Sufjan Stevens paints his story with indie brushstrokes

IU’s student-run radio station WIUX and Spirit of ’68 Promotions will present American singer and songwriter Sufjan Stevens at 8 p.m. Tuesday at the Buskirk-Chumley Theater.

Stevens’ most recognized works are his albums recorded under his proclaimed “Fifty States Project.” The project announced his intent to record a separate concept album for each of the 50 states. He featured his home state first when he released “Michigan” in 2003.

Although this first record grabbed little attention, his second installment “Illinois” received national acclaim in 2005 with rave reviews from Rolling Stone, Spin and the New York Times. The album won several awards, including the Pantheon Prize, and was chosen as 2005 album of the year by Paste Magazine.

Stevens’ style of music in this project has centered predominantly on the pairing of indie folk with orchestral sounds, which he accentuates with string and horn arrangements. Many of his songs are given extravagant, sentence-long titles, and some seem to include spiritual references.

“He offers something different,” senior Caitlin Sheller said. “All those wicked titles and so much information is packed into each song. It’s bizarre, but in a good way.”

As for material, “Michigan”  and Illinois” shed light on the significant and sometimes lesser-known places, events and people to come out of the particular state.

Highlights on “Illinois” include a tune referencing the Black Hawk War, a war between Native Americans and the U.S. in the 1830s; a song documenting the story of rapist and serial killer John Wayne Gacy, Jr.; and an ode to Chicago.

This framework also serves as a vein Stevens uses to entwine his own experiences into each album.

The WIUX co-sponsored show is the station’s first this concert season.

“Every year the station does a kick-off show, and we got contacted to cosponsor the Sufjan Stevens concert, so it was perfect,” WIUX Music Director and IDS reporter Kelsey McArdle said.

WIUX Special Events Director Katie McKenna said the station hopes the concert will raise some awareness about their organization.

“I thought it would be a great way to get our name out there,” she said. “At the concert, we’ll have our own table with T-shirts and information that explains what WIUX does.”

McKenna said tickets for the show sold out immediately.

“Our whole thing is playing underrated music,” she said. “Sufjan is an incredible musician.”