Sufjan Claus is Coming To Town

So I am WAY late on this news, but Sufjan Stevens is officially releasing his Christmas EPs on November 21 (you know, the ones I mentioned on my old blog a year ago that you downloaded and now know by heart). Songs for Christmas features a plethora of brand-new tracks (that you didn't download and do not know by heart) and a bunch of other extras that are described on Asthmatic Kitty's Web site as:

• Five individually packaged CD EPs!
• Five Christmas stickers!
• Extensive liner notes and short stories by Sufjan Stevens!
• An original Christmas essay by Rick Moody!
• An animated music video and comic strip by Tom Eaton!
• A Christmas Songbook with lyric sheets and chord charts--so you can sing along too!
• An original Christmas Family Portrait painting of Santa Sufjan (with wife and kids!) by Jacques Bredy!

AK does have an mp3 of a new song called "Sister Winter," a link to which I have included below (so that you can download it and learn it by heart). It's not as festive as some of the other Santa Sufjan offerings. (Actually, it's downright maudlin for the first three minutes).

Speaking of Mr. Stevens, who made my favorite album of last year (Illinois)... I was listening to Seven Swans yesterday morning and was reminded of how good it is, but also of how I've barely listened to any Sufjan in '06. I didn't buy The Avalanche (see my Wishlist at right for more details) and I probably won't buy this Christmas boxed set either (as I've already downloaded most of the songs and know most of them by heart). The man is insanely prolific, which is a wonderful thing, but it also has its drawbacks, as Sufjan saturation is extremely high right now. Am I all Sufjaned out? Probably not, but, genius though he is, I just don't feel like I need every moment of his life to be recorded.

[mp3: Sufjan Stevens - Sister Winter]

p.s. The Dugout has a hilarious (and fictitious) AIM chat between Colorado Rockies third baseman Vinny Castilla and Sufjan, in which the indie crooner sings a song called "Vinny Castilla Day" from his upcoming state album, "Colorado is Colo-Radical!", that includes such memorable lines as:

denvervailcoloradosprings
broncosrockiesnuggets
rockymountains
glorious STATE! glorious STATE!

it was vinny castilla day,
the giant man of the rocky mountains,
shoulders broad

aaaaaand then my sort-of girlfriend died of cancer and was hit by a train at the same time and everybody cannot find jobs and god is a jerk but i am a christian for irony's sake ooooooooooooooooh

(Via Idolator)