on my family’s Christmas playlist than any other seasonal songs. Also in 2006, Volume 6 (Gloria!) leaked online with eight more tracks.
Since Volume 8, no other Christmas EPs surfaced and many had given up on an chance of Sufjanish holiday cheer.
Silver & Gold has a great mix of traditional Christmas tunes, new original songs, and goofy sing-a-longs. The EPs’ tracks also present a variety of Sufjan staples – soft piano ballads, horn-infused choral numbers, and his more recent explorations in psychedelic electronica. Oh, and banjo strumming of course. It’s all there folks!
Middle Georgians have another reason to cheer for the holiday season. Sufjan is bringing his “Surfjohn Stevens Christmas Sing-A-Long: Seasonal Affective Disorder Yuletide Disaster Pageant on Ice.” Judging by the title, it’s guaranteed to be an amazing unique experience. You can catch him and opener Sheila Saputo (a comedic alter ego of Rosie Thomas‘) at the Georgia Theater on November 26th.
If the 58-tracks streaming to the right aren’t enough for you, below are two music videos he has released in conjunction with the five EPs. A nostalgic look at “Silver and Gold” followed by an insanely grotesque claymation film for “Mr. Frosty Man.” In fact, we’d even go so far as to label it as NSFW. Ho, ho, ho!
Sufjan Stevens – “Silver and Gold”
[youtube id=B3cfUolJxYg showinfo=0]Sufjan Stevens – “Mr. Frosty Man”
[youtube id=fDDAybCe1uI showinfo=0]