Seven Swans (2004)

Album artwork for Seven Swans

In 2004, Sufjan Stevens released his fourth album, Seven Swans. The album is an interesting case when compared to his more popular Michigan and Illinois albums released in the surrounding years. This is primarily due to the contrasting sounds and the instruments featured. Seven Swans exposes listeners to a much more personal and sincere Sufjan; therefore, presenting him more as an individual. Additionally, he has been known to weave religious themes into his writing and often utilizes double entendres to strengthen lyrical content and expression. Seven Swans proves to be Sufjans’ most notable approach to addressing the Christian faith through his unique, yet iconic folk sound.

As I mentioned above, Seven Swans emphasizes Sufjan's individualism, which drastically differs from his state-named albums. For example, Illinois contains complex compositions that feature brass, strings, winds, choir, piano, banjo and guitar throughout an entire track. However, Seven Swans predominantly features Sufjan on guitar and banjo; thus, accentuating the less frequent moments when background parts are introduced. Furthermore, almost every track opens with a guitar or banjo intro being complimented by Sufjans’ soft and vulnerable vocals. Consider the track titled, “All the Trees of the Field Will Clap Their Hands” (see example below). Here we witness a man singing alone with a banjo in hand. Progressively throughout the track, simple, non-threatening parts are added. First piano, then vocals and finally percussion towards the end. Although Sufjan's compositions are known for their frenzies of orchestral sound and complexity, the simplicity of Seven Swans is impressive as well. Therefore, the elements of simplicity, and more importantly that of individualism, are what set this album apart from a majority of his other works.

Sufjan accomplishes the embodiment of individualism through sound, but through visuals as well. I experienced this when I saw him perform the album's title track, "Seven Swans," live in 2010. The show began as he approached center stage under a thin spotlight while being shrouded in complete darkness and had a banjo in hand. The silence of the stage was broken by his melancholy banjo tune and trembling vocals. As the song's bridge began, the whole stage lit up, instantly revealing a massive background band from the thick darkness, providing a deafening contrast of sounds and lights. When the bridge ended and the second verse opened, the stage was blackened once more and the background performers had vanished as quickly as they came, returning Sufjan to his solitude under a thin spotlight. In case this anecdote sparked interest, I've provided a video of a similar performance that took place in France.

While Seven Swans is unique in its sound, it also emphasizes religious themes through lyrical content. In other words, Seven Swans references biblical text primarily throughout the album. For example, consider track titles such as “Abraham” and “In the Devil’s Territory.” In “Abraham,” Sufjan sings of the Old Testament Abraham and the moments before he attempted to sacrifice his son, Isaac, in God’s name. Additionally, “In the Devil’s Territory” references Matthew 4:1 and the forty days and nights Jesus spent fasting in the desert while being confronted by the devil. Furthermore, the title track of the album, “Seven Swans,” references Revelation and the Rapture. Although there are no swans in Revelation, it may be a reference to the seven angels mentioned in the Book of Revelation. For example, the lyrics: “we saw the dragon move down...he will chase you” illustrates the text in Revelation where the dragon, Satan, pursues a woman in the desert.

However, not all tracks are based on biblical text. “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” alludes to Flannery O’Connor’s short story of the same title; yet, Sufjan’s song speaks from the point of view of The Misfit: the antagonist of O'Connor's short story. This can be inferred not only by the song title, but by the lyrics as well: "Hold to your gun, man. And put off all your peace...But someone's once like me. She was once like me." Sufjan's lyrics are emphasizing a theme of the short story: that people may find common ground through their wrong-doings.

Seven Swans stands alone in the mass of Sufjan Stevens’ work. The creative folk melodies and Sufjan's passion for story telling littered throughout the album make it an excellent listen, regardless if one doesn't value biblical text or Christian faith. If the previous information hasn't compelled you to listen to this album, in 2004 a Pitchfork review of Seven Swans awarded the album a score of 8.1 out of 10. Ultimately, Seven Swans illustrates a more personal and vulnerable Sufjan that isn't seen as prominently in his music. The sincere, simple and memorable songs of Sufjan Stevens’ Seven Swans makes the album all the more inviting.