Sufjan Stevens: Javelin - Songs of tenderness and vulnerability with added poignancy

Sufjan Stevens, who has never made the same record twice, is hardly going to start repeating himself now. Since 1999, the Detroit singer has authored 10 studio albums of audacious alternative folk, lo-fi, electronica, indie pop, baroque pop, chamber pop, folk pop, and whatever you’re having yourself pop. Let’s not even get started on the collaborative albums.

His voice is like the loudest, most comforting whisper you will ever hear and full of tenderness and vulnerability, in cascades of words that show his unique lyrical ingenuity and dexterity. The production is pristine, bursting with ideas and unveiling lush soundscapes, and that’s just on the opening track.

Unfortunately, the release of Javelin is accompanied by the news that Stevens has been diagnosed with a rare autoimmune disorder called Guillain-Barré syndrome, which effectively means he has to relearn how to walk.

Successful treatment to date has halted his condition deteriorating, giving him a very strong chance of a full recovery.

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This makes tender tracks about unconditional love like Will Anybody Ever Love Me? all the more emotionally potent, topped off with an intricate custom-made lute called a guitalin.

The music world loves Sufjan Stevens, which is evident by the presence of several friends and contemporaries in Bryce Dessner from the National, Adrienne Maree Brown, Hannah Cohen, Pauline Delassus, Megan Lui and Nedelle Torrisi. Here’s hoping he will get to make at least 10 more albums.