Artist: Sufjan StevensSong: “I Walked”Album:

The Age of AdzLabel: Asthmatic KittyRelease Date: The song is streaming at bandcamp; the album is out in OctoberRating (Skip, Stream, or Buy): StreamSufjan Stevens has already told you everything about his new album, even though it’s not released yet, and even though “I Walked” is the only song from that album currently available for streaming. His Bandcamp page has a four-paragraph, 700-word explanation (or press release) of what the upcoming Age of Adz is all about.There are proclamations that the album is “probably his most unusual, first, for its lack of conceptual underpinnings, and second, for its preoccupation with Sufjan himself,” and that it deals with “unmitigated love,” is inspired by the work of Apocalyptic art of “Royal Robertson (1930 -1997), a black Louisiana-based sign-maker (and self-proclaimed prophet),” and is an “electronic sound collage.”On the one hand, this sort of verbose artistic statement is totally expected from Stevens: he’s the kind of musician who has plenty to say–and sometimes, too much to say. If “I Walked” is a representation of The Age of Adz’s sound, then these statements ring true: album will truly be a departure from the huge, symphonic pop of Illinois. “I Walked” is heavy on the drum machine, the first half of the song–with mostly drums and vocals–is somewhat sparser than the instrumentally crowded songs Stevens is known for. The lyrics, like his wordy explanation claims, are about love: “I couldn’t bear that it’s me/ it’s my fault,” he sings on the chorus. On the other hand, it’s not really fair to expect one Stevens song to represent a whole album. If the recent All the Delighted People is any indication, The Age of Adz will be his most diverse creation yet.