- Critic score
- Publication
- By date
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Los Angeles TimesThe tone of subdued romanticism is balanced by a fine, seductive sense of melody and arrangement. [3 Jul 2005]
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From its framing gimmick and its anti-folk folk songwriting to its he-has-to-be-kidding song titles and its show-offy instrumentation, Illinois should reduce to a simple stunt performance. That it's pop-art of the highest caliber, instead, cements Stevens as one of the most vital voices in music today.
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Alternative PressIt's ridiculously ambitious--and consistently surprising. [Aug 2005, p.164]
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Once you've taken in how wonderful it sounds, it'll be time to thrill at how much of it there is, then how dense it all is.
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UncutAn extraordinary achievement. [Album of the Month, Aug 2005, p.86]
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Paste MagazineA unique, remarkably ambitious 22-song cycle. [Aug/Sep 2005, p.114]
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What makes the album so gigantic is how intensely unique the state’s identity becomes filtered through one man.
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Illinois is huge, a staggering collection of impeccably arranged American tribute songs.
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SpinSounds as informed by middle-American community theater, church choirs, and John Adams' American operas as any canonical "folk rock" it may resemble. [Jul 2005, p.102]
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FilterThere is real joy and loss within these unwieldy song titles. [#16, p.88]
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This album radiates positive energy, and in today's alt, that's a precious thing.
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Stevens is simply one of the most talented artists creating music right now, period.
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Exhausting, enthralling, disorientating, celebratory, and contemplative, Sufjan Stevens has delivered another album that will keep us listening and educated till Christmas.
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This is a faithful and staggering tribute to a state executed with passion and originality, and it's one of the finest records you'll hear this year.
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So much of Illinois feels magical, however, in much the same way as a large State Fair: there is commotion and wonder as the population is continually enchanted by progress, but to unknown purpose.
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A big leap from the already high elevation of Michigan.
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Vast in scope and breathtaking in its beauty, Illinois may very well be the album that heralds Sufjan Stevens as one of this young century’s most talented artists.
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It's easy to play a spot-the-Illinois-reference game, but it's just as easy to step back and marvel at the songs' musical range and sophistication.
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Illinois certainly isn't perfect, but it does do a couple important things: it proves that Sufjan has the skill and the talent to prove flexible and long-lasting, and that it's not much of a stretch to expect even better albums from him in the future.
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Someday the Smithsonian will file this sprawling musical celebration into their collection between Van Dyke Parks’ Discover America and Norman Rockwell’s Saturday Evening Post covers -- joyous, generous Americana filtered through a singular sensibility.
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A brighter, bouncier counterpart to its wintry predecessor "Michigan," "Illinois" contains some of the most beautiful pop you will hear all year long.
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These are adventurous pop songs with intricate arrangements and sophisticated chord structures.
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The 22-song epic marries Stevens' personal history to that of the state, as well as knitting spare emotional lyrics with lush orchestral and choral arrangements, upping the ante for singer-songwriters everywhere.
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But if the album feels less personally tied to Illinois than Michigan was to Michigan, the cost is worth paying: The style and overall sentiment of the new album are more sophisticated than those of its predecessor.
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It's a bit of Michigan redux, which works because it's so uniquely Stevens and so uniquely beautiful.
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Entertainment WeeklySounds quaint and even magical. [15 Jul 2005, p.71]
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There's a distinct community theater vibe to the whole affair... but the majority of Illinois is alarmingly earnest.
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A remarkable album that manages to pack in a state full of instruments... and sounds as simultaneously vast yet intimately detailed as Polyphonic Spree produced by Brian Eno.
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The New York TimesEven the most elaborate constructions come across as homemade, touched with an optimism that is by no means naïve. [10 Jul 2005]
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My only problem with the album is that it begins to devour its own tail about halfway through, at times sounding tedious, or worse, precious.
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BlenderA mesmerizing history lesson. [Aug 2005, p.114]
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For a musician like Stevens, going too far and trying too hard is the point, the way to get beyond where a more austere songwriter could get with a more naturalistic pose. So the most pleasurable music here is the most ambitious.
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It’s his masterpiece so far; a staggering collection of unspeakably precious music.
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Take away the album's conceit, and Stevens' artful songwriting -- and voice -- still remain.
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Q MagazineStevens's love for the region, its people and legacy is palpable and infectious enough to send the curious scuttling straight towards the bookshelves to discover more. [Aug 2005, p.137]
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[A] confusing but entertainingly eccentric package.
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Under The RadarIllinois is not nearly as Schoolhouse Rock as it sounds, and the songs themselves are sincere, inventive and messily joyful. [#10, p.107]
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MojoA tendency to indulgence... undermines the album's overall potency. [Aug 2005, p.96]
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This song cycle is less about a particular state than it is about Stevens' elegant façade of cleverness.
Awards & Rankings
User score distribution:
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Positive: 721 out of 792
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Mixed: 16 out of 792
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Negative: 55 out of 792
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Sep 7, 2010
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Nov 24, 2012
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Apr 5, 2017