MUSIC: 'Sisy' Boy Sufjan

[The lead photo is just a gratuitous chance to feature Sufjan Stevens in a swimsuit]

NYC (via Michigan) folksinger turned indie darling Sufjan Stevens is a wonder. And that is not just due to the ageless nature of his beauty, it's the way he's taken a 180 from the balladeer and character study-driven songwriting on two albums devoted to two Midwestern states' history (Michigan and Illinois), to become an electronic experimenter.

After coming to fame with his 2005 Illinois album (and some years off to do an endless train of Christmas records), he snuck back in with 2010's The Age of Adz - a sprawling album with Sufjan's folk stylings covered in synths and drum programming.

Now Sufjan has a new band, Sisyphus (named after the disappointed, rock-rolling mythological character) and a full-length album. Joined by electronic artist Son Lux and rapper (yes, I said rapper) Serengeti, Sisyphus makes modern rap/indie RnB style jams. If you're a devotee of his odes to the Lord from his acoustic Seven Swans album, you might have your head twisted hearing his latest collaboration: https://soundcloud.com/sisyphusmusic

I'm not a fan of the rap elements (which comprise a large portion of the album); they are too standard and boring. I would have been more impressed if Sufjan had released this as a solo album under his own name. It is a slick, well-produced modern pop/RnB/hip-hop album and coming from him, that's a bit crazy.

Watch the sublime video for the stand-out song 'Take Me' - lush, beautiful and very modern sounding. NSFW-video, with flashes of bare chests, so beware if that's a problem:

Much like how U2 went all Europop, dance and electronic with their three '90s albums, only after Pet Shop Boys shocked them with their 1991 cover of 'Where the Streets Have No Name,' Sufjan heard my band's 2007 electronic cover of his orchestral anthem 'Chicago' and a few years later came back with a synth-coated take on his own work. Right? Stranger things have happened.

Oh and I leave you with this coz...do you need a reason?

MUSIC: Situation Comedy

Today, after a brief (or not so brief) absence, I've re-discovered my love for British pop band The Divine Comedy. I've been playing his albums and tracks all day.

For those not-in-the-know (many, I'm sure), The Divine Comedy is one Mr. Neil Hannon, the only permanent member of this now almost 25-year-old band.

A deep creamy voice, like a young Scott Walker, croons over:

Love songs, like...well, 'Songs of Love'

Social commentary, like 'Sweden' 

and wistful character studies, like 'Commuter Love'

Think Morrissey, if he wasn't afraid to ditch the tired rock n'roll drag; or Neil Tennant, if the Pet Shop Boys dabbled in orchestral pop instead of synthpop.

I'm surprised no one has tried to do a full stage musical using TDC songs. Surely, in his large back catalogue, a great love story-meets-social upheaval drama can be pieced together with multiple threads covering the above themes. Act One opening with a scene on a train ('National Express') and ending with the epic 'The Certainty of Chance' perhaps? The mix-and-match possibilities are endless. Maybe I should start up on writing that? Or at least a Microfilm cover.

By the way, anybody have a copy of 'Fin de Siecle'? I lost mine.