Sufjan Stevens, Javelin | Album Review 💿

Gifted singer/songwriter Sufjan Stevens delivers one of the best projects of his career with his 10th studio album Javelin, dedicated to his late partner. 

Life is hard – that’s an understatement.  There are periods where things go swimmingly, as well as periods where the storms are raging.  For the talented, 🏆 Academy and Grammy award-nominated singer/songwriter 🎙 Sufjan Stevens, 2023 has been challenging.  For one, he was diagnosed with Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS), leaving him unable to promote his fine, 10th studio album, 💿 Javelin. Maybe even more surprising than the 48-year-old’s health issues is whom Javelin is dedicated to.

This album is dedicated to the light of my life, my beloved partner and best friend Evans Richardson, who passed away in April. He was an absolute gem of a person, full of life, love, laughter, curiosity, integrity, and joy… 

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Plenty to unpack, right? To be fair, Stevens’ sexuality has always been a source of speculation. His queerness isn’t far-fetched. His statement, however, marks the first time the private musician has publicly acknowledged or mentioned such. Javelin proves to be an extremely personal project for Stevens. That fact, coupled with a return to more folksy backdrops, makes it one of his very best works 💯. 

“Goodbye Evergreen” 

“Goodbye, evergreen / You know I love you / But everything heaven sent / Must burn out in the end.” 😢 🤩 🎵 “Goodbye Evergreen” fabulously sets the tone for Javelin.  Sufjan Stevens delivers beautiful vocals that are poised yet potent. His hushed voice eventually becomes amplified by vocal layering which recurs throughout Javelin. Besides the vocals, the instrumental is utterly brilliant, growing more ornate as “Goodbye Evergreen” proceeds. Stevens, an elite musician, delivers terrific arranging and producing.  Returning to the songwriting itself, notably, there are two consecutive verses, sans chorus.  In the second,  Stevens admits, “I’m frightened of the end / I’m drowning in my self-defense.” The death of Evans weighs heavily. 

“I know the time has come to ask you for a kiss / Don’t go, my lovely pantomime, receive of me my only wish.” 🤩 🎵 “A Running Start” continues the masterful start of Javelin with its thoughtful, poetic lyricism.  How Sufjan describes love is beautiful.  “I align myself with Pisces in a funny way,” he sings in the second verse, continuing, “Can you, my lover, kiss my bracelet, and my should blades? / We’ve always had a running start.” The acoustic vibes supporting the songwriting is marvelous.  The folk and chamber pop sensibilities, something that Stevens has been renowned for, are alive and well.  Once more, the vocals by Sufjan are hushed – in an undertone.  Even so, beyond his lead, the additional vocals, this time performed by 🎙 Nedelle Torrisi, provide a welcome lift 🏋️.  Two songs in, the magic of Javelin easily reveals itself.  

“Will Anybody Ever Love Me?” 

🤩 🎵 “Will Anybody Ever Love Me?” begins stripped, reminiscent of Stevens’ folky music moments 💪.  The record commences with a simple, rhythmic accompaniment carried by guitar (or similar acoustic string instrument) supporting his hushed, expressed vocals, and it’s more than enough.  Soon enough, piano joins the mix in the pre-chorus, with Stevens maintains his hushed vocal approach  (“Tie me to a tiny wooden raft / Burn my body, point me to the undertow”). The initial chorus that follows grows a bit bigger in scope, but still, Stevens remains cool, calm, and collected – even keeled: 

“Will anybody ever love me?  

For good reasons   

Without grievance, not for sport  

Will anybody ever love me?   

In every season  

Pledge allegiance to my heart  

Pledge allegiance to my burning heart.”

Following the first chorus, a more colorful soundscape arrives. In the second verse, not only is the arrangement more ornate instrumentally, but Stevens also adds vocalists who harmonize with him. The lyrics continue to shine with Stevens singing in the final couple lines of the verse, “Take my suffering as I take my vow / Wash me now, anoint me with that golden blade.” Expectedly, the second chorus is much grander – absolutely stunning with its vocal layers and the instrumental touches. Furthermore, the outro is ear-catching, highlighted by the lyric, “My burning heart,” as well as supporting vocalist singing the titular lyric. “Will Anybody Ever Love Me,” dare I say slaps in the most refined, sophisticated way possible!  

“Everything that rises must converge,” Sufjan Stevens asserts on the fourth track from Javelin, 🤩 🎵 “Everything That Rises”. Another record that begins simplistically, the arrangement expands with strings, percussion, and lush vocal layering.  “Everything That Rises” benefits from great pacing melodically.  Stevens never seems to be in a rush. Thematically, the record incorporates spirituality, a common theme of his work.  In the second verse, he petitions, “Jesus lift me to a higher plane (To a higher plane) / Can you come around before I go insane.”  In the third, he encourages “Turn yourself away / From the wickedness I said.” “Everything That Rises” features an outro highlighting the titular lyric, which hails from the ✍️ Flannery O’Connor short story collection, 📚 Everything That Rises Must Converge.

“Give myself as a sacrifice / genuflecting ghost I kiss the floor.” So, what exactly is genuflecting? Genuflect means to bend the knee, often in the context of worship.  It can also mean to be humbly obedient or respectful. 🎵 “Genuflecting Ghost” features more poetic, gut wrenching lyrics that tug the heartstrings. Stevens continues to deal with the loss of his partner, as well as with faith.  “Genuflecting Ghost” benefits from its rhythmic, acoustic guitar accompaniment.  Furthermore, the vocal arrangement is stunning. As the song progresses, the instrumental augments, with is plethora of colorful, top-notch musical ideas.  

“My Red Little Fox” 

Among the crème de la crème of Javelin is 🤩 🎵 “My Red Little Fox.”  This is truly a moving moment. Sufjan sings,  “So kiss me as I am lost / Kiss me from within / Jump in, my red little fox / Yellow paper folded off.” The pen game remains robust for Stevens, arguably one of the best songwriters of the 2000s. It seems that he is referencing his late partner metaphorically – the little red fox. Besides the fox, Stevens also mentions Pentecost, celebrated on the 50th day of Easter. “Let’s not be for want / Wanting is a sin / I don’t want anything at all,” he sings in the third verse, adding,  “Let’s drink ‘til it’s Pentecost / Drink unto the wind.” That sounds like a lot of drinks.  In addition to the lyrics, “My Red Little Fox” benefits from piano accompaniment initially (of course, it evolves into more), a tuneful, rhythmic melody, and exceptional layered vocals.

“But I was a man born invisible.” Word. 🤩 🎵 “So You Are Tired” continues the sheer excellence of Javelin, PERIOD. Stevens’ authenticity is at an all-time high here.  He’s honest about the waning state of his relationship: “So you are tired of us / So rest your head / Turning back fourteen years / Of what I did and said.” Sufjan later adds, “So, you are tired of even my kiss / So go back to your den” in the fifth verse, and, “I was the man still in love with you / When I already knew it was done” in the sixth.  A break-up has occurred, which seems to fall in line with his real-life relationship.  Beyond deep themes and genuine emotions, the music continues to be glorious, particularly when the backdrop grows in scope – becomes more awe-inspired. 

Interestingly, the title track, 🎵 “Javelin (To Have And To Hold),” marks the briefest song of Javelin. Even though it only musters up about two minutes of song, it marks another worthwhile moment (all of them are worthwhile 😉). The melody, and the arrangement earn high marks.  Of course, the lyricism goes without saying, led by the likes of the first verse, “Searching through the snow / For the javelin I had not / Meant to throw right at you / For if it had hit its mark / There’d be blood in the place / Where you stood,” as well as the chorus, “It’s a terrible thought / To have and to hold.”  

“Shit Talk” 

Once upon a time, Sufjan Stevens wouldn’t dare utter a swear word. Well, things have long since changed! “No more fighting / No more talking shit / Do as I say, not as I give up…” 🤩 🎵 “Shit Talk” contrasts “Javelin,” arriving as the longest song of the album. Running eight-and-a-half minutes, this penultimate record is a gem through and through.  “Shit Talk” continues to speak to the artistry – the musicianship of Stevens.  Metrically, “Shit Talk” embraces mixed meter, which is rarer in mainstream pop but something that Sufjan excels at. The record gets a lift from its percussion with the hard-hitting drums providing a truly formidable anchor ⚓️ 💪.  While Stevens is no powerhouse vocalist, surprisingly, at times, he’s a bit grittier and more overt vocally.  Speaking of vocals, what about that vocal arrangement, which is angelic, celestial – epic to the nth degree! “Shit Talk” is the shit thanks to its high-flying combo of vocals, lush instrumentation, the arrangement, and of course, the songwriting: 

“Our romantic second chance is dead 

I buried it with the hatchet 

Quit your antics 

Put them at the foot of the bed 

And set it, on fire 

I will always love you 

But I cannot look at you.” 

Stevens concludes his 10-track, 10th studio album with 🎵 “There’s A World,” another briefer cut.  The two-and-a-half-minute runtime is sufficient – it gets the job done.  What makes “There’s A World” different is the fact that it is a 🎙 Neil Young cover. Of course, Sufjan makes it his own.  Ultimately, it’s a fitting conclusion to Javelin.   

Final Thoughts 💭 

2023 has been a tough, tough year for Sufjan Stevens. You hate to see it. The loss of a partner. Illness.  Despite the hardships, Stevens does what he does best exceptionally well – write, perform, and record fantastic music.  💿 Javelin is Stevens at his best, a return to form to his folksy days.  Furthermore, Javelin easily ranks among the best albums of 2023 with no blatant miscues to be found.   

🤩 Gems 💎: “Goodbye Evergreen,” “A Running Start,” “Will Anybody Ever Love Me?” “Everything That Rises,” “My Red Little Fox,” “So You Are Tired” & “Shit Talk”

🎙 Sufjan Stevens • 💿 Javelin • 🏷 Asthmatic Kitty • 🗓 2023

[📷: Asthmatic Kitty]