The Ascension
by Sufjan Stevens
Metascore
80

Generally favorable reviews - based on 25 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 21 out of 25
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 25
  3. Negative: 0 out of 25
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  1. American Songwriter
    Oct 2, 2020
    60
    The Ascension, Stevens’ eighth studio album over all, and the follow-up to his highly lauded outing Carrie & Lowell, diminishes the accessibility factor in favor of a more amorphous imprint, one that finds all manner of effects and an ever-constant shift in sounds that drift through practically every selection.
  2. Mojo
    Sep 23, 2020
    60
    Both beguiling and frustrating, The Ascension is complex, bold and oddly lovable. [Nov 2020, p.89]
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  3. Slant Magazine
    Sep 21, 2020
    60
    While Stevens often reaches great heights on The Ascension, he almost as often seems to get lost in his big ideas.
  5. Sputnikmusic
    Sep 28, 2020
    50
    With few exceptions, Ascension is channeled into one energy level, despite the variety of sounds. It’s busy lethargy: too hive-like to be soothing, too sedated to be invigorating.

Awards & Rankings

81
#81 Most Discussed Album of 2020

User Reviews

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User Score
8.4

Universal acclaim- based on 75 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 65 out of 75
  2. Mixed: 5 out of 75
  3. Negative: 5 out of 75
  1. Jem587
    Sep 27, 2020
    2
    It's a mess of an album. Just nothing like his other work and full of annoying sounds.
  2. BrushedRed
    Sep 27, 2020
    2
    I’ll start this off with a positive note: I’m very glad that Sufjan is trying something new. I do love his older material, but all of hisI’ll start this off with a positive note: I’m very glad that Sufjan is trying something new. I do love his older material, but all of his music in the last decade had kind of converged on the same sound. It was time to change things up.

    I think there are good ideas here. It does feel like there could be a great album buried somewhere under here, but the way it is presented just isn’t tasteful.

    Prior to this release, a Sufjan album in 2020 felt like an unbelievable dream. But upon the release of all the singles, I started to lose hope. America was too long for what it was. Sugar is boring. Video game was silly and kind of terrible. And while these singles weren’t great, they weren’t terrible either. And nothing really prepared me for the deep cuts here.

    The deep cuts are what just absolutely ruin this album. Many of them are extremely boring and go absolutely nowhere. And the other half are loaded with grating and annoying electronics. Die Happy, Ursa Major, and Gilgamesh can all evoke a headache upon listening. Loud, distasteful, and abrasive electronics and sounds plague these songs, recalling something a lot like Danse Manatee from Animal Collective. And unfortunately, just about every song falls to either one of these problems. I have no desire to revisit this album.

    I think that Sufjan could make a great album out of these ideas and sounds, but in the case of a trial and error, this is an error. I hope the next album is better, because this is one of the biggest disappointments I can think of in recent memory.    … Full Review »
  3. Animelovesstgur
    Sep 25, 2020
    10
    Sufjan has made a banger once again and I am happy for it once again in five years.
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