Sufjan Stevens’ songs sway crowd

The headliner at the Buskirk-Chumley Theater on Tuesday called it the “Sufjan Stevens Live Workshop Performance,” and fans in the audience weren’t disappointed to hear new material from Sufjan Stevens himself.

“I want to hopefully hear something new, something off of the new record,” senior John Spotts said shortly before the show.

After opening act Cryptacize, which featured lead vocals from Nedelle Torrisi, Stevens kicked off the show with a short, mellow tune on banjo.

“We’re using this event to play a few new songs,” Stevens said. “Be patient with us if we read some chord charts ... maybe fumble around a bit.”

His second song, a new composition entitled “Impossible Soul” featured the French horn, trombone, keyboards and vocals from Torrisi in a 10-minute jam that leaned toward electronica. The crowd cheered in approval at his new ventures, and Stevens, adorned in a cowboy-shaped camouflage hat, followed with an announcement to the audience: “This song is yours. This is your song.”

He followed that statement with a performance of “Jacksonville,” a track off of his most popular record “Illinois,” a concept album he wrote about the influential people, places and events to come out of that state.

Junior Hannah Calvert said she hoped Stevens would play songs from that album, her favorite.

“You can tell he put a lot of research into that record,” Calvert said. “I feel like he doesn’t try to fit into any categories.”

After “Jacksonville,” Stevens joked about the experimental atmosphere.

“It’s getting a little jammy up here ... that’s maybe a bad sign,” he said.

The band then performed another new tune called “All Delighted People.”

The song opened with delicate vocals from Stevens accompanied by a French horn and trombone and then developed into an eerie sound with strong background drums.
The concert continued with a mix of old and new that entertained the audience until the show’s end.

Although a wide range of fans attended, the show attracted a majority of young people who are attracted to Stevens’ distinguished point of view.

For instance, 22-year-old Hilarie Dobbs came from Salisbury, Md. to see the show.

“The way he speaks is very spiritual,” she said. “You can tell he has a beautiful soul.”