In 2012, the death of Carrie, Sufjan Stevens’ apparently shameful mother, totally destabilized the aesthetic leader of the indie movement. Memories of early childhood and adolescence came to the surface: abandonment of a mother in psychological distress, a strange life in a family weirdly rebuilt by his father, wounds to the soul, then forgetting, denial, a brilliant career and… memories of the disappearance of Carrie, who had made a new life with Lowell. To unpack his personal story, Stevens simplified his orchestral approach in the studio, getting to the heart of his own emotions and vulnerability. The suite on stage was enriched with formidable instrumental and electro arrangements, in the service of the most touching album of his undeniably impressive discography.
