Sufjan Stevens - Javelin

Javelin is the tenth studio album by American indie folk musician Sufjan Stevens, released in October 2023 via Asthmatic Kitty.

Each track on Javelin starts intimately: the trickle of an acoustic guitar, the patter of a lidded piano, and the cascade of a coruscant arpeggio.

And then, of course, there is that disarming voice, the throughline in one of the most eclectic catalogs of any songwriter this century—soft but strong, as if the very scenes of hurt and hope it is about to share have only galvanized it through the decades.

Javelin pairs musical sweep with emotional breadth, an entire lifetime of feeling woven into 42-minutes. On Javelin, Sufjan, as you may know him best, returns: offering gorgeous if pained glimpses of himself, so that we may see ourselves more fully.

Stevens created the record mostly by himself in his home studio with contributions by several friends, including harmonies provided by Adrienne Maree Brown, Hannah Cohen, Pauline Delassus, Megan Lui, and Nedelle Torrisi, among others. Additionally, The National guitarist Bryce Dessner played acoustic and electric guitar on the record.

The album has received critical acclaim and sees Sufjan Stevens returning to "full singer-songwriter mode" for the first time since his 2015 studio album Carrie & Lowell.

This album is an indie record stores exclusive edition on lemonade yellow coloured vinyl housed in a single pocket sleeve with a 48 page booklet, pressed in the US via Atomic Kitty.